Tag Archives: design

Here’s Another Thing….

26 Saturday Jan 2019

Posted by in Accessories, Blog updates, Caravan Designs, Caravan Electrics, General, Uncategorized

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Following on from my last post – Never Admit to Being a Caravan Designer (Well Not to Caravaners!) I was floored by the number of emails I received on the subject of design. So after our trip out to the Manchester Caravan & Motorhome show at Event City a few days ago, I thought I’d sit down and pen a few more thoughts on the subject.

I believe that if you store something where you use it, it will make your life easier. One of the big items that almost every caravan wrestles with is the Aquarol. its bulky, fairly lightweight when empty, often wet from the liquid sunshine we enjoy in the UK and  sometimes muddy. Where do you put it when travelling? OK, so you buy a bag to sort out the wet and muddy bit and maybe just put it in the doorway… or in the shower tray. That seems like a good place. Just carry it through your nice clean van and put it in the shower tray. Sorted…. unless you have a mid bathroom shower that has the shower ‘conveniently” located over a wheel so the floor has a step in it. The designers sell it as a feature… “You can rest your feet on it when showering” they say. However don’t stick your Aquarol in there if you have bi fold doors!

A fellow caravan enthusiast who shall be nameless – I’ll call him George… decided that this would be perfect for storing the Aquarol. He put it in the shower of his previous rear bathroom outfit for years without incident so no need to change anything. Upon arrival at site in with the first outing of the shiny new caravan all was going well until Mrs George popped her head out of the door and exclaimed to George that she could not get the Aquarol out. “It’s in the shower dear” exclaimed George. Irritatedly “I know that I can see it but I can get it out” came the rather louder reply. On examination of the problem George discovered that the carefully placed Aquarol had somehow shifted and was now preventing the bi-fold door from opening therefore stopping it’s extraction and subsequent deployment and use for brewing that much-needed cup of tea.

What’s the moral of this story? Well if you store something where you use it it will make your life easier. So as nearly all caravan users possess possibly one of the best inventions ever for transporting the splashy stuff about with ease why haven’t caravan designers thought about this? I was thinking of George when I was pondering the uses of this cupboard…..

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There is a matching one on the other side funnily enough… but what did the designer have in mind for these cupboards… shoes (who would want to put wet shoes away in there?) Handbags…. maybe but I prefer to hang mine on a hook. It looks great… on a computer mock-up but as for use, well maybe I have a better idea. As they are right at the back of the caravan you really would not want to store your collection of beach pebbles in them.

Instead of a cupboard, just block it off and instead create a wet locker across the back of the caravan and stick a door like this in it……

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… it may need a bit of adjusting size wise but imagine a wet locker accessed from the side that you use the Aquarol and wastehog on that you can simply throw these two bulky but relatively light items in… and there would be room for your wet and muddy mains cable too! All right where you need them.

Now here is an idea…. put the water inlet in there along with the mains inlet and a small hatch in the floor…. save on cutting holes in the side of the caravan and it means we all might just get away with using shorter mains cables!

Caution Vehicle Reversing

In a galaxy far far away… oops wrong blog…. I recently watched a chap valiantly trying to manoeuvre his caravan onto an awkward pitch using his motor mover. Stone walled raised bed one side, overhanging branches, awkward access angle all on a short pitch with a stone wall at the back of the pitch. Normally I’d postulate that the chap in question would have been able to perform this manoeuvre on a sunny afternoon with remote control in one hand, a mug of tea in the other while carrying on a conversation with the couple two pitches down. However at eight o’clock on a winters eve in near wartime blackout conditions required the use of a head torch (flashlight for my US readers) and a lantern held aloft by his partner and much wandering side to side and swivelling of the head to direct the head torch in the desired direction.

We don’t have a motor mover… for some reason Sue seems to take enjoyment from me sweating like a traction engine driver at a summer steam rally when reversing on to a pitch… but if we did, the question I’d have to ask is why don’t they have a 13 pin socket wired in so that you could simply plug-in the caravan’s road lights and turn on the reversing lights, hazard lights… heck even get the marker lights and brake lights to work. I’m sure there are people out there that have to detach their caravans on the road and reverse them into their drive and having simple flashing hazard lights and operational marker lights would be a good safety feature.

