Date: Sat, 26 Aug 2023 18:25:36 -0700
Reply-To: Alistair Bell <ragnarhairybreeks@ICLOUD.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Alistair Bell <ragnarhairybreeks@ICLOUD.COM>
Subject: Re: Awnings
In-Reply-To: <683188970.498743.1693093899354@mail.yahoo.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8
Better answer than my previous
And with the big proviso… I can’t say this loud enough, it’s what works for me in my climate
Awning….had a shady boy since early noughts. It’s more fussy to set up than a wind out, and it’s smaller. But it’s lighter and less expensive. And has worked very well for us.
Up in out climate , it does get warm in summer, and shade is nice. We use it for sun shade , and of course shelter from rain.
I really like camping on high open places. So need the shade.
Solar panels… fork the last half dozen years or so I’ve had panels. Currently, ha, two old school Siemens 75 watt on roof. For battery I have an agm 200Ahr battery where spare usually goes.
Last two years I’ve been using electric fridge, Dometic crx50. So finally I’m using the battery properly.
Panels and battery keep up with the fridge draw.
But….
If I had my choice, I’d ditch the panels and use lithium battery . The way we camp is that we don’t stay in one spot for more than a couple of days. 100-150 Ahr Lithium would easily work for our electrical draw while camping, and then charge up fast during travel.
Ab
> On Aug 26, 2023, at 4:52 PM, Richard Koerner <rjkinpb@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> Awnings on a Vanagon have always baffled me. I think it has to do much to do where you live and where you camp. Sure, on Facebook and advertisements I've seen them all! What are they for?....sun or rain? I live in San Diego and mostly camp in the West; when I want some shade but don't have any, I simply move my campchair to the other side of van. The rain we get out here is either a deluge or nothing. When a deluge, I sit inside van; after the storm passes, I move outside again and enjoy the fresh wonderful smells. I've even camped in 48 states in my van....sun or rain issues never seemed to be a problem. I tried once building my own awning with Harbor Freight tarp and collapsible camping poles; to test, I even went up to local mountains during most severe thunderstorm....to my surprise, the rain actually hit the pavement in the campground and bounced back up!!! Felt silly as I was being drenched. Hey, I'm don't mean any bad intent here. Still....am curious about awnings. Seems like a lot of hassle and expense.
