Is someone having a laugh?????
- Thread starter BigAl1
- Start date
What I mean is that some recent questions originate from an asker who has no apparent knowledge of Towcars, tow bars, stabilizers, towballs, electrical connections, batteries, charging systems or water systems to name just a few.
I cannot believe that someone in such a position would ever contemplate taking up our treasured leisure persuit.
I therefore wonder if someone is winding us up a tad.
I am ready for the flack that this question will provoke but I have thick (very thick) skin so bring it on.
If however these questions are genuine then I am sincerly sorry for having raised the thought in the first place.
Al
I cannot believe that someone in such a position would ever contemplate taking up our treasured leisure persuit.
I therefore wonder if someone is winding us up a tad.
I am ready for the flack that this question will provoke but I have thick (very thick) skin so bring it on.
If however these questions are genuine then I am sincerly sorry for having raised the thought in the first place.
Al
Big Al,
We all have to learn somehow.
Not all caravanners are technically minded, so struggle with what others find an easy fix.
I have seen some questions on here and some replies are "you should have used the search facility" Well I have tried that in the past and it isn't the most user friendly to use.
We all have to learn somehow.
Not all caravanners are technically minded, so struggle with what others find an easy fix.
I have seen some questions on here and some replies are "you should have used the search facility" Well I have tried that in the past and it isn't the most user friendly to use.
hi al some of the questions are from me and yes they are genuine about ten years ago i bought an old seventies two berth avondale perle from a bloke at work for 80 quid it was basically a shell although the chasis and body where still completely sound, i have since then spent time rewiring decorating and rebuilding this lovely little caravan mostly myself although i did have the mains electric fitted by a proffessional. some things i never got round to doing as i never needed them being a single man now im married and have two children to my joy my wife is into caravanning to so my old crate has come out of mothballs and is once again on the road so little things that i never used before or had knowledge of are coming to light basically im a kind of experienced guy who needs some new training hehe so if you can please help thankyou
As I said above.
"If however these questions are genuine then I am sincerly sorry for having raised the thought in the first place". But. It is not you that I had in mind.
Well Big Al,i am one of those persons who thought i knew enough after 40 years camping but yesterday i was preparing the van ie testing all the usual things and found first the fridge would not keep alight and the Tuma boiler kept on going out.You may laugh now.the boiler cover i had not taken off so when i heard a plop outside found the cover on the ground, and the fridge for some reason then kept alight, and yes i had taken the covers off but that would have made no reason for it not to have kept on .I had purged the gas system earlier in case anybody say'.
Hi Big Al
I've been caravanning since 1978 and am still learning. Even wiring up a 12s plug takes me 30 minutes and without the wiring diagram I admit I have messed that up, ie left a bare wire on one terminal which shorted everything out.
As an example have you seen the recent post about the thousands of uses for WD40?? And I thought I was clever!
Never too old to learn.
Cheers
Alan
I've been caravanning since 1978 and am still learning. Even wiring up a 12s plug takes me 30 minutes and without the wiring diagram I admit I have messed that up, ie left a bare wire on one terminal which shorted everything out.
As an example have you seen the recent post about the thousands of uses for WD40?? And I thought I was clever!
Never too old to learn.
Cheers
Alan
Robert.
I have never suggested that anyone knows everything but I am concerned that some questions asked show that there are people towing carvans and dabbling with gas and electicity who clearly do not know what they are doing.
Would these people mess about with domestic gas and electicity instilations.
Al
Hi Big Al,
We took up caravanning about 3 months ago and, despite some pretty intensive research, knew practically nothing on our first outing.
We learnt a lot on that first outing!
One thing I initially struggled to get my head round was that there were 2 separate electrical systems in the 'van - it seemed a lot of trouble to go to! I had assumed that there was some kind of built-in inverter that allowed the sockets etc to work off the battery. It took me a while to accept that the sockets were just for show unless I was hooked-up!
So, we've all got to start somewhere and what's obvious to one person might be a total mystery to another - I thought that's what these forums were here for...
