Quote: Originally posted by navver on 06/1/2010
If you know the make & model of the awning you may find some instructions on the web or someone on here may be able to write you a simple guide.
Hi, just to repeat the above advice,most makers have a website and you can
download an exploded diagram of the pole layout which is big help as said before
once done never forgot,have a nice cold beer ready for completion of the darn thing.
------------- Cheers Jim.I Reserve The Right To Be Wrong.
I don't think it makes much difference whether there are instructions or not - especially if they are those really unhelpful ones with no labels or written in pigeon English. It gives you quite a sense of achievement when you discover a more efficient or easier way of putting up your awning after 2 years or so struggling!
Put up our first awning which didn't have instructions on a C&CC site, just to try it out. Luckily we had a friend with us who knew a thing or two about vans and awnings, or we'd still be there now!
Once erected, we took the whole thing down again and packed it away. We must have been the talk of the place, as someone actually asked OH the next day why we had gone through the whole procedure of puttring the thing up, only to take it all down again!!
Having someone there who had put up an awning before was a big help - they all work on the same principle. We also colour coded the poles - which was a godsend on our next outing.
Buying second hand awnings is not easy...getting the right size, damage free, not faded etc. so good luck with your search.
I often suggest to site owners that they should offer an awning erection service. I reckon people would pay a fortune for it, and they'll be queuing for miles to get into the site. But none of them seem to want to do it.
If you have never put up an awning before then yes you definately need instructions, otherwise you could find it falls down and damages your van. even with instructions it can be a mammath task!
Mrs UM says that an awning is "an argument in a bag!"
Truth is that any instructions will suffice once you have sorted out which poles go where...which can be done on the drive at home...then colour match the connections with some stripes of different insulting tape.
We have gone against all the advice and have never errected an awning at home before going away on site - we just don't have the room. I really like the 'an arguement in a bag' comment. My wife is usually the one to loose her temper first. I'm really safe writing that here as she doesn't come on UKCampsites. Generally, (in spite of the previous comment) we are fairly OK with putting up awnings, but we always take our time to make sure we get it right first time - we don't rush - but are fairly purposeful. We have never colour coded poles - to me, once you have done it once, it seems fairly logical where things fit.
For me, packing away is more of a problem. I always write detailed instructions on how to fold the awning. It goes in a specific place and can't be too bulky.
I would be interested to hear about zip in walls/sides. How many people take the zip out the sides before folding the awning, or do people leave the sides in?
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Topic: Awning - Do I Need Instructions?