I have a small cunning device waiting to be fitted…. it consists of a remote key fob and a couple of solid state relays to be mounted in the caravan. On selecting reverse while seated in the vehicle I can simply push a button on the key fob and it will turn on the awning lights and can be made to turn on under floor LED flood lights to light up either side of the caravan. It stays on for a pre-determined time that can be adjusted so if you have to pull forward for a second attempt (highly likely) the lights stay on. Just waiting for a suitable time to mosey off down to the caravan storage site to do a test fit.

The Perfect Caravan

For those go you that have been following the blog for a while will know we have been flip-flopping like a stroppy teenager over getting a new caravan. Well we were…. then we weren’t than we were, then we changed our minds about what we wanted. Then we couldn’t find one and we changed our minds again… anyhoo we managed to tick more boxes off our list with one of these than any other…..

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So the question is….. will we or won’t we? Will there be a deal at the NEC in February to tempt us…. or will we wait until the August price slashing begins?

By the way if you wanted to know how George managed to retrieve the Aquarol…. it required a wire coat hanger and a length of paracord…. and about four hours of fishing to raise the Aquarol up above the step in the shower tray.

Never Admit to Being a Caravan Designer (Well Not to Caravaners!)

03 Thursday Jan 2019

Posted by in Blog updates, Caravan & Motorhome Show, Caravan Designs, Modifications, Uncategorized

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It’s that time of year again, a few days before the opening of the North’s biggest caravan and motorhome show and the first of the New Year at Manchester’s Event City and again we are sat thinking about changing the van this year. Mind you we were convinced last year… and the year before we were going to change the caravan.

In 2017 we went to the shows, round dealers and almost did the deal. However a few things just kept us from signing on the dotted line. We also came close last year, but again there were design elements that just didn’t sit right with me.. or t least would make me compromise more than I wanted to.

So here is my guide to any caravan designers out there working on the 2020 design that they hope is going to be the next winner.

Looks and sounds good…

A locker containing a TV swing out arm…. OK stop watching American RV shows right now. What were you thinking guys… We don’t sit round campfires watching TV in the middle of the Mohave… honestly we don’t. If people want to watch TV in their awning I’m pretty sure they will have come up with a way by now that suits them. It’s not even like you designed the thing so that you could leave a 24 inch TV permanently mounted and closed away securely in the locker.

While we are on the subject of TV’s…. stop putting the radio in a cupboard in the front of the caravan… put it near where you provide a TV mount. A lot of thin screen TV’s have poor speakers and a great solution that many caravaners opt for is connecting the TV sound to the radio AUX input… but a lot don’t because it becomes a major challenge routing a pair of screened wires round and through all the cabinets. Make it easy, put the radio near the TV, install a AUX jack and sell it as a feature!

Own Up….

Right, which designer is going to own up to designing a storage space in the wardrobe in the rear bathroom of a van to store the table. Did you design the van and at some point while you were stood at the coffee machine someone say to you “Dude I didn’t see where you stored the table in your design” and you immediately rush back to your workstation and in a panic put in the wardrobe in the rear washroom.

Have you ever had to get a table out, and set it up with a caravan full of people balancing drinks when some one is shooting “PLEASE SET THE TABLE UP NOW… DINNERS READY”

It’s on the other side…. or end!

Right I want all designers to go and stand on empty pitches at five caravan sites and look round. What do you see?  Bollards…. you read that right Bollards… at the rear of the pitch. Why there you may ask? Well designing a site or upgrading a site if you can avoid digging across a pitch to install services it tends to be cheaper and easier to reinstate the ground afterwards, so most are laid out that way for cost and convenience. Is been like that for quite a few years. So why do you insist in keep designing the power, water connections at the front of the caravan… and some of you just for good measure put one on each side. If you take the common size pitch and park your caravan in the middle throw up a mahoosive flappy tent thing on one side and connect up your Aquarol (other water containers are available) then try to squeeze your tow car down the other side – that is if you have the room with an 8 foot wide van – avoiding parking so that vehicle door can actually open without bashing the water container or the passenger can actually squeeze past.

Here’s an idea….

