First of all you can get mine for about £390. Are you seriously suggesting a decent awning with poles costs under £200? I think not. Some cost up to £1000.
A gadget? I think not. They are lightweight, easy to put up and dismantle, and very practical. Just the fact that there are no poles to damage the caravan is, in itself, a huge plus. This year its stood up to high winds and heavy rain equally as well or even better than a traditional awning.
I could not put up our last awning on my own. It needed two people at least.
I have had my kampa rally air 260 for over a year now and have used it in some pretty chaotic weather situations.
I am very happy with it.
Each to their own view, in my opinion they are brilliant.
John
I know it's not awnings but type into YouTube "inflatable tents on a very windy day" and you will be amazed how good these tents and awnings are, most of the tents don't even have any guys pegged out... As for the tubes, yes the odd one has had a manufacturing defect which is not good but these awnings have already been sold in the thousands, it is very rare a tube bursts. Re the price, next season (2015) you will find even more around the £350 mark for a 3-4m awning, yes the fabric will be a lower denier but that's the difference between the highest priced inflatable awnings and the lower priced awnings. The inflatable systems take a lot of work in the manufacturing of the awning and add about 25% on average to the price.
Post last edited on 20/11/2014 12:49:09
------------- Gary Cross - The masked camping guru.
Quote: Originally posted by freeatlast on 19/11/2014
This is descending down to childishness.
First of all you can get mine for about £390. Are you seriously suggesting a decent awning with poles costs under £200? I think not. Some cost up to £1000.
A gadget? I think not. They are lightweight, easy to put up and dismantle, and very practical. Just the fact that there are no poles to damage the caravan is, in itself, a huge plus. This year its stood up to high winds and heavy rain equally as well or even better than a traditional awning.
I could not put up our last awning on my own. It needed two people at least.
You need to compare like for like which is very easy for instance with Kampa
First of all you can get mine for about £390. Are you seriously suggesting a decent awning with poles costs under £200? I think not. Some cost up to £1000.
Can you get a decent awning for less than £200 ??, Well it depends on what you want.i bought a great lightweight 340 wide 250 deep with full head height all along, takes me 5 mins to put up and 5 mins to peg down, is lightweight at 14kg and has withstood some very strong winds. Cost me £100 in a sale down from £160 this has been my 5th porch awning after many sunncamps ultimas and the likes, and has by a country mile been the best. It's about 3 years old now and i wouldnt hesitate to buy another when this gives up
i actually have a full size Ventura awning with annexe which now only ever gets used when we are away for 2 weeks or more,
Pics below are the same model as mine but in a different colour, Best £100 i ever spent
I have used both conventional canvas awnings and lightweight ones, but must confess I have never had an inflatable (though they do look good). The canvas awnings, both porch and full, are very nice when they are up and feel more like an extra "room" on the side of the caravan as they are more substantial. However, when bad weather blows in, I have spent sleepness nights worrying about whether it will manage to stay upright because when they do fail, those metal poles can do a lot of damage to the side of a caravan. I have seen this for myself on an exposed site in Cornwall with dents and holes punctured in the side of some vans requiring expensive repairs.
We now have 2 lightweight awnings, a small porch and a 390. I am looking to replace the larger awning, possibly with an inflatable. My only worry is if the thing develops a leak to be honest. A pole is easy enough to replace but trying to locate leaks and fix them properly could prove far more problematic!!
With the 2 of us not getting any younger, the lightweight awnings of all types are so much easier to put up. Both of ours have withstood strong winds and seem to "give" a little more, surprisingly standing up to some really gusty weather conditions.
At the end of the day we think that the cost of buying a lightweight inflatable compared to the cost of an Isabella or Dorema canvas, coupled with the ease of erecting the thing, there is just no contest. I doubt we will buy another canvas awning and will probably end up investing in an inflatable.
While I am sure that being able to inflate the awning outside for whatever reason, would be a plus point, not everybody would need to do this.
Our van is kept indoors and the awning can also be dried off indoors.
For us, the only reason that we are attracted to air awnings is having gone through the destruction that pole awning can do when attempting to take them down in a gale, the idea of just being able to deflate them and then fold the whole thing up is its major advantage.
Ofcourse they have other advantages like ease of being put up by one person and the time factor too.
Okay they are more expensive, but that has to be weighed against their advantages.
For someone who wants an unique awning and doesnt fear the work, charge was about £300-400 by the way, it is the best way to get a more or less affordable awning.
------------- High Expectations are the key to everything.
-Sam Walton
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Topic: Inflatable Awnings v Poles
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