We took up caravanning about 3 months ago and, despite some pretty intensive research, knew practically nothing on our first outing.
We learnt a lot on that first outing!
One thing I initially struggled to get my head round was that there were 2 separate electrical systems in the 'van - it seemed a lot of trouble to go to! I had assumed that there was some kind of built-in inverter that allowed the sockets etc to work off the battery. It took me a while to accept that the sockets were just for show unless I was hooked-up!
So, we've all got to start somewhere and what's obvious to one person might be a total mystery to another - I thought that's what these forums were here for...
hi all
well I am with big Al on this one and have said so in other posts yes I know at this time of year more newbies start and vans come out of mothballs BUT; really some fundimental how can anyone get that wrong questions keep cropping up and might I add not just on here;
I answered a question the other day I admit quite flippantly and got my head chewed off the question:- basically why can I not get any power out of the 240v sockets on battery power?? they seem to work ok when hookup cable connected, (so sorry rupert)eh??
another one:- question when I hang the van on to the car the rear suspension bottoms out why?? answer, have you checked the nose weight of the van, follow up question what's nose weight??.
last one, question I have just bought a bailey senator 6 wyoming do you think my pug 307 will tow it ok,??? answer, not in a million years as the van is over 1700 kg loaded.
dozens of question like these pop up quite regulary on all van forums and if ALL are genuine which I have doubt then ther must be some quite dangerous outfits out there on the road it does makes one worry a tad.
ok so no one knows it all and yes even experts get it wrong sometimes and I for one would not not consider myself one of these but still it does make one think sometimes there is a wind up behind it.
colin
well I am with big Al on this one and have said so in other posts yes I know at this time of year more newbies start and vans come out of mothballs BUT; really some fundimental how can anyone get that wrong questions keep cropping up and might I add not just on here;
I answered a question the other day I admit quite flippantly and got my head chewed off the question:- basically why can I not get any power out of the 240v sockets on battery power?? they seem to work ok when hookup cable connected, (so sorry rupert)eh??
another one:- question when I hang the van on to the car the rear suspension bottoms out why?? answer, have you checked the nose weight of the van, follow up question what's nose weight??.
last one, question I have just bought a bailey senator 6 wyoming do you think my pug 307 will tow it ok,??? answer, not in a million years as the van is over 1700 kg loaded.
dozens of question like these pop up quite regulary on all van forums and if ALL are genuine which I have doubt then ther must be some quite dangerous outfits out there on the road it does makes one worry a tad.
ok so no one knows it all and yes even experts get it wrong sometimes and I for one would not not consider myself one of these but still it does make one think sometimes there is a wind up behind it.
colin
Ouch, Colin!
As a recent newbie to caravanning and having asked a lot of questions myself on various forums, I can understand them wanting to ask questions. Isn't this what caravan forums are for? Isn't that what the more experienced caravanners are here for? To help the newbies?
I do agree that the question on 240V on Battery was a tad daft but I think it was the way the question was worded more than anything else. As Rupert explained, he had assumed it was wired with an inverter and that was a fair assumption. They could have been. If you don't know, you don't know. If you don't ask, you'll never know. As for "What's Nose Weight?" ... come on! It's a fair question and not everyone new to caravanning knows about this.
To be fair, I think threads like this don't look very good or very helpful to the newbies and potential new caravanners thinking of joining this forum. They'll see it as you're not being very helpful, thinking that you'll all ridicule them for asking silly questions and so go and find another forum with more helpful and friendly members.
As a recent newbie to caravanning and having asked a lot of questions myself on various forums, I can understand them wanting to ask questions. Isn't this what caravan forums are for? Isn't that what the more experienced caravanners are here for? To help the newbies?
I do agree that the question on 240V on Battery was a tad daft but I think it was the way the question was worded more than anything else. As Rupert explained, he had assumed it was wired with an inverter and that was a fair assumption. They could have been. If you don't know, you don't know. If you don't ask, you'll never know. As for "What's Nose Weight?" ... come on! It's a fair question and not everyone new to caravanning knows about this.