Here’s an idea…. put the water inlet and power inlet on the rear off side corner and while you are at it check out how American RV’s have a locker with all the connections inside and a convenient opening in the floor to pass the connections through. That would save cutting holes and installing expensive fittings. While you are at it moving the water  about, here’s an idea, install a simple Hozelock fitting with a check valve and pressure regulator so when on a device pitch, rather than expecting customers to buy expensive adaptor fittings, they can just buy a cheap food grade hose to hook up. Could this be the next USP I wonder?

To off grid or not to off grid?.. that is the question.

I applaud the designer that moved the leisure battery from a side locker to under floor mounting and moved the gas bottle from the front to the side. Heavy items, get them low and in the centre I say.

However, next year go one step further… make the battery locker bigger to accommodate two batteries and ready for Lithium… which may mean insulating them. Nearly all caravans are sold now with solar panels, but it would be nice to be able to choose to install an additional battery to take advantage of the solar without having to start installing aftermarket sealed and externally vented battery boxes.

It’s behind you…

…. well it might be but I can’t see it. It’s time to offer a rear view camera option on all caravans now I think for safety’s sake. A lot of motorhomes are offering it as an option or a standard fit. While it is fairly easy on a motorhome as the display choice is dictated by the designer. For a caravan it’s slightly more complicated as some vehicles have rear view systems built-in, some have nothing so how do you decide what to install? Simple really.. most systems use composite 1 volt peat to peak video and there are dozens of components out there on the internet that allow this to be digitised, scrambled, flipped and sent vis radio, bluetooth, over power feeds and via IR so it can’t be that difficult or expensive to install a system with a remote screen at a sensible price point. The biggest hurdle for anyone contemplating installing a rear view camera system is actually mounting the camera on the caravan body and running all the cables.

Electronic Brakes…

Unless you have towed a trailer with electronic brakes you will never know how horse and cart our current over-run hitch brake system is. In the land of the… that lot over the pond, have been using electrical braking systems for a while and in the land down under (Straylia… YESSSS…..  for John Cadogan fans) ALKO have been offering a system for a number of years that is really just an extension of their caravan chassis ‘kit of components’ and could easily be adopted for European component chassis. 

Now a lot of you know from my past volumes of scribblings I kind of enjoy delving into caravan dynamics and I really want a caravan with electronic brakes. OK before the comments come stating that under current regulations you are required to have over-run braking system etc etc…. yep I know. However from my poking around this subject for over 18 months now, it seems that you can fit electronic brakes as long as the existing over-run setup is retained.

If you are still reading this go and check this out from seven years ago about a system that was going to be produced….. if I was setting this cones out I think I’d be going changing my undergarments…. www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIB7Rmhll9s\

Right, I wanted to keep this down to a short 1000 words, and I failed as it’s over 1300 now. I hope you have all had a great Christmas and may 2019 bring you new touring adventures and memories. We’ll see you on Thursday 17th at:

Screenshot 2019-01-03 at 14.39.56

A Grande Day Out…

20 Thursday Sep 2018

Posted by in 2019 Pegasus Grande, Bailey of Bristol, Caravan Review, Events

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Right, I’m not known for caravan reviews… why?  Well those YouTube types always beat me to it… and how the heck they can shoot, edit and publish so quickly is a skill that I still consider voo doo, mind you, pilots aren’t required to have the knowledge of joined up writing let alone mastery of a keyboard. (A cursory nod to Dave Gunson… one of the finest controllers to ever say “Descend and maintain….”)

Onwards…

04:30… alarm chirps…. I had been invited by Bailey of Bristol to their launch of the Pegasus Grande and this meant a bit of an early start. By 05:15 the Amarok was idling warming up and the Sat Nav silently contemplating my route down to Swindon, while I  finished making a coffee in the Camelback insulated mug, cleaned the heavy dew off the windows and threw my day bag into the truck. Unfortunately it was going to be a solo trip.

The 167 mile trip took in the stunning vistas of road works on the M6 and M5 as far down as Gloucester via Birmingham, which tends to be more road works than motorway most of the year. Happily, leaving early meant a not to shabby arrival time of 08:40 and give me chance to have an early wander round and take a few photos while it was quiet.

