My First Caravan ... FAQ

rolion

Hello,

Im planning to buy my first caravan.
Budget,maxim 5k,year maxim 10 years old.

We been camping /tent a lot and the experience in there sometime is crap (noise,dogs,weather,snoring). I dont ind getting my hands dirty if needed so...

A second hand 3-5 bed,twin axle,permanent double bed in the back,enclosed bath/shower a must.
For wife,a nice decent fitted kitchen area,cook,sink,microwave,storage.
Nice lounge area that can be changed in the sleeping if needed.
A decent awning is a nice add-on.

For those that have been trough the "feelings" of this step,what i should look after,please !? How do you "read" a good caravan from a bad one ..or...an old one but with potential.

Looked on few online sites and found few good ones,in the budget and fitting the requirements.

Wondering about electricity,heating,ventilation,security !?
Is it better a single vs double axis ?
Can it be a problem the length,size,weight ?

I guess all the standards related to kitchen cook re gas cylinders,electrical connection,toilet empy/full,water storage are pretty common and can be dealt with on the camping site.

What about parking overnight in a public space versus a camping site ?

Do i have to upgrade my driving licence and/or insurance on the current car ?

I will like to read stories on a succesful camping (or i should say caravaning) or failures...what can be wrong,what can go wrong ?

I guess i need to go out and see few caravans and begin making my mind !?

Thanks in advance.

db

The first thing you need to consider is your car. Make sure you know exactly what it can tow and then start looking at what will fit within you limits. The main factor to consider is the weight of the car which must not be exceeded by the fully loaded weight of the caravan (MTPLM), best to keep a bit below if you can.

I would think you need to up your budget to about €8K for a 10 year old in decent condition. The main thing to look out for is damp. If it doesn't have a recent independent damp report I would insist on it.

Have a good think about whether you need a large bathroom with shower etc. Unless you plan on joining a club and going to rallies on unserviced sites it would probably be a waste of space. You will spend your holiday filling and emptying water if you are using the shower, just use the showers on site.

Any caravan you buy will have heating, fridge, hot water, cooker & toilet. Just make that you see everything working on gas and electricity. Continental vans are often less equipped than UK. Most will have a fitted microwave and radio but some cheaper ones may not.

The fixed bed often seems like a good idea but if you have kids it reduces the amount of space available during the day and if they are sleeping in the lounge area, where will you sit after they are in bed?

Caravans are not really suited to wild camping. Most do not have onboard fresh or waste water storage and I would feel quite vulnerable in a caravan in a public area. On the other hand it is a lot easier to leave the caravan on site and go off in the car for the day than it is in a motorhome.

bridster007

For licence your normal one is ok as long as the combined weight of your car plus caravan does not exceed 3500kg.
Recommendation is that caravan should be 85% weight of car maximum.

Check your towcar fitting here

http://www.towcar.info/

Some sites don't allow twin axles or Hobbies

Fixed Double bed is a waste IMO as loss of living space is massive.
Check the caravan using Cris. VIN should be on the windows.
All caravans can take an awning but if there is one with it, check around the awning rail as this is a big area for leaks if awning has been used a lot.

I have used Newbridge Caravans and found them ok to deal with. All their vans looked good.

Kidd insurance will insure it for around 200 euro but you also need to notify your car insurers.

rustynutz

As mentioned already dampness is the enemy of caravans and motorhomes, it rods the structural timbers and can often render even a relatively new caravan a write off. Make sure to bring someone who knows their way around a caravan when buying, or buy off a dealer with a warranty. After that make sure all appliances are working, a fridge for example will set you back at least 500 quid, as will a water heater, toilet etc. Also check wheels are tight, a friend bought his first caravan and wheel passed him out a couple of miles after buying it, not before destroying his wheel arch and doing serious damage.

Moranscub

Hi all,

We had a family caravan when we were younger and now I am very interested to buy a family caravan. There is such a great variety. But like cars they depreciate, I am just wondering is a 3-4 year old caravan a good purchase as it will have gone through the most depreciation. When in your experience would a caravan be slow to depreciate.
Sorry for all the questions,
Thank you for your time in dealing with my enquiry
Kind regards David