Do you need a caravan checklist?
Few have one but a detailed to-do list can ensure your next holiday stays on trackCOMMENT
Are you a list-maker? Shopping, chores, appointments, birthdays?
Some are; some aren’t, but even if it’s never been on your agenda, there’s are several good reasons to start if you’re an irregular caravanner.
The first, is that if you aren’t travelling every day, you’re probably going to forget something: something you should have brought, or something you should have done before hitting the road with the family on board and up to three tonnes of caravan behind you.
It might be as simple as ensuring that your gas bottles are turned ‘off’ for travelling, but it could be double-checking that your caravan connections allow its battery to charge, you’ve filled the water tanks, or that your rear lights are working.
Many experienced travellers like myself keep a mental list of the important stuff, but you only need one friendly, fellow traveller to engage you in conversation while you're in the middle of hitching up and you can easily miss something,,, like leaving the hand-brake on, or forgetting to remove a wheel chock, as I have occasionally done.
So, here’s the list that my friend and experienced fellow traveller Michael Marshall has prepared to ensure that he, his Border Collie Coby and the Trakmaster caravan he tows with a Ford Ranger, stays on track...
As Michael’s van has self-levelling airbag suspension, some of these items may not apply to your caravan (or motorhome, or camper trailer). And, it’s not perfect, so we’d welcome your input if there’s something he has forgotten, or you like to include in your routine:
OUTSIDE
- Awning locked securely
- Stabiliser legs raised (4)
- Gas bottles turned off
- Radio aerial down
- TV aerial down
- All exterior locker doors shut and locked
- Jerry cans secured
- Check tyres for any damage or pressure loss
- Outside step folded back under Van
- Stow water hose, making sure you have removed the adaptor from the tap
- Remove and store sullage hose
- Remove and stow power lead
- Stow doormat (if you carry one)
- Remove items from communal washing machine/clothesline
HITCHING
- Tow chains attached (crossed) and shackles secure
- Power plug in correctly; Anderson plug and rear-view camera cables attached
- Coupling fully down and locked
- Wheel chocks and jockey wheel in front boot
- Front boot locked shut
- Entry door locked
- Handbrakes off
- Check lights, brake lights and indicators operating correctly
UNHITCHING
- Handbrake on, wheel chocks in place
- Remove Anderson plug from car if van left hitched to car overnight
- After levelling airbag suspension, turn airbag power to OFF
OK you list makers – what have we missed?
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