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Before I go and view (and possibly take away) this caravan, what do people think of it?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4605058026&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1

Should I steer away from it? Its very cheap.

Tim

Hi Tim see this post can u help?? 

atb

Wizard

Informatave thread there!

This is tricky.... The guy wants £350, with from what ive seen is very cheap for a 1987 van. The damp patch is meant to be small and the van has been stood nearly a year so wouldnt any van develop condensation and damp in that time?

For that money I could use it a year or two, clean it up  and sell it for what i paid for it, aslong as the damp doesnt get any worse!

Well we think that once the work has been done on it and a good scrub that it would make a good caravan. If you try it for a couple of years and you find that it dosent live up to your standards then yes we would say trade it in and look for something better, the work that needs doing dosent sound too bad. Even though it looks in a little state sometimes it looks worser than it is.There are plenty of places out there that will exchange or trade in older caravans and that wont cost the earth to do it aswell.

Good luck in what ever you descide to do.

Quote: Originally posted by Lankytim on 15/1/2006

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Informatave thread there!

This is tricky.... The guy wants £350, with from what ive seen is very cheap for a 1987 van. The damp patch is meant to be small and the van has been stood nearly a year so wouldnt any van develop condensation and damp in that time?

For that money I could use it a year or two, clean it up  and sell it for what i paid for it, aslong as the damp doesnt get any worse!

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Ah i see , you should imo view the caravan first and check it all over with a damp meter ( see if it's damp in more than one area and how big the said area is ), it may need new tyres if there are cracks in the side walls etc , check everything you can ie water , gas appliances , electric's , running gear , windows / door , etc , then decide .
I would think about repairing the damp rather than just hoping it doesn't get any worse , it wouldn't be nice sleeping / staying in a damp caravan .
To be quite honest you'd probably be better off spending a bit more and getting one that doesn't have damp and comes with some accessories like awning , water barrels / pump , gas bottles etc .
Hope this helps .

atb

Wizard

Quote: Originally posted by wizard9956 on 15/1/2006

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Ah i see , you should imo view the caravan first and check it all over with a damp meter ( see if it's damp in more than one area and how big the said area is ), it may need new tyres if there are cracks in the side walls etc , check everything you can ie water , gas appliances , electric's , running gear , windows / door , etc , then decide .
I would think about repairing the damp rather than just hoping it doesn't get any worse , it wouldn't be nice sleeping / staying in a damp caravan .
To be quite honest you'd probably be better off spending a bit more and getting one that doesn't have damp and comes with some accessories like awning , water barrels / pump , gas bottles etc .
Hope this helps .

atb

Wizard

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All common sense  when I think about it! I would, of course repair where the damp had been getting in and maybe any damp damage that was there.  If it was  minor id  probably live with it.  With regular use would the damp dry out? I know the damage wouldnt miraculously heal itself, but aslong as it didnt get any worse then that would be the main thing.

Im going to view  the caravan on thursday, Ill buy a damp meter and if theres a horrible huge damp  mess inside ill politely pass on the offer. This van is getting near the maximum we were looking to spend for a first-time caravan and is more modern than the ones we have been looking at. Its not round the corner though.. 128 miles away!

You never know, i could be pleasantly surprised!

>>With regular use would the damp dry out?
It's unlikely , if you seal where it's been getting in then you'll end up trapping the damp in . You could try drying the area with a fan heater and having a vent open to let any moisture out , though there will still be damp in the roof spars . If you do buy the caravan we'll be here to advise you on the damp repair should you need us . GOOD LUCK

atb

Wizard

Ps have a look at my webpage and the links on it if you want more info on damp repairs . http://hp-h.com/p/wizard41/

Seen your link Wizard, Im in shock!! talk about tip of the iceberg! For the money, perhaps I should simply get a dry old model, instead of a damp newer one. 

I can see as far as damp goes, youve been there, done that and got the T shirt!

Ive decided not to view  the van.  Those pictures are just too scary! I think we'l look at an older van thats dry. An older one for similar money would probably have some extras like an awning with it too! Dont want to buy a wreck thats going give us a whole lot of trouble.  Its a long way to view it too.

Thanks all for your advice!

Hi Tim , think you've made the right choice m8 , although damp is fixable it's better if you don't start off with a caravan that's been damp for some time , you could end up having to do loads of work to put it right . I'm sure a dry one will turn up just keep looking .

atb

Wizard

Ps i'd ask myself one question , if the owner knows the caravan has damp and hasn't bothered to fix it , or clean it ! , what would that say about other area's of the caravan that need attention . I'd rather buy a caravan that's been looked after , rather than one that hadn't .