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Bailey had brought all six of the new Pegasus Grande range – four twin axles and two single’s. All six were designed from the ground up to take advantage of being constructed on the 8 feet wide (2.450m) platform.

Grande Layouts

How Heavy?

One of the first things I tend to look at is what does it weigh in at? Being 8 foot wide the initial expectation is “Ohhh… that’s going to be heavy” Well I was quite surprised at the weight savings that have been made across the range.

The heaviest out of the six is not surprisingly the twin axle Grande Palermo 6 berth with twin bunks at the rear. However with a MRO of 1531Kgs and MTPLM of 1692Kgs giving a useful payload of 179Kgs.

The lightest is the four birth single axle Brindisi weigh in with a MRO of 1335Kgs and MTPLM of 1490Kgs allowing 155Kgs of payload.

The two single axle caravans have been built on ALKO 1600Kgs chassis and the four twin axle use 1800Kgs chassis, so there is an option to upgrade the plated weights if desired. The single axle units have a shipping length of 24’3″ (7.381m) and the twin axle 25’10” (7.863m).

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Everyone’s talking about it!

15_Pegasus Grande Interior Messina

One of the big talking points is the new “G” shape lounge layouts. Having a wider caravan and almost a ‘blank’ canvas allows the designers to play around with layouts. The new lounge design can be found in four of the Pegasus Grande range. (photos courtesy of Bailey)….

19_Pegasus Grande Couple G Shaped Lounge

Now I do like this layout… it provides a ‘dinette’ area in a caravan without a dinette. The table can be slid rearwards towards the door on a sliding bar if you need more space on the seat across the front of the caravan.

It does cover up the small seat near the entrance door though.

10_Pegasus Grande Interior Brindisi

However here’s my thoughts on it…. sitting using the table is a bit of a compromise. In order to accommodate under seat space for the electrics… there is a cushioned area against the wall that is not really a seat and that means it’s a bit tight on leg room. So for the person sitting near the door you are sitting right on the edge.

The cushioned section under the tables also the support for the pull out bed slats that allow it to become to a double bed.  The other thing is, a person sitting here doesn’t have a back rest, so don’t throw your head back for a hearty laugh at a joke after a glass of wine or two.. you might end up on the floor!

The table as I mentioned earlier does slide sideways it doesn’t drop down. That means two people want to stretch out facing the TV (or where the TV can be accommodated) then it’s not happening.

A bit of thinking could have sorted this out. Reversing the G so the table was on the same side as the kitchen would have allowed the side of the kitchen unit to become a back rest and maybe using the same sort of contrivance to drop the table to seat level as used when converting some dinettes into bed(s) and utilising the side and back cushions would still allow two people to stretch out facing the TV area.

Like I said, I do like the new layout as it really opens up the functionality of the space and if you are just a couple, maybe you would not need the big table that comes with the caravan.

Talking Tyres

All the models come fitted with mud/spray flaps to the wheel wells which I think is a welcome addition (it did get me thinking about adding these to our caravan!) and you have the option of going for Bailey’s wheel lock solution – which I do like, or if you want to stay with ALKO the chassis is still fitted with a receiver.

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Bailey have opted for 185/R14C as a tyre size for the single axle variant and a 185/65R14 for the twin axle.

Is there an echo in here?

One thing that Bailey have mastered by moving the gas locker to the side is the ability to have a mahoosive storage area stretching across the front of the caravan. Although not a skier, I’ll be you could get a couple of pairs of skies in there.

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It does also make it easier if you have a wind break you can just roll it up and thread it in. I would like to have seem a little protection for the hot air ducting though. I get the feeling that might sustain a few dimples here and there.

On the rear access on a couple of caravan there is a potential wrist slasher (go on, ask me how I know!) The pipe work has been secured by ‘zip ties’ across the front of the hatch. Maybe just getting the ties trimmed flush or the cut ends pushed down during assembly would be an easy fix.

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Let there be lights… go on, I’ll wait while the bit of wire warms up

The rear lights fixtures look stylish and are inset into a black trim. It was disappointing though that Bailey had used incandescent light fixtures (bulbs if you’re from up north like me) I would have thought that a fully sealed maintenance free LED units would have been more ‘on trend’ (I’ve spent too long down south can you tell!)