To be fair, I think threads like this don't look very good or very helpful to the newbies and potential new caravanners thinking of joining this forum. They'll see it as you're not being very helpful, thinking that you'll all ridicule them for asking silly questions and so go and find another forum with more helpful and friendly members.
hi gary I hear what you say and of course you are right that is what forums are for and yes there will obviously be some silly questions from time to time.
however the fact remains caravanning is not something that one throws ones self into with a blindfold on its a huge step and if you get it wrong can be very costly and dangerous.
the laws on towing are very complex, the laws governing caravans are even more so, suitability of certain cars to tow caravans and getting a matched outfit can be difficult to attain and all this is besides loading and stability issues, the whole idea of buying that first van and towing it does leave one bewilded to start with so asking questions and doing research is the only way forward.
I totally agree with that however the attention to detail is paramount if someone does not know what nose weight is after having allready towed his van how the hell does he know if it is legal to do so or even if it is safe to tow it anyway.
my guess is he doesn't and had it not been for the car suspension bottoming out would not have thought any more about it because he obviously did not do any homework before purchase
or he would have known wouldn't he??? thats why I called it a silly question if it was genuine, or a windup if it was not.
I for one would not try and dissuade anyone from asking questions silly or not, but that is not the point, somebody who spends a small fortune on a large new expensive van without first assertaining that their car will actually tow it can not be for real can they??, surely nobody would be that stupid not even a newbie would be that daft.
it's got to be a windup hasn't it?????.
colin.
however the fact remains caravanning is not something that one throws ones self into with a blindfold on its a huge step and if you get it wrong can be very costly and dangerous.
the laws on towing are very complex, the laws governing caravans are even more so, suitability of certain cars to tow caravans and getting a matched outfit can be difficult to attain and all this is besides loading and stability issues, the whole idea of buying that first van and towing it does leave one bewilded to start with so asking questions and doing research is the only way forward.
I totally agree with that however the attention to detail is paramount if someone does not know what nose weight is after having allready towed his van how the hell does he know if it is legal to do so or even if it is safe to tow it anyway.
my guess is he doesn't and had it not been for the car suspension bottoming out would not have thought any more about it because he obviously did not do any homework before purchase
or he would have known wouldn't he??? thats why I called it a silly question if it was genuine, or a windup if it was not.
I for one would not try and dissuade anyone from asking questions silly or not, but that is not the point, somebody who spends a small fortune on a large new expensive van without first assertaining that their car will actually tow it can not be for real can they??, surely nobody would be that stupid not even a newbie would be that daft.
it's got to be a windup hasn't it?????.
colin.
Hi again, Colin and thanks for your very informative and adult reply. More members should take a leaf out of your book.
I do agree with you on the subject of "doing your homework" before going into anything, not just caravanning but any hobby. Something I did extensively before we bought our caravan. However, there is always something new to learn and still some things surprise me, even now, despite having read a mound of information from various forums.
As for "nobody would be that stupid", I disagree. I hesitate to call people stupid though. Everyone is different. Let me explain.....
I have run and managed forums for over 10 years now. As some of you know, I have a Photography Forum so let me give you a few examples from this. One member new to Digital Photography posted "Help! Just bought a new digital camera and I can't find out how to open the back to put the film in!" OK, I bet you cracked up laughing there but come on, spare a thought to this member who knew nothing about digital, nothing about computers and was a total newbie.
Another example...
A member once posted that she was collecting a rather large amount of memory cards for her digital camera and it was getting expensive. Confused, we delved into her reasons for using a rather large number of memory cards, only to (eventually) discover that she thought memory cards were like film. 36 shots per card and that's that. When we explained that you could save the images to PC and reuse the cards, she was gobsmacked. She sincerely didn't know!
I have helped many people with computer problems and camera queries and many have said that I have the patience of a Saint. They were probably right. Some of the silly questions I used to get regarding computer problems were enough to drive me up the wall. But I could see they genuinely didn't know.
