Top-10 caravan myths busted

Many things stop people from experiencing the joys of caravanning, but like conspiracy theories, some don’t pass the pub test.

Here is the ‘truth’ about some popularly held caravanning beliefs...

Large caravans are more difficult to tow than small vans

Not in my experience and the extra length is not noticed on the road provided that your tow car is up to the task.

Personally, I only notice the length of caravans when overtaking, at roundabouts, or when looking for a lunchtime parking spot in small towns, and I’ve towed some monsters in my time.

The first thing I do is lower the passenger-side external rear-view mirror so I can see the wheels as this avoids running over kerbs and roundabouts.

Just adopt the mentality of an interstate truck driver and believe you ‘own’ the lane you’re travelling in. So as long as you stay in it, everyone else has to make their own arrangements!

Usually, large caravans, being heavier, are less sensitive to movement and are more resistant to side winds.

However, you do need to learn the length of your van for overtaking and parking and I recommend that you have a rear camera on the van connected to a dashboard monitor – very handy to avoid branches, kids’ toys and other vans when reversing into a tourist park spot.

Tandem-axle vans are generally easer to reverse, as they’re less ‘nervous’ and change direction slower and there are very few vans longer than 18-19ft in length with single axles.

Finally, avoid unsealed roads after rain. A heavy van can sometimes slip off the crown of the road and is very hard to get back on it. This is why I’m not a fan of big, heavy off-road vans.

It’s more economical to tow slow

Not really. The most economical speed is when your tow vehicle’s engine is comfortably pulling the highest gear within its peak torque range.

Going slow means your transmission will be hunting up and down the gears, which means it will go from ‘lugging’ in too high a gear to over-revving in a lower one, both of which will use more fuel.

So, I’ve found that on flat or slightly undulating roads, it’s actually more frugal to get to a cruising speed where your top gear allows you to operate within the ideal rev range, which on the average diesel is 1600-2200rpm. I never exceed 3000rpm.

Pop-tops are more economical to tow than full-height caravans

I conducted a test some years ago where I took the full-height and pop-top versions of the same-model Coronet caravan over the same course and measured the difference in fuel economy.

The truth is, there’s not much in it!

At highway cruising speeds, the savings in wind-resistance by the pop-top worked out at less than a cup of coffee per 100km.

However, the pop-top did allow the caravan to be stored in many car ports, whereas the full-size van wouldn’t fit.

But you won’t find many pop-tops over 17ft in length, so if you want a larger or family van that will withstand dust and corrugations better, the full-height van is a more solid long-term prospect.

On the debit side, a pop-top is more time-intensive to build, offers less internal storage and often costs more initially.

My conclusion was that unless you plan to do a lot of highway cruising, a full-height van offers better purchase value, withstands the weather, dust and rough roads better, plus it offers more accessible comfort for a side-of-the-road lunch or coffee stop.

Your caravan or camper needs a grey water tank

Well, it may, but not underneath. You should definitely have one if you’re planning to be a good citizen when free-camping or travelling in National Parks.

But it doesn’t have to be a permanent fixture of your camper or caravan, particularly smaller ones where space is limited.

Fiamma, Weisshorn and other European companies make a range of plastic, wheeled grey water tanks up to 40 litres in capacity that generally cost less than $100. Buy two and you're still well ahead of a permanent 65 or 80 litre tank fitted under your RV. 

Buy a short length of convoluted plastic piping, fit it between your waste pipe and the tank, and you’re good to go. You can empty it at the same facility as your toilet cassette, or gift its contents to a thirsty tree.

Single-axle vans tow better on sand than tandems

I dispute this on the basis that four tyres deflated to (say) 17psi will have more ‘bag’ and hence a larger footprint for crossing, rather than sinking, on sand than two.

A tandem-axle van will also generally have an easier time on a rough road.

Consider this simple math. If your caravan has a Tare (empty weight) of 2500kg, which is the absolute upper limit for a  single-axle van, each tyre must support 1250kg.  But if it has a tandem-axle set, each tyre needs to carry 625kg.

On sealed highways, the tyres on a single axle van need to be inflated to around 45-48psi for stability, but the tyres can be run down to 30-32psi on corrugations, provided you keep your speed down to 80km/h or less and don’t corner hard.

On a tandem, 24-28psi is a good travelling pressure on corrugations, meaning that each wheel impact is transferring less stress on everything on the van.

As rule of thumb, I run my tyre pressures on a tandem-axle van at the same pressure as the front tyres on my tow car, but beef the rear pressure on the tow car up another 4psi, because they are subject to the greatest punishment from the bobbing of the A-frame.

Corrugated aluminium cladding is easier to repair than fibreglass walls

Sure, it’s easy to peel off and replace a section of damaged aluminium, but what do you think the builders of fibreglass hulled boats have been doing all these years? Surely they have learned a thing or two about repairs?

The answer is ‘of course they have’ and they have the skills to perform spot repairs on your caravan if the damage is localised and to ensure that the old and new sections are correctly colour-matched.

