If you buy privately you may get the essentials like gas,stepaquaroll, dual voltage tv,mains lead ,battery, bedding,pots, cutlery and waste master included if the previous owner was retiring from caravanning.If not there is a used market for most of these items. I would guess at £ 200 -£300 for these.This is an axcellent site and has a for sale section and many very helpful members.Just do it! I am writing this in my van at a marina with a CL and looking at the boats in the sun!!
Water & waste water carriers approx £50 each.
Electric hook-up lead £25?
New tyres on caravan if they're over 7 years old £80 - £100
Wheel clamp £50 - £100
Hitch head lock £50
I have just seen your previous post about buying a cheap van. Dry and cheap vans are like hens' teeth. We looked at loads described as dry and for our son's starter van . We eventually did get one by doing a wanted ad. We looked at loads described as dry but were clearly damp. So get a damp meter , this is essential. Damp areas are usually on seams and joints including round windows , lockers etc. Damp is the caravan cancer and can also strike at newer caravans. Good luck ,it is worth it when you get there,
I think you have it pretty much covered. I budget to the n'th degree, and put the following away each month:
Caravan Insurance £18.00
Caravan Service £25.00 (~£260, but saving an extra £40 gives me some "spends" when I know I'll also pop into the dealers shop)
Caravan Storage £30.00 (£6 a week) (with two months a year when I don't need to budget.
Caravan Club £4.00 (£48 a year - but I don't miss £4 a month)
Pitch fees is a difficult one to budget - we have one expensive trip a year, (eg two weeks in France), and several week long breaks on top, as well as local(ish) weekends, Bank Holidays etc. I put £300 a month away - this covers the ferry, pitch fees and diesel costs of all our holidays. Others will no doubt say they can do it for much less, but for us, this year, we'll be spending over £3k on holidays. There's no point investing in a van, if you're not going to use it! And, £3.5k a year, is still far cheaper than a peak summer time family hotel all inclusive type trip.
You don't need an awning immediately - use the van first and see if you actually need one. Full or porch? Plenty of guidance on here. All but one of my awnings have been bought second hand, no need to spend a fortune here!
Thank you all. You are all very helpful and very knowledgeable.
Ah yes the depreciation I am trying not to think about though don't have a huge budget for the van so it will definitely not be new or anywhere near new.
at misterg - thanks for the "wanted" suggestion - that sounds like a great idea.
Our first van was a 1990 Abi Globestar we bought it from a dealer at a very reasonable price with a 3 month warranty.
Insurance was £80 from the caravan club, I think when we upgraded 3 years ago it was down to £56.
Storage costs nothing its on the drive.
We purchased a kit from the dealer with Aquaroll, waste carrier, electric hook up, gas bottle for £200. You can also get these second hand quite reasonably on Ebay.
First awning we went to Towsure and got a mail order return full awning at 1/2 the new price. They had a few when we went in last month.
We also bought a basic porch awning for £50, the same style is now £80.
If you have camped before you will have your gas bottle, pots and pans, a ground sheet works well as an awning carpet. If you don't have these just get old ones from friends and family or buy a cheap student set. The more expensive melamine isn't essential unless weight is an issue.
BBQ buy a cheap bucket BBQ use it for the season and throw away.
Service hubby learned to do it himself with the old van but he is qualified to check the gas and electrics. New van last service was £220.
Pitch fees vary but camping and leisure sites can be very reasonable.
Edit the first year we didn't use an awning at all but put a gazebo that we already had on the pitch.
Caravan purchase including inspection(??) DEPENDS ON WHAT VAN YOU BUY.
Awning purchase (??) AGAIN DEPENDS ON WHAT VAN YOU BUY AND THE TYPE OF AWNING YOU NEED.
Tow Bar Fitting (Octavia Estate 2006) (~£300 - £1000) I HAVE JUST PAID £500 TO PF JONES FOR A TOWBAR PLUS FITTING AT HOME AND REPROGRAMMING ON A 2015 YETI.
Annual Storage (~£500) I PAY £360
Insurance (~£200) DEPENDS ON THE VAN AND WHERE YOU LIVE
Annual Service (~£200) ABOUT RIGHT
Pitch fees (variable) CORRECT
I see you are in Somerset. The place where we store our caravan is Thornhills Farm near Othery. They have a lot of caravans stored and some of them go up for sale from time to time. John who runs it v friendly I'm sure he wouldn't mind you calling to see if any of his owners are selling up. Google Thornhills Farm and you will find it, it is a little campsite too. Good luck
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: Caravan ownership costs involved