So please, Colin, Big Al, Et Al, spare of thought for the genuine noobs. Been there, done that.
I do agree with you on the subject of "doing your homework" before going into anything, not just caravanning but any hobby. Something I did extensively before we bought our caravan. However, there is always something new to learn and still some things surprise me, even now, despite having read a mound of information from various forums.
As for "nobody would be that stupid", I disagree. I hesitate to call people stupid though. Everyone is different. Let me explain.....
I have run and managed forums for over 10 years now. As some of you know, I have a Photography Forum so let me give you a few examples from this. One member new to Digital Photography posted "Help! Just bought a new digital camera and I can't find out how to open the back to put the film in!" OK, I bet you cracked up laughing there but come on, spare a thought to this member who knew nothing about digital, nothing about computers and was a total newbie.
Another example...
A member once posted that she was collecting a rather large amount of memory cards for her digital camera and it was getting expensive. Confused, we delved into her reasons for using a rather large number of memory cards, only to (eventually) discover that she thought memory cards were like film. 36 shots per card and that's that. When we explained that you could save the images to PC and reuse the cards, she was gobsmacked. She sincerely didn't know!
I have helped many people with computer problems and camera queries and many have said that I have the patience of a Saint. They were probably right. Some of the silly questions I used to get regarding computer problems were enough to drive me up the wall. But I could see they genuinely didn't know.
So please, Colin, Big Al, Et Al, spare of thought for the genuine noobs. Been there, done that.
I agree with you Legsmaniac, but there is a difference in being in the dark about digital cameras, and obliviously towing a ton and a half of caravan along the road at 60 mph, and not knowing about noseweight, stabilisers, towing limits, etc, letters and questions on these forums will be sometimes read by people in authority and I think it is only a matter of time before the "powers to be" step in and introduce proper towing tests
hi all. and thank you gary for your kind words I do try to be objective and thoughtfull when replying to any questions be it from a newbie or not. the fact does remain as I am sure you will agree the world is full of jokers and wind up merchants and at the back of ones mind occasionally a post gets one thinking mmmm
is this for real or a windup.
this does not detract from the geuine inquiry because as we all know every body get it wrong or comes across a situation were they need help, in the old days when I first started vanning there were no forums because there were no computers or internet there was no one to ask, the odd club might answer by letter if you had 3 weeks to spare and everthing was done ad hoc and by trial and error you could say we learned the hard way.
these days however it is all on the net at the touch of a button all the legistlation the correct weights procedures and of course help from fellow caravanners on forums you can find out almost anything by googling it and doing a bit of research before hand, some may think this is too difficult to do or don't know how to do it fair enough then ask the questions but at least they should look first before jumping in with both feet.
an example of this happend with a bloke I work with I will call him "dave" knowing that I tow a van he asked me the best route to tow a van back from skegness has he had to bring his brothers van home for him due to illnes, it was perminantly sited down there but had to be brought home I told him the best route avioding towns and hills ect but asked him why??
well he said I have to tow it with my own car going down for the weekend then bringing it back monday. the following questions and answers are true honestly, get ready I nearly wet my pants.
Q. how big is the van
A. dont know exactly about 20ft its got 4 wheels
Q. how much does it weigh
A. dont know
Q.what are you going to tow it with
A.a rover 400 1.6sli
Q.you cant tow it with that it would be illegal
A. well its only 50 miles and pretty flat
Q. it does not matter you cant do it
A. it will be ok
Q.its just too heavy for a rover
A.do you think
Q. what about insurance
A what insurance
Q.car and van
A. dont know
Q have you got a no plate for the van
A no
Q. mirrors
A. no
Q. have you towed a van before
A.no just a camping trailer?
at this point I had to walk away it was just too much.
