never ceases to amaze me. caravanners what a strange bunch.
you pay £10,000s for a caravan.
£10,000s to run a tow car thats bigger than you would need normally.
possibly £500/year to store
£120/year to insure
then you bulk at buying some toilet chemicals that cost £15 for a can that will last you more than a season.
i use the double blue concentrate and double pink and it costs £15 for both cans. the pink runs out faster than the blue. is it worth messing about trying out supermarket laundry products when the correct stuff doesn't cost that much more?
and if you are really into saving money stay in a hotel....it works out cheaper in the long run.
------------- First van bailey ranger 550/6
Now the proud owner of a coachman amara
Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 06/2/2017
never ceases to amaze me. caravanners what a strange bunch.
you pay £10,000s for a caravan.
£10,000s to run a tow car thats bigger than you would need normally.
possibly £500/year to store
£120/year to insure
then you bulk at buying some toilet chemicals that cost £15 for a can that will last you more than a season.
i use the double blue concentrate and double pink and it costs £15 for both cans. the pink runs out faster than the blue. is it worth messing about trying out supermarket laundry products when the correct stuff doesn't cost that much more?
and if you are really into saving money stay in a hotel....it works out cheaper in the long run.
Whilst it might amaze you that seems to be down to not understanding why and then making, certainly in my case, an incorrect assumption.
We don't like what is termed as the "correct stuff"; they have for the 35 years we used them failed to do the job. Some have been pulled from the market for being carcinogenic, damaging septic systems, giving out awful smells worst than those they try to address, and lead to hard deposit build up in the cassette.
The bios I have used all did the job better. I have not messed about "trying" supermarket products, I have simply used them and yet to find any don't work as I want. The loo can more readily be emptied, it remains very clean of depositions and the smell is not an irritant or an issue; really all I need plus knowing they are suitable for putting into sewers.
Yes, it does save money but since when does buying something that does a better job for us, that cost less than products that fail to satisfy us, become something to ridicule?
They don't last me all season being that my caravan season is seven months or more a year! Most of that spent abroad where the pink and blue are not readily available, I will stick to the powder from here on for many reasons that are already covered.
Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 06/2/2017
never ceases to amaze me. caravanners what a strange bunch.
you pay £10,000s for a caravan.
£10,000s to run a tow car thats bigger than you would need normally.
possibly £500/year to store
£120/year to insure
You seem to have a very strange idea about caravan owners!
My caravan did not cost anywhere near that much.
I tow with the car I would have bought anyway. It's choice had little to do with the caravan but more with my other hobbies and interests.
My storage fees are not that much.
My insurance isn't that high.
Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 06/2/2017then you bulk at buying some toilet chemicals that cost £15 for a can that will last you more than a season.
More generalisation.
That depends on how much you use the caravan and how much you use the loo.
Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 06/2/2017i use the double blue concentrate and double pink and it costs £15 for both cans. the pink runs out faster than the blue. is it worth messing about trying out supermarket laundry products when the correct stuff doesn't cost that much more?
Perhaps some of us have concerns for the environment as well as for our pockets?
We often use sites where the use of blue, formaldehyde based toilet chemicals are banned.
The non-blue chemicals do not seem to work as well and do not smell as "nice", whereas the bio washing tablets seem to work and smell better.
The toilet tablets are also easier to store and do not risk leaking, plus are even easier to "load" into the holding tank.
Quote: Originally posted by Baileyjake on 06/2/2017and if you are really into saving money stay in a hotel....it works out cheaper in the long run.
It's certainly a useful thread for any caravanner previously unaware that bio washing liquid can be used in place of toilet blue. As mentioned it's good tip if you run out in France.
The only toilet blue I've found in French supermkt is Thetford stuff in small bottles & way above UK price so just buy a bottle of cheap supermkt brand bio wash liquid & problem solved.
Maybe its the food my familly eat but i think the regular Elsan stuff works surprisingly well. i am no expert on these things but it amazes me the cassette empties so easily. and the smells are not at all bad. the double concentrate seems to go along way. i wasnt aware that it was difficult to obtain toilet chemicals in france and spain but saying that you cant buy them in uk supermarkets either. i only empty my cassette every 2 days so my extra can of fluid i took to france is still unopened and the opened one i had still has some in it. seeing the French and Dutch guys i camped with last summer i can see why the chemicals are not popular. these guys dont use their toilets or even their sinks to wash up in. their caravans really are 'Tin tents'
as for cheap holidays, it is subject to what you payed for your caravan, where you keep it etc and can only speak from my own experience.
i keep my caravan in a local storage facility it costs £480/year.
the insurance costs me £120
servicing is....£150 (not had a bill yet)
to tow may caravan i need an SUV or a heavy estate car, i already had an SUV before i bought a caravan but it does (being honest) about 38mpg on average. if i dint have a caravan i could run a much more efficient car.
my last caravan devalued £1500 in 2 years so thats £750
per year but if i bought a new caravan i recon it would lose £1500/ year for the first few years. the one i have now certainly did before i bought it.
480+150+750+120= £1500/year
if i chose to stay in static for 2 weeks where i holidayed last year in the summer it would have cost £2600 (not including the fuel to get there and back) it cost me £1200 so i saved £1400 using my touring caravan.
a premier inn costs £60/night
a caravan pitch might cost £20 but the caravan running costs are more than that in the long run.
i own a caravan and like using it but i dont think they are really a way of saving money unless you use them very often. we have not mentioned towing fuel, Gas, maintenance of awnings huge damp repair bills, car brake pads etc etc...
------------- First van bailey ranger 550/6
Now the proud owner of a coachman amara
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Thetford cassette - bio tablets + pink?
