Air Awnings.

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Jan 7, 2007
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Air for me all day long. No longer do I risk damaging the sidewalls with stray poles. I can put my vango Sonama awning up on my own but it can be hard, sometimes I use a pulley system to pull it along the awning rail. (Touch wood) we’ve never had a puncture but I know plenty of people that have but generally they’ve gone for the cheaper brands. This is my second Vango awning, personally I prefer them to Kampa because the air poles are separate, just the one is attached to the awning which makes it less heavy. The others are separate and simply Velcro on.
 
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Jan 3, 2012
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Air for me all day long. No longer do I risk damaging the sidewalls with stray poles. I can put my vango Sonama awning up on my own but it can be hard, sometimes I use a pulley system to pull it along the awning rail. (Touch wood) we’ve never had a puncture but I know plenty of people that have but generally they’ve gone for the cheaper brands. This is my second Vango awning, personally I prefer them to Kampa because the air poles are separate, just the one is attached to the awning which makes it less heavy. The others are separate and simply Velcro on.
We use the pulley system on our Vango Capella air 220 it made light work putting it up but like you we also had two a vango awnings never had a puncture i hope you continue to enjoy yours
 
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Oct 17, 2010
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Well I'm booked onto a site near Callington in Cornwell from March 8th for a fortnght (weather permitting) will test Awning then. Although Norfolk is calling, before that,. without the awning.
 
Jan 20, 2023
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I'll stick my opinion in seeing as I've had several awnings of both poled and air varieties! We've been air-only now for a few years, we moved away from poled as (on the larger awnings) my wife struggled without using a stool (she's vertically challenged!), after she fell off the stool once we decided to go the air route as it'd allow me to put it up on my own while she faffed around inside. My own comments are:

- Decent air awnings are heavy, think of it as one item weighing the same as a full awning AND poles. Not too much of a problem if you're reasonably fit or have someone else to help you load it into the car/awning rail etc.
- SOME air awnings don't break down into individual components so you cannot unzip panels etc on some to lighten the load.
- They are quicker to put up in my experience (if using a 12 volt pump!) but pegging out still takes the same amount of time.
- Cheap air awnings are lightweight and great for a porch etc but they're pretty much disposable after a few years.
- Expensive air awnings are great, well made BUT very heavy and VERY expensive!

We had a 2017 Kampa Rally 390 Plus first, it seemed great but at just over £1,000 it was a big investment. It leaked pretty much from the first outing, faded badly and you couldn't remove the panels completely. A shame as the design/concept was good. Tip: Don't buy online as we got zero support from Kampa after discovering the online supplier had folded.

We then had a Starcamp 280, a £275 buy from EBay. Cheap and cheerfull, lightweight, really quick to put up, but the material was very thin and condensation was a big problem.

After an unexpected tax rebate we bought an Isabella Cirrus 400 with annexe. Eye-wateringly expensive but the quality is first-class. It's very heavy BUT removing the panels etc makes it manageable.

Some folks claim they struggle on uneven pitches but it's not something we've ever encountered, whatever the pitch is like, the awning always seems to fit just as well as the previous poled types used to.

IMG_4783.JPG
 
Jul 18, 2017
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The largest air awning we would look at is a 260. We had an Air Ace 360 or 400 and found it far too heavy for us to pull through the awning rail. Also a big hassle if on a sloping pitch as we fouf out. After only using the air awning ion about 5 occasions we sold it and bought a Isabella Magnum poled awning. Quicker to erect than the air awning even when using a pump and also a lot quicker and easier. to fold up and pack away..
 
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May 11, 2021
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We have a Sunncamp Ultima Versara Air 390 - our first and only awning so nothing to compare to. We find it easy to pitch and sturdy. I can and have pitched it on my own - it's a bit of a faff but doable; much easier with two though.
 
Apr 13, 2021
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What are peoples thoughts on air awnings?

Have they improved, in design, over the last couple of years?
We have a porch air awning, a Vango, it’s heavy and hard to pull through the awing rail. Have to attach thin rope to end of awning and try to pull it along . Needs two people to do it. Relatively easy to pump up. caravan door hits awning roof when not absolutely level.

From 30 years experience of various awnings … wouldnt buy another Air awning.

Just a passing fad? The bubble will burst!
 
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Jul 18, 2017
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We have a porch air awning, a Vango, it’s heavy and hard to pull through the awing rail. Have to attach thin rope to end of awning and try to pull it along . Needs two people to do it. Relatively easy to pump up. caravan door hits awning roof when not absolutely level.

From 30 years experience of various awnings … wouldnt buy another Air awning.

Just a passing fad? The bubble will burst!

Yep same here. We bought the large Kampa Air Ace and after only using it for several nights we took a hit and sold it and bought the Isabella Magnum. We do have a 220 air awning for the winter months.
 
Nov 30, 2022
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Just be aware that these pulleys are designed to be used just with a Kampa awning that has a reinforced eyelet built into the awning. Most awnings don't have tge eyelet and, if fitting one DIY be sure to fit plenty of reinforcement or you will tear the material!

I have had an air awning for a few years. Yes it's heavy, but ONLY if you leave all the zip out panels in place. Remove them and its a doddle.

How many owners of poled awnings leave all of the panels in place when erecting their awning? Ever wondered why that is?
 
Jul 18, 2017
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Just be aware that these pulleys are designed to be used just with a Kampa awning that has a reinforced eyelet built into the awning. Most awnings don't have tge eyelet and, if fitting one DIY be sure to fit plenty of reinforcement or you will tear the material!

I have had an air awning for a few years. Yes it's heavy, but ONLY if you leave all the zip out panels in place. Remove them and its a doddle.

How many owners of poled awnings leave all of the panels in place when erecting their awning? Ever wondered why that is?

If removing the panels then there is no difference in ease of erecting a poled or air awning? We still find the poled version easier especially when it comes to packing it away. However up to the individual to decide which is best for them. (y) :D
 
Mar 27, 2011
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My kampa cum Dometic 390 air awning and bought a kampa pulley and electric pump, I remove all panels and it’s relatively easy to do it on my own, I wouldn’t use any size or make of an awning if I was using it for anything less than a weeks stay, I’m happy with no awning for weekends and often when going for a 6/7 day pitch, my full awning kampa/ Dometic is great, getting an oversized bag that comes with it makes packing it up is a doddle as well.
BP
 
Mar 27, 2011
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Also how many people will honestly own up to dinging the caravan bodywork when erecting a poled awning, if you haven’t your lucky, look round pitches and you’ll see scratches and dings in loads of caravans.
 
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Jul 18, 2017
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Also how many people will honestly own up to dinging the caravan bodywork when erecting a poled awning, if you haven’t your lucky, look round pitches and you’ll see scratches and dings in loads of caravans.
Touch wood this has never happened to us.
 

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