Yes, I know how sad
The truth is ive only used it twice and my old man did it last time.
Do you put the frame up first or slide the awning onto its rail?
Also how do you know the awning is pulled level at both sides?
How do you stop the roof being baggy? ect ect ect!!!!
Any tips welcome
Thanks in advance noodle
------------- friday afternoon,finish work,hook up,pitch up and DRINK UP
You get someone that knows that awning type to show you- and you practice when there aren't too many people around.
We bought a five month old caravan from a couple who claimed they had never used it. We went down to fetch it and they had two awnings- a porch one which had never been out of the bag and a full-size one which clearly had. I asked why the awning was out if they had never used it and the man said they took it out in the garden, set it up and colour coded the poles. He went into the house to fetch something and his wife said- 'He has a terrible temper you know.' We came to the conclusion that they had fallen out over the awning to such an extent that they had sold their brand new van. We got to a campsite- tried to put it up and discovered the colour coding was all wrong. It took us quite a while to resolve it and an old man in a motorhome saw we were struggling and came over to help. About the first thing he did was drop a pole (twice) and dent the side of the van.
It quickly got better though.
There are still times when I do not think the awning is worth it and if we can pack away a lot of stuff in the back of the car I sometimes dont bother for 1-2 nights. For 3 or more we always would.
Oh god yes it does get better. Before we purchased our second hand Fleetwood Cavendish we had a Conway Cambridge folding trailer tent. The awning with was massive and, with the wife having osteoporosis, it took me that sort of time to get the awning up because it was large and heavy. Things were not much better with the 20004 model 575 LX Trigano folding camper because it was so heavy. However, the situation improved so much with our new Dorima awning as it is so much lighter and easier to erect plus it is very comfortable especially with the veranda type poles that fit between the front uprights so we can drop the tops of the front windows down to about 3 feet from the ground so that we are a lot cooler in the hot weather. So yes, in answer to your question, it does get heaps better.
The easiest way to put up an awning is to lay out all the bits first a few feet away from the van. Then get out the small tin of wd40 oil and very gently spray it into the awning rail...wipe off any excess. Start to feed the roof section in first. Then fit the rails into position to support the roof. Once you have got this far the rest takes no explaining as it will be straightforward. BUT IT TAKES TWO PEOPLE TO DO IT! Then sit down and have a nice cuppa...Job Done!
It does get easier, been out three times now, Bailey Ranger 550/6 and Ventura full awning. First time took us a couple of hours, third time down to about half an hour and only a little drop of water on the roof when it rained. Out again at the weekend, going to try to get the roof perfect this time
Start by unzipping all panels if they are attached, and then sliding the rest of the awning in to the rail. This is easier if you spray it with Fabsil or some other silicone based polish. Use any stripes or the windows tops/bottoms to check it is roughly level both ends. Then start with the frame. I usually connect the centre leg pole first at low height, then connect it to the roof pole, then I make the connection to one of the other legs, then that one to its roof pole, then do the same the other end. Raise the legs up, zip the fronts and end panels back in and then adjust any poles that aren't quite right. This will get rid of the bagginess, unless the awning is an old one like the one we have now which has stretched over the years. This method has worked for me on a number of different awnings. It helps if there is someone around to hold the poles, especially if it is windy. Final step is to peg it out - do the corners by the caravan first, then the front corners, finally all the ones in between.
Hope this helps.
------------- Caz
If you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, just keep going till you go round the bend.
I spent 1 hour pratting about on my first caravan trip last weekend. Then a very helpful geordie geezer came and showed me how to put it up properly from scratch. 30 minutes later we were cracking open the beers. Thats what I like about caravanning, you can make an idiot of yourself and someone will always help...once they've had a good giggle ! ;-)
I used to have a trailer tent before i bought our caravan so putting up an awning was childs play after fighting with a trailer tent. But as many have said before me on this post i still practiced lots so as not to look a silly ar$e on the day. I had already sprayed the awning track on the van with silicone spray. And the way i do it is i unzip all the panels have the caravan step at the ready for the highest point the good lady feeds the awning on at the bottom and away i go pulling it along the length of the van. I like so many also labeled all the poles up. Don't give up with plenty of practice you will soon wonder what all the fuss was about.
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Topic: 3 hours to put up awning
which i have a feeling it will tak eme when i pick my first one up on Friday! 
