Advice on awnings / privacy rooms

thos wrote: »

Hi all,
I've got a 2019 Benimar Tessoro motorhome, with a Fiamma F45S awning, and considering a full 'privacy room' awning as part of it.
Initially we were thinking of just wind-breaker options, but now considering a full enclosure, but a bit lost, so looking for some feedback.

I presume with a Fiamma F45s already on the van, I'm only looking at Fiamma options for an enclosure, or are there other brands/manufacturers that would fit?

Within the Fiamma range, I'm a bit confused with some of the options. Anyone got feedback on Privacy Room vs Light vs Ultra Light?

In general, anyone got feedback about:
- How long to put up and take down? Fiamma quote 5 to 15mins?
- how much space to store? Can't seem to find this anywhere, so interested to see how they fold up and pack away.
- how do they generally hold up to wind and weather?

Anything else worth considering when looking at these?

Thanks,
Tom

Unless you are planning on staying on site for more than a couple of nights at a time, and not using the van as transport in that time, I wouldn't bother. Maybe a windbreaker would be a better option, or a drive away awning.

I have a 5m omnistor awning on the side of my van and rarely use it, in my opinion they are only good for shade in sunnier climates.

I got a full privacy room for the Fiamma f45 on our van when bought new in 2009. It seemed like a great idea at the time. It's still in the box it came in. Simply too much hassle to put it up and then the van is literally pinned to the spot. And it (mine anyway) weighs a fair bit. As Jaden suggests a driveaway might be the way to go if you need enclosed outside space.

In contrast to the other posters, I have a 5m Omnistor awning and what they call a "safari room" and it does get used ... but in special circumstances.

thos wrote: »

In general, anyone got feedback about:
- How long to put up and take down? Fiamma quote 5 to 15mins?
- how much space to store? Can't seem to find this anywhere, so interested to see how they fold up and pack away.
- how do they generally hold up to wind and weather?

If we're going to use it on a trip, we usually treat ourselves to a refresher course before leaving - unpack everything, remind ourselves which poles go in which panels, and do an assembly/disassembly exercise. On site, this means that we can get the room ready in about 15-30 minutes. The longest part is tapping the pegs into the skirts at the bottom of the side panels, which can take as much as 15 minutes if the ground is hard and there's only one person on pegging duty (so yes, with a team of three or more who know what they're doing and not pegging it, we can get it put up in about five minutes).



Pegged all around - panel skirts and awning support poles - it's pretty resistant. We have had trouble with winds gusting over 100km/h (Spain) but that depends on the direction of the wind and whether or not someone's left the door/window open. We've had a lot more trouble with the awning alone compared to when the safari room is in use.


Packed away, our sack is BIG, so it's not something we bring on trips where we want to be light and mobile. It'll take up most of the space in the toilet/overcab bunk/garage, and it's easier to move with two people than one (not heavy, but bulky). On the other hand, it doubles the space available to us when we get where we're going. In fact, more like triples, because it's not cluttered up with stuff like toilets and kitchens and wardrobes! The actual dimensions packed (going by memory) would be about 150cm long and 60cm diam.



We use it mostly for "events" camping, where we need to spread out when we get there. Our most frequent use is at music festivals, where it allows us to set out a nice big 10-person table (+two benches), and still have room to dump bags, instruments, costumes and random strangers. That means the interior of the camper stays relatively tidy, and our socialising and sleeping spaces are clearly separated.



We've also used it for "activity" holidays, for much the same reason - it serves as a holding zone for boats, bikes, boots, sandy children, etc. Although far from secure from the point of view of theft, equipment is less visible than it would otherwise be, and it's great for keeping things out of the rain.

We have a F65S and it came with sides but no front, I bought a sunshade from Lillypad leisure in the UK a few years back and its super for continental travel, light and very compact.
I would consider a complete room from them, they do a windblocker version which is similarly light and compact.
In addition I use the dog anchor type ground screws and use stays to the two outer posts to add support from wind, these are essential in my experience and will avoid the awning being bent over the van if unsecured and a wind gust comes along.
link: https://www.windblockers.net/