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Don't keep the blinds down for long as it can cause problems so for the three months or so over winter leave them up. We always take everything out when winterising and leave the furnishings/bed etc in a bedroom at home. We know that will mean they are kept in good condition. In a cold dampish atmosphere of winter the furnishings may suffer. We also take the curtains out and give them a clean and keep them at home.

As you have hook up I would put it on for a day every so often just to charge the battery up. May as well heat through as well.

We also take the wheels off so that they are not standing on the same spot all winter. We replace with "winter wheels". Many leave the wheels on...its a personal choice. Maybe not as bad standing on grass.

We also leave a couple of Kampa damp busters with Calcium Chloride crystals in the van over winter. Draws the water out of the air. Leave doors and cupboards open to circulate air around the van.

Leave plugs in your sinks to stop the bad guys getting in!

Phil

The little buggers do!!!!! Take note those of you concerned about earwigs!!!

Phil

You Jammy B******. Best to keep the fridge on over winter in your man shed.... and full of John Smiths......tele in there for the footie............can you give us all the address?

Twistleton Crags followed by a few beers.............(you have to know your Limestone Pavements to follow that reference) it must be like heaven

Phil

Well, Twistleton Scar is only 2.5mile away! Not visible from this site as its too low, if you look above Twis you can follow the pavements and the wall a further 6 mile up the ridge of Whernside, best of all you can drop down to the kingsdale road, rise again to the Turbary Road, past Rowten Pot as deep as Gapin Gil but not as famous. End up at at Tow Scar, where people like to paraglide and then back through the waterfalls into Ingleton! For a few pints before heading back to my town.

That was just like being there in my armchair...............Bliss and on the Pen Y Ghent and down into Litton Dale....................and back to the caravan for a pint

Phil

Quote: Originally posted by Fat Bum on 17/8/2010

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Why not use your caravan in winter, caravans cost a lot of money and I think it is silly to leave them unused over winter. There are lots of sites open, or if you don't want to tow why not go to the site it is on and spend the odd weekend there rather than just a few hours!!

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If your curtains are too short to cover the windows, why not use a cardboard template cut out to fit the windows?  Don't leave the blinds down though.  Personally, I wouldn't worry about leaving the soft furnishings in the van over the winter.  We have never had problems over this last 20 odd years.  We always take out bed linen etc.

Your storeage sound a dream. 

We too have simular storage and I have to admit, I strip absolutly everything out so its just a shell, no soft furnishings. I've always left the blinds down but will prob leave them up this year.

I will actually be closing mine down in a couple of week time as soon as I return from last trip this year :-( very sad indeed!

We too have the option of EHU through the year at our storage site, its a 'dont take the micky' policy, so every other weekend is fine, I will go once a month though to put the EHU on to top up the battery, I never put the heating on though as my chain of thought is 'why would mice want to go in a cold caravan when they can make home in my nice cosy one'! Probably totally ilogical but thats my mind!

I will put the dehumidifier on though when ever I'm there to help out a bit.

Surely using a dehumidifier or moisture crystals only works if the van is sealed. With all the air vents in caravans all you are doing is absorbing moisture out of the atmosphere. When I need to dry a boat hull it has to be sealed in a large polythene bag - otherwise despite months of using a dehumidifier, and emptying gallons of water away, the hull retains exactly the same moisture content as before.

So long as the caravan doesn't leak then it's better simply to ensure a good circulation of air and even though it might get cold it won't get damp.

Hi Grad Sailor

My understand was that the increased humidity at winter time can lead to excess moisture which will be absorbed into the upholstery and wood - which can result in condensation, leading to problems with mould, damp and musty smells. (You can always find something to worry about can't you?) Anyway, that's why we take our furnishings out (precautionary and its not that much bother + we have spare bedrooms to store stuff in) and leave the crystals in to do their stuff. Visit the van every so often in winter to empty the collected water and check things out. Just like pottering..........

Phil

Hi Grad Sailor,

My dehumidifer was taken out of my boat when I sold it a few years ago, again, that was never sealed and used all winter and felt like it was doing the trick.