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Although the front and side marker lights were LED… I guess they are just working their way to the back

While we are on about LED lights… LED spotlights in particular, someone somewhere in a company that designs and manufactures light fittings for the leisure industry had an idea and thought it was a cracker. Put a USB socket in a spotlight. I too was similarly  smitten with the idea. That was until I sat in our caravan and looked at all the devices – MiFi, two iPhones, two battery chargers, Kindle, iPad, Christmas lights (yes we have some that plug into a USB socket)…. if I plugged everything in it would have looked like an explosion in a spaghetti factory. Good idea, but not at the sacrifice of a couple of points at a sensible height and location. It might just be me.

“Can you put a swivel on it?”

OK not a major one for me as I have about as much use for one as a certain Mr. Ditton… (we let our beards dry naturally… what did you think I was going to say!)  The only time I use a hair dryer is when I want to shrink some tubing and I’ve temporarily unsure of the location of my hot air blower. But I do know that there are people out there that have requirements to use hairdryers for prolonged periods and I’m speaking up for them.

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Sit on the edge of the bed… socket to plug aforementioned hairdryer in – check, place to rest brushes and hair styling products – check, adjust mirror so one can see ones self without resting side of head on window… nope. So the request will be from the fraternity of hair dryer users out there will be “Can you put a swivel on it…. so I can swing it round a bit?”

Oh, I do like this…

Ever since watching American RV videos, It has always struck me what a good idea to have an opening roof light in the shower… not necessarily to get rained on while having a shower (handy if the Aquarol is running low though), but to let the steam out when having a shower instead of watching it condense on any vertical surface in the caravan that are fractionally below body temperature. The shower head is one of the really excellent Ecocamel units… I have to say that a, because they are and b, we have one at home and one in our caravan.

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The shower tray is new too… well it’s new to me as I haven’t seen one like this before… so it may not be new… but it’s new to me. I like the fact that even if you are pitched on something slightly less level that a billiard table you stand a chance with deft squeegeeing (is that a word) you can get the all the water out before it has chance to escape anywhere other than intended. Surprisingly the wheel arch doesn’t intrude as much as I’ve seen on other caravans. The only thing I did spot is that one one of the caravans I think the chap that was responsible for dispensing glue on the installing the shower sides had gone to see a man about some cheap awning pegs… the sides of the shower were bowed a little and a gentle push popped them back agains the sub wall… release the pressure and they popped out again. It was only on one caravan (I went back and checked the others… so to anyone was there that thought I was a bit demented running in and pressing no the shower sides and running out again… that explains it).

In Summary

Yep, I like them. 8 foot wide caravans do give you a lot more room. It was noticeable that on the Messina (mid bath, rear bed) version that the wardrobes either side of the bed were actually usable and that was down to the 8 foot width, not the bed being narrow. The MRO’s were amazing, opening up the options for choices of tow vehicles. I like the idea that at last the front ‘lounge’ isn’t two long benches… I would miss the traditional draws at the front but I’d get over it. It still irk’s me that no British manufacturer has yet  cottoned on to having one hatch you open with a pass through in the floor for your hook up pipes and cables instead of putting sockets and fixtures all over the sides of the cravan (think of the money savings guy’s!)

Range Creep…

One thing that often happens is you launch a new range, and it steps on the toes of an existing range. Recently Bailey launched the new Phoenix which on the face of it overlapped heavily on the Pegasus brand. However Bailey have taken a leap forward with Pegasus Grande and moved into the ‘wide body’ (in aircraft parlance) platform  which while not stepping on the toes of the flagship Unicorn, could be seen as enticing enough to draw potential Unicorn buyers away. I suspect the in the not too distant future there will be another announcement coming out of Bristol.

Go and see the new Pegasus Grande at your local dealer… or better still visit the Caravan Show at the NEC 16-21 October to see the whole Bailey range. (I’ll let you into a secret…. they have redesigned their stand at the NEC).

All the  Pegasus Grande information can be found here on the Bailey web site

Right, I guess after 2000 words of waffle, that is if you are still here,  you now know why I don’t do caravan reviews… and the memo will go round…”for God’s sake don’t invite him again”!

Something For The Next Caravan?

