This is related to my thread about buying my first caravan (used) but felt it merited a new thread.
So my biggest fear of buying a used caravan for less than £3000 is the dreaded damp that is so widely talked about and feared.
I therefore just wanted to gather some information on the damp issue.
So first question is what causes a caravan to get damp - is it the battering it takes from all the distance it travels that causes there to be gaps in the "seams" allowing water into the walls and floors etc?
Some people on here have spoken about having caravans that are 20 years old and having driven all around Europe - how come they have not suffered from damp?
Perhaps with the right precautions caravan owners can prevent damp from occurring?
If there is damp discovered in a caravan is it repairable or is it the beginning of the end for the caravan?
So basically please feel free to answer my questions and add anything else you would like to add about the damp problem in caravans.
I am glad I found this website as I have already gained so much knowledge about caravans in only a matter of days. So thank you all for all your help so far.
basically the mastic or sealant used in a joint goes brittle allowing water to get in or screws go rusty, threads rust away water gets in, van takes a knock water gets in, van is parked under trees and sap damages body. there is loads of ways for water to get in. i have said it before vans as a rule are not well built, they never have been. they were built on production lines and attention to detail was poor. okay end of the bad
with it being your van you can fix it properly, use decent wood to repair, good quality sealants, stainless steel screws and give your baby the time and attention to detail she craves. no van is unrepairable, i have seen a few vans where only the aluminium skin is the original all wood replaced.
buying a older van will give you the chance to make it yours, i hate new vans as imo they look like ikea travelodges on wheels. the costs of repair arent high compared to a new van, wood, sealants etc dont cost the earth. having decent tools and good joinery/diy skills are essential but there is always someone on here that has done the job before. a supply of tea and butties during work is mandatory as having a brew gives you thinking time. beer is also mandatory at the end of the day, you will have earned it
Is it actually worth trying to fix a bit of damp on a 2/3k caravan?
Its going to be aged to start with, and by the time you have ripped all the guts out, and renewed it all, it wont be worth a ha'penny more than you originally paid for it as its going to be 10/15 years old anyway. And unless you really know what you are doing, the damp will be back in before you put your tools away.
If a van is 'wet through' dont buy it. If it got a 'bit of damp', so what! Use it and enjoy a bargain buy.
Going to town on something is for 'classics', not run of the mill Baileys etc. that have seen better days.
Mick S, I heartedly agree with you. I do feel that the for 2-3k you can get a right good deal on a caravan and is a slight bit of damp really a major problem if you only intend to see if caravaning is all you thought it would be and move it on after a couple of years? As long as the area where the water was getting in has had attention it won't get much worse if at all.
If I had a 2 year old van with damp I would panic, but at 10+ years old?, would be a little winter project to have a go at if I had the inclination or time.
Friends of ours had damp discovered in their van and we're told it had probably been getting worse over a few years, they never noticed it and had enjoyed dozens of outings while it was in there.
This thread is very useful to me, as I want to start caravaning after many happy years of camping.
We have a budget of around 3K and have been to see a few vans over the last few weeks to see what is available and also to decide on what layout we want?
I saw a couple of vans at a local dealer yesterday and what a difference ! One was a 1995 (coachman) van that had been well looked after and although was a bit faded it was quite tidy, but was too long to fit on my drive. The second van looked lovely 1999 (avondale), but on closer inspection was rotten, with damp in the cupboards along the awning wall! both were £1999.
My question is are some vans better made than others? or is it just a matter of looking at looking at each van on its merits ?
The Coachman vans seem to be quite nice compared to others of a similar era ?
Is a £3,000 caravan going to be any better than a £2,000 one? Or a £1,000 one? In all probability, no. That's why I bought mine for £500. I saw a couple around £2,000 and they weren't in any better condition than ours, although they were a slightly newer looking style. Is that worth the extra? Personally I don't think so. I am a practical person, so I don't pay extra for looks.
The only thing I can think of that a brand-new caravan has that ours doesn't (apart from looks) is a microwave, and I could easily pick up one of those if we wanted one. There are no visible signs of damp, although there probably is some somewhere, and it doesn't smell of damp. Everything works as it should, although I have made a couple of minor repairs and modifications.
I agree with Colin D - honestly there's not huge differences you just need to get out there and look - you soon start to notice the ones that have issues once you start comparing them. We saw some lovely vans and some absolute rubbish (including wet through) within the same price bracket. By the way, honestly , try EBay or classifieds as Dealers will not do you a bargain at that price.
find a van you would like to buy BUT before you part with your hard earnt cash get a local mobile technician to give it a look over , well worth the £50 or £60 cost to give you peace of mind
The only thing I can think of that a brand-new caravan has that ours doesn't (apart from looks) is a microwave, and I could easily pick up one of those if we wanted one.
Hmmm...id say there were one or two more 'mods' a much newer van might probably have over a van built in the previous century. Decent lighting, heating and comfort spring to mind for a start. But, if as you say you arent going for 'looks', which equal much-improved versions of the aforementioned, it rules out just about anything that separates the two. At the end of the day, if you are wanting to pay nowt, you have to be happy when you are getting nowt in return.
Mick, my van has decent lighting and I have the option of 12 volt or mains. The fitted gas fire works just fine and I have had it checked over professionally and know it's safe. Mind you, we tend to use a convector heater when we have EHU, we are paying for electric so why not? On the 750 watt setting it heats up the van quite quickly, but then it's not a big van. As for comfort, its all we could wish for. I have sat in newer vans and they are no more comfortable than ours.
All in all we are perfectly happy with what we have got. It's warm, cozy, and comfortable, even if its looks are outdated. Best of all it owes us nothing. We have already had far more than our money's worth if you compared it to staying in hotels, guest houses etc, and we still have it for this years holidays and more with a bit of luck. We have looked round new vans at shows, and believe me they have nothing that ours doesn't, except that microwave I mentioned and possibly air-con, but how many new vans have that?
There is far more difference between our van and the one we had years ago (a 1966 Sprite Musketeer) than there is between our van and a new one. What are these "mods" that a new van has, apart from styling changes?
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Topic: Damp - how bad is it?
Hmmm...id say there were one or two more 'mods' a much newer van might probably have over a van built in the previous century. Decent lighting, heating and comfort spring to mind for a start. But, if as you say you arent going for 'looks', which equal much-improved versions of the aforementioned, it rules out just about anything that separates the two. At the end of the day, if you are wanting to pay nowt, you have to be happy when you are getting nowt in return.
