Tips for full-time caravanning

‘Oh how time flies’…

Never has an adage been so true! It’s almost three years since I looked in the rear view mirror to see the real estate sign on the front lawn of what was once our house plastered with ‘SOLD”, then disappear in the distance as we headed towards…..well, who knows where?

My wife and I had just joined the many nomadic folk that have opted for a life of mobility, free camping and one without the hassle of power bills, council rates and seemingly endless maintenance around the house.

We both were already spending up to nine months of the year in our camper trailer, so coming back to a dusty house was becoming more unappealing as time passed.

Long-term storage dilemma

Of major concern was what to do with all our worldly possessions. I was a hoarder, with a large shed stacked to the roof with tools and gear and our four-bedroom house filled with furniture.

With both daughters flown the coup we passed on as much of the furniture and white goods as possible, and sold the rest. Three large garage sales later, I was starting to see the walls in the shed.

Other stuff I wanted to keep was put in a self-storage shed while a good cross section of our wardrobes was loaded into the tow vehicle and camper trailer.

However, after five years in the camper my wife Anne reckoned she had done her apprenticeship and was keen to upgrade to something with hard walls.

We went on the hunt and bought a 2008 Regal off-road caravan and after emptying the contents of the trailer into it, the camper found a new home in my daughter’s drive way.

Big capacity tow vehicle

I’ve previously discussed the storage advantages of using a big-capacity truck for a tow vehicle. On the four-metre tray of our Isuzu truck we fitted large lockable toolboxes, which hold cameras, metal detectors, and tools for servicing the truck, van and two-man buggy sitting across its rear. Not to mention oils, filters and other spare parts that are hard to get at a moment’s notice when Outback.

Fridge and freezer space inside the Regal was insufficient for our long-term remote travel plans, especially when we had to be careful with our budget and wanted to shop up big in the specials section of large supermarkets whenever we got close to a major town.

So I made up a frame for the truck, with the top holding a Waeco CF50 fridge (which can pull down to minus 20-degrees if we need more freezer space), and an additional Waeco CF110 on a slide-out tray underneath.

Both units are compatible with 12/24/240 volts and with the truck running on 24 volts I preferred a separate supply to prevent any starting issues due to power draw of the fridges.

I also installed two 125Ah batteries behind the headboard of the truck with a C-Tek 40 amp charger attached for when I needed a quick charge during overcast conditions via the Honda generator or when close to a town supply.

There are two 120 watt solar panels on top of the truck that help feed the extra batteries.

With the truck rated to a gross vehicle mass (GVM) of six tonnes and a Gross combination mass (GCM) of nine tonnes, we also fitted some large lidded tubs (often referred to as Nally bins) that holds seasonal clothing depending on the climate.

Pros and cons of long-term vanning

So rolling on, what are the positives and negatives? The pros are many, especially if you enjoy the freedom from the humdrum of city life. The cons are just as many... if not more.

The main issues relate to the caravan. I was very happy with the build of it but like many caravans the quality of components are chosen for occasional holiday use, not full-time living.

Although the queen-sized mattress was relatively new when we bought the caravan, within a year the inner springs were sagging and causing an old back injury to flare up, resulting in terrible sleep.

We purchased a new, slightly heavier double-sided latex mattress from a caravan mattress manufacturer that supplies the top end of the market in Queensland. However, within eight months the new mattress was starting to sag, so I contacted the manufacturer, who told me I should be turning the mattress every three months. Pity they didn’t tell me that first up!

I had them pull the mattress apart and repair it and at this stage turning the mattress quarterly is doing the job. But if it was a one-sided latex model this wouldn't be possible. The moral of the story is to get a double-sided mattress or a home quality mattress built.

Our old ‘hand me down’ Posturepedic Sleepmaker mattress is 23 years old and still hasn’t sagged and has never been turned over. I guess it’s hard to get quality these days.

Carry lots of spares

The van’s hardware is also struggling to keep up with the stresses of full time use. Drawer catches wear out and gas struts on overhead cupboards weaken prematurely. Other than sourcing better quality hardware prior to ordering a new van, you’ll be stuck with what you get when buying a second hand model.

We now make sure we carry plenty of spare drawer catches – I’ve replaced six to date!

I could go on forever about repairs and general maintenance but reading my spare parts list below will give you an idea of what’s in store when you go nomad…

A tube or two of outdoor roof and gutter sealant. Caravans are subject to twisting and racking and eventually the manufacturers sealants fail… and a leaking caravan is a nightmare.

Half a dozen sets of each type of drawer catch fitted to your van is good insurance when you’re well out town.

Spare water pump, which I have rigged up to pump water from jerry cans and other storage vessels into the van’s tanks. It will also be handy when I need to replace the original.

Two sacrificial anodes, as some of the stations I travel through or live on temporarily have hard bore water, which will destroy your hot water system reservoir should the anode be sacrificed and not promptly replaced.

A spare window, due to the fact that most parts of the window winding systems on our vans are made of plastic.

A couple of spare water filters, as they’re hard to source in remote regions.

Three spare thermo-couplings, which allow the stove and oven to fire up. When they start to fail you’ll have trouble keeping the flame running after you release the depressed dial knob.

I also carry spare capacitors for the air-conditioner as they’re hard to obtain away from city distributors. However, you should get a refrigeration technician to install them.

Other spares I carry are wheel bearings, tyre valves, fuses, a set of caravan brake shoes and a big selection of nuts and bolts, Tek screws, pop rivets and tools to deploy those bits and pieces.

You can never have too many spare parts!

Final word on keeping your cool

When the blistering sun drives most holiday caravanners home, we’re still roaming. The standard fridges fitted in today’s vans struggle to cope with ambient temperatures due to being 12-volt and single compressor. So if you have the opportunity get a twin compressor fridge-freezer.

I’ve also fitted two extra fans to my fridge’s motor. One pumps outside air through the original fitted fan and the other pumps hot air out of the cabinet via the vent. These fans are the type fitted in computer hard drives and I got mine for $30 at Jaycar Electronics.

i've also installed a sail track on the side of the van in order to hang shade cloth over the area that covers the fridge location. Defrosting the fridge every three weeks is a pain but also necessary to keep the contents cold.

And if you think you can park up in the sun with windows and doors closed and the roof-top air conditioner whirring away when the mercury is cracking 40 degrees Celsius you’ll be in for a surprise.

Many air-conditioners will overload at 62C roof top. Mine did, and the read-out for the air conditioning unit in the sun was 75C. It was a hot summer that year and the 2kVa Honda would not kick-start the Air Command Ibis anyway.

I needed either a ‘soft start’ capacitor which I’d been advised not to get as they’re often ineffective when fitted aftermarket, or a 2.4kVa generator that won’t fit in my generator box on the back.

You see, manufacturers are allowed to misquote outputs by five percent, so a 2kVa gen-set output can be closer to 1.6kVa.