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 Topic: What on earth causes new(ish) caravans to
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25/6/2012 at 3:19pm
Location: Lancashire
Outfit: Caravan now Sold
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A caravan mechanic said to me that Baileys were awful but Elddis were quite good. just going on his own experience.
our caravan mobile engineer said the opposite.
Does anyone know what are the most damp free makes? or does it really depend on the fitter's mood on the day.
there is none,its all luck on the day you buy it.there used to be a saying if it does not leak in the first three years it is not going too.if i had to pick one i would say coachman.
Post last edited on 25/06/2012 15:29:22
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the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
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26/6/2012 at 12:38am
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Can't wait for the Japs to do to the caravan industry what they did to our crap car and motorcycle industry in the mean time I will never waste my money on a new useless piece of junk caravan
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26/6/2012 at 7:38am
Location: plymouth
Outfit: Ford Kuga Swift challenger
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I work for a large motor company & I can assure you cars do leak but not on a big scale like caravans. I think caravan manufacturers need to up there game & give what we are paying for , quality.
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26/6/2012 at 8:44am
Location: Morecambe
Outfit: Daystar `91 + Berlingo
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It is just so sad to hear a lot of this. British caravans look great, have a long pedigree like the cars and m/bikes . . . .Is it so difficult to make `em waterproof?
Watch out for a manufacturer who`ll offer a 15 year new for old guarantee against water ingress . . . will include expensive (yearly) servicing of course. . .
I`ll buy a fully serviced 15 year old one
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Peripheral people don`t have as much excitement but they sure live longer
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26/6/2012 at 9:40am
Location: Hants
Outfit: Fleetwood Heritage 640 EB & ML270
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I don't think the make or age of a caravan is any indicator of its likelihood to leak.
The fact that 'vans are put together with soft, non setting sealant, then get a complete vibro-massage every time they are taken on the road means that any 'van could start leaking at any time.
This is a sad fact, but owners need to be proactive about the situation and test for water ingress regularly with a good damp meter. If you know about a problem early enough, its a leak, and can usually be fixed by resealing something. If you don't know about a water ingress problem until your next service your leak could well have become galloping rot and could cost thousands to fix.
We got one of these;
Protimeter Surveymaster
secondhand for about £90 and think it is essential caravanning equipment. The readings on these are not affected by condensation, don't leave holes and are accurate. We think its better to spend money on one of these than suffer a massive repair with all its cost and inconvenience, because we couldn't check the 'van properly.
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26/6/2012 at 10:39am
Location: None Entered
Outfit: None Entered
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Watch the first video to see the crude method of overlapping joints, just hammered over and stappled how crude is that.
the second video is a step in the right direction but watch as they rely on big globs of mastic on some of the joints, big improvement yes but lets get rid of the wood in the pannels and have injection mouldings for the panels with larger overlaps.
I used to have a one piece fibreglass car that is now 40 years old that is still going and not leaking
whos going to be first????????????.
video 1.
video 2
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alpiner
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26/6/2012 at 7:14pm
Location: Morecambe
Outfit: Daystar `91 + Berlingo
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Great videos, thanks for that! Construction looks OK - but could be so much better I reckon wrt water ingress likelihood. . . .time will tell wi these new models.
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Peripheral people don`t have as much excitement but they sure live longer
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27/6/2012 at 12:06pm
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Quote: Originally posted by michael on 25/6/2012
A caravan mechanic said to me that Baileys were awful but Elddis were quite good. just going on his own experience. our caravan mobile engineer said the opposite. Does anyone know what are the most damp free makes? or does it really depend on the fitter's mood on the day. there is none,its all luck on the day you buy it.there used to be a saying if it does not leak in the first three years it is not going too.if i had to pick one i would say coachman.
Post last edited on 25/06/2012 15:29:22
Hi Micheal, a dealer told me that if you could find a dry bailey he would put it in a museum
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27/6/2012 at 8:17pm
Location: crewe
Outfit: Elddis Xplore 302 and Nissan Campervan
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From experience with fibreglass caravans I would look for a fibreglass model. Freedom ( from Poland) are effectively seamless and ours ( a 1996 model) is bone dry throughout. Look for seamless build, especially in the roof construction. Not sure which UK made caravans are fibreglass though. Sorry.Also I think that better sealing is possible where seams DO occur with fibrglass than with aluminium sheet.
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cramming for my finals in the twilight zone
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27/6/2012 at 8:41pm
Location: Hants
Outfit: Fleetwood Heritage 640 EB & ML270
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Not that many British GRP built caravans about. Some of the older "boat roof" designs had GRP lids and some caravans have GRP outer skins. I think it comes down to weight. British 'vans are built with VERY thin aluminium outer skins, then foam and softwood framing, then thin ply. Swap any part for GRP and you will add weight and as British cars tend to be lighter than some, you can't add too much weight.
Adria are using GRP outer skins now and Bailey use GRP inner skins on alutech 'vans, but the rest haven't changed much for decades.
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30/6/2012 at 11:30am
Location: Clevedon
Outfit: CRV 2.2 i-DETEC & Bailey Pegasus 534
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Bailey Orion's are built using the Alutech method but use fibreglass outer shells as opposed to aluminium on the other models.
Six jays; I assume your dealer is not a Bailey dealer and is hoping to sell you another make?!.
As for a dry Bailey.. I assure you mine is bone dry but you're not gonna put it in a museum!!
Even if you had some water ingress in an Alutech van, aside from the floor there's not much that will be affected by damp anyway. Aluminium, plastic foam and GRP could all be submerged in water for a long time before any problems occurred. You could make a boat or submarine out of these materials let alone a caravan. Alutech vans are not perfect but they are a huge step in the right direction imho.
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30/6/2012 at 3:28pm
Location: Lancashire
Outfit: Caravan now Sold
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Even if you had some water ingress in an Alutech van, aside from the floor there's not much that will be affected by damp anyway. Aluminium, plastic foam and GRP could all be submerged in water for a long time before any problems occurred. You could make a boat or submarine out of these materials let alone a caravan. Alutech vans are not perfect but they are a huge step in the right direction imho. have read of two or three leaking at the front.
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the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
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