I did however manage to persuade him not to do it eventually so
kept at least one bit of road safe for one day at least, it makes you think though what if??.
colin
is this for real or a windup.
this does not detract from the geuine inquiry because as we all know every body get it wrong or comes across a situation were they need help, in the old days when I first started vanning there were no forums because there were no computers or internet there was no one to ask, the odd club might answer by letter if you had 3 weeks to spare and everthing was done ad hoc and by trial and error you could say we learned the hard way.
these days however it is all on the net at the touch of a button all the legistlation the correct weights procedures and of course help from fellow caravanners on forums you can find out almost anything by googling it and doing a bit of research before hand, some may think this is too difficult to do or don't know how to do it fair enough then ask the questions but at least they should look first before jumping in with both feet.
an example of this happend with a bloke I work with I will call him "dave" knowing that I tow a van he asked me the best route to tow a van back from skegness has he had to bring his brothers van home for him due to illnes, it was perminantly sited down there but had to be brought home I told him the best route avioding towns and hills ect but asked him why??
well he said I have to tow it with my own car going down for the weekend then bringing it back monday. the following questions and answers are true honestly, get ready I nearly wet my pants.
Q. how big is the van
A. dont know exactly about 20ft its got 4 wheels
Q. how much does it weigh
A. dont know
Q.what are you going to tow it with
A.a rover 400 1.6sli
Q.you cant tow it with that it would be illegal
A. well its only 50 miles and pretty flat
Q. it does not matter you cant do it
A. it will be ok
Q.its just too heavy for a rover
A.do you think
Q. what about insurance
A what insurance
Q.car and van
A. dont know
Q have you got a no plate for the van
A no
Q. mirrors
A. no
Q. have you towed a van before
A.no just a camping trailer?
at this point I had to walk away it was just too much.
I did however manage to persuade him not to do it eventually so
kept at least one bit of road safe for one day at least, it makes you think though what if??.
colin
And why not? If someone had never been to a camp site in their life yet saw that hook up cables were sold in different lengths, isn't it a fair question from a newbie to ask advice as to which length is best?
Someone replied they have a 10M, a 15M AND a 25M and has on one occasion used all three connected together to reach a hook up from where they pitched. Wow! That's a total 50M of cable!! I, for one, never thought of that nor knew you could do that. So you see... it's replies to questions like these that help even me.
Someone replied they have a 10M, a 15M AND a 25M and has on one occasion used all three connected together to reach a hook up from where they pitched. Wow! That's a total 50M of cable!! I, for one, never thought of that nor knew you could do that. So you see... it's replies to questions like these that help even me.
Colin,
I do agree with you that some people are just plain silly and should do their research first. It's the same with any hobby really. But people don't, do they? So that's what I'm saying - the "silly questions" on the forums can well be from people who just haven't done the research.
Or if it IS a wind-up, then perhaps Haymarket have a few people employed to ask silly questions to keep their forum active! LMAO.
In the case of "Dave", do you believe he was winding you up? No, obviously he was being genuinely ignorant of the requirements. And stubborn.
There's no such thing as a stupid question, only stupid people.
Or
The only stupid question is the one that's never asked.
I do agree with you that some people are just plain silly and should do their research first. It's the same with any hobby really. But people don't, do they? So that's what I'm saying - the "silly questions" on the forums can well be from people who just haven't done the research.
Or if it IS a wind-up, then perhaps Haymarket have a few people employed to ask silly questions to keep their forum active! LMAO.
In the case of "Dave", do you believe he was winding you up? No, obviously he was being genuinely ignorant of the requirements. And stubborn.
There's no such thing as a stupid question, only stupid people.
Or
The only stupid question is the one that's never asked.
I was always told , if in doubt ask.
Some people need to be reasured , me for one , and these forums help greatly.
Some people need to be reasured , me for one , and these forums help greatly.
Ive been caravanning for year but sometimes need a bit of guidance. i like to support others when I can.
Thank you. That's exactly my point. I have never been to caravan site or pitched up in my adult life. When the shop staff said I might need a 25m hook up I was surprised as the only pitches I visited when I was a child had hook ups right next to the caravan so I thought a shorter one could do the job. I was wrong on that point, and if I hadn't asked, I wouldn't have known.
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