12 Sunday Aug 2018

Posted by in Accessories, Blog updates, General, Uncategorized

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When you are starting to look for a replacement… or even your first caravan, you collect ideas. You see something and think “that’s a good idea” and from that point you start judging all other caravans against that ‘thing’ you have in your mind that you think is a good idea. After a while you start to build up a collection of “that’s a good idea” and ‘thing’s’. What your mind builds is a perfect caravan for you and that is what you are endlessly searching for.. your perfect caravan.

Well here is a “that’s a good idea” that is one of a collection for my perfect caravan. If you have ever watched any of the American RV walk rounds one thing that is common to them all is they all have slide outs… heck even some slide outs have slide outs of their own. (I’m waiting for the next super king cab dually pickup truck to have a slide out..!) Nope it’s not a slide out I’m thinking of though.

You know when you start watching things on YouTube you sometimes end up somewhere completely off topic and you can’t resist…. well a while ago starting with watching Andrew Ditton… I ended up watching some videos from a site called  Anton’s Camping.

Now my Danish is not good I have to admit, It is in fact abysmal. I have mastered “OK” and I think “Hello”… or “Hallo” (that might be Dutch?) but that is about it. Back to Anton…. he does do a good walk round of caravans we don’t generally see in the UK and one thing caught my attention on one of his walk rounds is the electrical and water connections to caravans. A Knaus in particular.

One of the things on our list for a new caravan an internal fresh water tank. However, this Knaus takes it to the next level.

Water Inlet 2

Next to the water tank are the water drain valves and water inlet connection…..

Water Inlet 4

…. and 230 volt electrical connection with a hole in the floor to pass the electrical cable and water connection through.

Water Inlet 3

Now for me this is a big improvement on having a locker that contains the battery and  16 amp connector, in which you always have to slightly force the hinge a bit when trying to shut the cover while your mains cable is dangling out of an under sized groove cut in the hatch door developing a permanent kink. Additionally the hassle of cleaning off the water connection under the plastic flap on the side of the caravan after you have just driven two hours down a rain-soaked motorway with all the road spray running down the side of the caravan and under the flap… then once connected, remembering you forgot to close the drain tap just as the call from inside the caravan goes out…… “Have you turned the water on yet?”… and you feet get wet again as the pump kicks in and a river of water cascades from underneath the caravan.

This is on my “that’s a good idea” list and any caravan that does not have this setup is just not going to be MY perfect caravan.

Something Else…

One thing that looking for a new caravan brought home is how they are all the same. Different manufacturer seems only to mean different cushions, everything else is nearly identical.  I guess if all the manufacturers all use Alko chassis, same layout, cooker, loo, shower… all the windows and roof vents come from one supplier and internal fittings from another supplier then we are limited to what they can actually do. So it is down to the “that’s a good idea” things that are going to make the difference.

Now… Where was I going back at the start with the American RV stuff…. what you see on every American RV is a locker that houses all the water connections drain taps flush valves for their grey and black tanks… heck most have lights and heaters installed for winter use.

Maybe looking across the pond or down under to ‘Straliah’ to see if there is anything that can be used to move our caravans (and motorhomes) forward design wise. This is not always a good thing however. It was obvious that someone from Swift had been watching too many RV videos where manufacturers had installed a mahoosive TV on the outside of a motorhome and rushed into the next design meeting slightly red-eyed with all the late night YouTube viewing doing an impression of Michael Caine… “Hang on lads… I’ve got an idea…..” which resulted in, in my personal opinion, that useless ‘pull out swing arm tv mount in a locker’ waste of space on the side of their caravans.

Bailey seem to be the only manufacturer thinking outside the box on design… getting without the front locker and putting the gas bottle in a side locker close to the axle. Even dropping the battery into the floor (spare wheel in a recess in the floor would be great too!) Maybe they might want to look at reducing the clutter and having one locker just for the water and electrical connections… and maybe towards the rear so we can use shorter cables and water hoses on serviced pitches.

Anyhoo, if you want to watch some of Anton’s Camping videos you can do at the link above, or for the video of the Knaus I’ve taken the still shots from is below. Keep a look out for the natty umbrella holder (although it might be a baguette holder!) and possible the best door bin replacement idea yet!

Its time for me to say  Ses… hav det godt