Hi yingyang, Had same problem with my van and driveway, unable to push it up drive due to heart opp, bought big foot mover five years ogo £600,that fitted on the jokey wheel clamp, found even that to heavy to lift,six month later ended up buying a fitted moter mover with remote engager, expensive but worth every penny, would have had to give up caravaning without it,should have gone for the fixed mover to start with,could have saved myself a lot of hastle and the £600,result spare big foot mover, shame you are not near my location, you could have tested to see if big foot mover was the way to go for you.if i were you i would give mover very serious thought. you will not regret it.
------------- If everything runs smoothly then I must have done something wrong
If in Doubt Check it Out.
I know that the expense will be an issue to consider very seriously, but think of the alternative. e.g. Just think what the insurance company may think..."So what you are telling us is that you and the wife pushed your caravan off the drive and broke the axel?" Check your policy...they may not pay up if the van does fall off the drive. A mover could be cheap in the long run
Phil
------------- If you're not on a fell your wasting your feet and for 2014 it's.......Feb Castleton Mar North Yors Moors; Apr Sutton on Sea; May Thirsk; Jun Clapham/Riverside (Lakes); July Wharfedale; August Crakehall; Sept Knaresborough; Oct Wirral Park/Clitheroe
cwdc5678, the op stated that a mover was not an option. No amount of telling him he needs a mover is going to change personal circumstances. Given that the mover got mentioned as a non starter, I am sure the OP agrees that it would be the better solution.
However, as the op does not state why a mover is not an option, I would point out that Powrtouch will pricematch the cheaper movers and also offer a competitive finance option should this make a difference to the OP's circumstances.
I agree as I am sure most people would that a mover is the ideal solution, but if it is not an option then there is no point in advising the op to get one.
There's two questions here - the OP (Yingyag) is trying to reverse a van down a slope, obviously not a steep slope as he and his wife did their previous van by hand. The problem is controlling the van due to the handbrake not working when reversing. It's the same procedure as lowering a boat down a slipway which sailors have been doing for years and have successfully used winches without any problems. If it works for a large boat on a slipway it will work just as well for a caravan on a modestly sloping driveway.
The second question is Meta1mickey who is trying to pull a van into a driveway up a slope, but wants to reverse it in to keep the doorway less vulnerable to villians. That's where most people would use a motor mover as the best solution, but if it isn't possible then it isn't possible. Which has got me thinking have we ever had this problem shifting boats? Answer - not usually!
However, depending on the gradient (ie use some common sense) I have on occasion needed to haul trailers out backwards and have used the large webbing straps attached near the axle. Depending on how safe Meta1mickey judges this to be one option might be to obtain 2 strong webbing tie-down straps and secure them to the chassis near the axle. Easy enough to do without going under the van - then run them to the rear where they can be attached to a winch.
Clearly this is only suitable on a modest gradient, and it would be worth having some chocks tied to the chassis forward of the wheels so they are dragged behind the wheels as an emergency brake. A bit Heath-Robinson, but every problem solved without resorting to a credit card is a problem solved happily.
It has been clearly stated that a motor mover is not an option. That shouldn't be a problem. Caravans were being put in tight spaces before movers were ever invented.
I've not heard anything about the caravan being moved up the hill out of the drive. Is this being done with the car? If so, there's obviously room for it, and that van should just be reversed down the drive. I think this must be the case, as the caravan is usually wider than the car, so the car must fit where the caravan has been.
If not, park the car at the top of the drive, attach a good rope to the hitch, and take a couple of turns round the tow ball. You can then lower the caravan under control down the drive.
As an alternative, just use a storage site. Initially cheaper than a mover, and the cost can be spread year by year.
well thank you all its been a lot of reading, i have got some realy good feed back , looks like a motor mover , but the motor mover wiil be worth more than the van lol once again thanks you guys
Wehave a similar problem and have to get a 5 berthup a nrrow drive that has a small slope up from the road. We then get it down the side of the house with 2 inches to spare on either side!
We could not do it without a winch. It's brilliant. It is the type to move boats and pulls the van up the drive and doesn't let it slip away again. We attach a Halfords tow rope to the frame at each side underneath the back of the van and attach them to another one. This then hooks onto the winch cord. The winch hooks onto a steel hook in the ground (or you can also hook the winch over a towbar on the car.)
Our daughters take it in turns to press the button to operate the winch whilst my husband and I guide the van up the drive. It is very easy, takes very little effort on our part and makes the whole process safe. We could not have our caravan on the drive without the winch.
Quote: Originally posted by cwdc56768 on 12/7/2010
Can I suggest that you have asked the wrong question in your circumstances. Take the words "without buying a caravan mover and not killing ourselfs" out of your question.
You have undertaken a risk assessment (although you may not appreciate that that is what you have done) and concluded that there is a risk
1. of the van falling off the drive and causing damage (costs to be incurred in calling someone out with a crane to lift the van onto a trailer to take it to a workshop)
2. Van rolling forward and causing injury to you and/or your wife and damage to the van. Did you read the recent post about a chap who was run over by his van after he tried rolling it up his drive?
So your answer is to invest in a caravan mover. Then you can you move it whilst keeping a safe distance from the van. Saves you repair costs and hospitalisation.
Be safe...caravanning is more enjoyable that way.
many movers will set you back about £1000 but have a look at the new E-GO for about £600
I will second this as I had a partial dislocation of my shoulder, and now a badly torn muscle trying to manouvre my van by hand onto my drive two weeks ago, I was only trying to move it about a foot (with help) but slipped, and ouch, lots of ouch. Have only just got some movement back, an that was on a level surface, and me being a fairly fit,hefty youngish bloke. So yes, get a motor mover, or perhaps a Mr Shifta or Purpleline hitch drive.
How about paying for some tuition in manoeuvring the caravan. If you do drive the caravan out of the drive, then it certainly will reverse into it. You could even just use lots of practice. Take your caravan to a carpark in an evening and practice manoeuvring in and out of spaces. After an hour or so you should be an expert. This will have been very cheap and will give you more confidence when on site too.
Or you could always get a mover for several hundred pounds?
Yes, you beat me to it joecroft2 - I was just about to suggest a front hitch. We have one and it is so much easier to manoever the van onto our drive using the front hitch. We initially reverse it on, then un hitch, turn car round and re hitch and push it into position. Its not that we can't reverse - OH is very good at that but you have better ability to 'kick' or pivot that van with the hitch being closer to the steering wheels. (or something like that anyhow)
i used one of these for years and it was fantastic, used it every time i went on site and i could park the caravan inch perfect every time
the one i had was fitted to my car while i was on holiday in plymouth but i have lost the address, another company that sells them is www.watling-towbars.co.uk they will fitt or you could DIY
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Topic: parking a caravan
once again thanks you guys 