If you're a DIY sort of person, then ribbed aluminium will be easier, but it also dents far easier from rubbing and stray stones, so it will need more maintenance, whereas fibreglass composite walls are largely resistant to minor impact. (Remember the truism in rough country: ‘Green is good; brown is bad’ in relation to damage when it comes to fraternising with the scenery.)

But modern automotive polishes allow you to buff out scratches, while paintless dent-removal specialists can suck out small indentations in aluminium.

Perhaps the worst external cladding that is found on many caravans, is smooth aluminium composite sheeting, which is not very thermally efficient and weighs more than most full composite or timber-framed and ribbed aluminium-clad walls. The advantage of this material, which comes from the building construction industry, is that it’s available in a myriad of colours.

You need an air conditioner

Maybe not. If your caravan is clad in a dark-coloured material, it will unquestionably be hotter and hold heat better than one finished in white.

It’s easy to prove this to yourself. Find two caravans of different colours in full sunlight and place the palm of your hand on each. It will burn on the coloured one. I wonder how people with full black vans get on in places like the Flinders Ranges?

Heat rises and full-height caravans trap it unless they have large rooftop hatches, fan-forced devices like the ‘Fantastic’, etc. This is why a pop-top caravan will cool quicker once you unzip the ventilation roof skirts.

A caravan with full-thickness, fully insulated walls and a one-piece insulated roof will also be cooler than one with less-effective insulation.

And don’t forget the floor. As anyone who has been cycling on a hot day will testify, a lot of reflected heat rises from hot bitumen. So a thick one-piece floor, apart from increasing chassis rigidity, will stop that heat entering the van while you’re travelling.

Glass rooftop solar panels suspended slightly above the roof surface also help and act like a ‘tropical roof’, allowing cooling air to flow beneath.

Also important is to have opening windows on both sides of the van to ensure a good cross air flow. Then, fit a pair of 12V Sirocco fans inside to blow cool air over you while you read, eat or sleep.

Finally, take care how you position your van.

You’ll need to be in the sun – not under a tree – to ensure your solar panels work, but the main awning should shield you from the heat of the afternoon sun and then should be retracted to allow all the air to escape when it sets.

I’ve seen caravans with a separate awning, or a sail, over the right-hand side and this is very handy for keeping the morning sun at bay. Small awnings over the external fridge vent will help it retain its cool.

If you have done all the above, you may not need air conditioning, even in the tropics.

Big fridges let everything bounce around on rough roads

Only if you don’t pack them properly. Firstly, understand that every cold or frozen item you put in your fridge helps cool it. So cool your drinks and then keep them in the fridge rather than under the bed or in an external locker.

If things are still sloshing about, fill empty wine cask bladders with cold drinking water and let them take up space. (This may involve a little extra homework to empty them first!) Or buy a bag of ice and keep it in there.

Inflated empty wine bladders also stop things rattling around in pantries, while empty carboard toilet rolls protect spice jars.

You need a washing machine

Are you going to a society wedding or meeting the Queen? If not, your wardrobe and washing needs are probably quite small.

My wife and I wash our socks and underwear out in the shower each day and have installed one of those round pull-out clothes lines to ensuring they dry during the day.

Longer things will press quite well under your mattress, particularly if they're kept in one of those hang-up travelling suit bags.

Just about everything else will fold into plastic bags for storing in overhead cupboards. We keep a separate soiled clothes bag under the bed for larger things that don’t need immediate cleaning.

Sheets and bedding? We invest a few bucks at a caravan park where we plan to spend a few days and use their washing machines and dryers. Cheaper than towing a washing machine around with you on your travels! Means you need to carry a couple of spare sheets though.

An even better ‘washing machine’ though is one of those large nappy buckets with a screw-on lid. Add water, soap and clothes and let the road be your agitator...

All vans should be fitted with an off-road hitch

Depends where you’re going and what you’re hauling. With a camper, probably ‘yes’; with a caravan, probably ‘no’.

Few travellers are game to take their investment in a tow car and caravan where they will actually go for fear of expensive damage.

So if steep descents into and steep ascents out of creeks is off your list, a good, properly adjusted 50mm ball coupling should do just fine.

And if you're worried about taking your van with you when you roll your tow car off Queensland’s Bruce Highway, I expect that this will not be your main concern if this occurs.

I’ve travelled across Australia, along the Gibb River Road and on the Tanami, Oodnadatta and Strzelecki Tracks with a basic ball coupling and I’ve never had a problem.

However, if you have a serious off-road caravan, hybrid or camper trailer and unmapped bush tracks are your thing, a coupling with up to 360 degrees of rotation like a DO-35 or a Hitch-Ezy is a very good idea, as you don’t always know exactly where you will end up.

The other good reason for such a coupling is that they are much easier to unhitch if you get stuck and need to unhitch if there is no other option but to separate tow car and trailer, as most won’t jam on an angle.

The other good thing about a ball hitch is when you leave your van for servicing; every forklift that will shuttle it around is fitted with a ball on its fork extensions!

Related:

Top-10 caravan buying mistakes

Top-10 caravan calamities

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