Is someone having a laugh?????

[colin-yorkshire]

hi all

ok so big al and myself ARE mistaken in thinking some post silly questions just for a laugh and all the questions asked are genuine and from people who haven't got a clue, fine I can live with that "ask away". NEXT:-question??.

question. "What length of hook up lead do I need?"

answer. 3ft longer??

question. 3ft longer than what??

answer. 3ft longer than the distance from the van to the hook up point.

question. so how long is that??.

answer. now that is the real question.

and before anyone suggests it, no I am not taking the pi$$ just trying to demonstrate what a silly question is and the possible answers to it.

the question like the one above was I suppose fair and required a sensible answer however because of the way it was put is sounded silly hence the misunderstanding for instance one could have asked :-

I am looking to buy a new hook up cable but they appear to come in different lenghts which one would you suggest I buy and why??.

a straight forward question with a good chance of many replies.

BTW. just in case the original poster is reading this I suggest a minimum of 25mtrs that is the longest one I have and it has never been too short to reach the hook up box on site. I also have a 5mtr one for use on service pitches and where the hook up box is right behind the van ,most sites we go on are like this but not all.

see it's easy.

colin

 

[Legsmaniac_374344731]

LOL Colin.

Fair point.

But you also have to remember that not everyones level of English or Grammar is the same. Not everyone will put the same question in the same way. We ALL know what was meant though.

$h*t!!! Now I need a 5mtr cable.........

 

[ShadySadie]

I have to agree with Big Al and Colin, I've noted a few questions that I can't believe are real.

Do today's new caravanners not read up on caravans and caravanning or even read a caravan manual?

As a lady caravanner with some camping experience when we first started caravanning we spoke to other caravan owners, went around a few dealers for info, askng questions about caravans/tow car choice, caravannning on the continent and bought some caravanning magazines and books on owning and using a caravan.

I would be to embarrassed to ask some of the questions put here.

Queue "Caravanning for Dummies" guide ;

 

[ProfJohnL]

From time to time some people do post a question that might be deliberately placed as a wind up, but unless you know the person, or they have indicated it is a wind up, then who are we to judge if the question is genuine or not.

Whether a question is 'silly' or not is rather in the eyes of the reader, and that depends your own knowledge or understanding.

Not every one has the same level of understanding and so to extend their knowledge they have to ask. A forum such as this which has a level of anonymity is good place to ask, especially about a subject which might be embarrassing if your true identity were known. As legsmaniac has pointed out not every one is good at using language, and that may make some questions less succinct than others.

I suggest that if you find a topic that you believe may be wind up, don't ridicule or condemn it, just pass it over.

 

[RogerP]

I can sort of see why some posts could be seen as a wind up and not knowing the individual other than through the written word it would be difficult to know. Also two people can read the same text but interpret it in totally different ways.

Regarding some points raised here about reading caravan manuals etc etc , thats fine and maybe how folks did it years ago when the Internet was just the stuff of Star Trek. Or maybe they went to a caravan dealer and asked questions because the dealer was more than likely a caravanner.

However our lives are all too different now. We lead fast paced lives and want information now at the refresh of a web page. And how many times have you been to a dealer and the guy trying to sell you a shiny new van has never actually been caravanning?

Sad I know but thats progress , or is it?

Its fine if you think someone is having a laugh and its fine if you think they are serious. But fact is those that give the benefit of the doubt will offer useful info , then those of us following the thread may just pick up something we didn't know.

As others has said , I'm now off to buy a shorter EHU as I didn't know they existed till the so called wind up was posted.

So keep on winding us up and let us decide if we want to go along with it or not.

 

[Iain_5062081]

Sorry guys, might have missed the point here......what's a hook-up lead? ;-)!!!!

 

[Netti_374307085]

OK so since it was my post that seems to have sparked all this off, can I please point out a few things?

I have both the Haynes Caravan Manual and the Caravan Handbook. However, both lack some of the finer points of detail, such as length of hook up lead, diameter of water hoses required, type of bulbs used in road lights etc. I am the kind of person who likes to be well-informed and actually read instruction manuals before using a new appliance for example. I'm sorry if I seem naive or my posts wind you up but I genuinely do not mean them to be so. I am keen to learn and almost everyone on this forum is more experience than me so I thought it would be a good place to ask for help. As an aside, I have never been caravanning before in my adult life, this is my first caravan and it is older and has no instruction manuals with it. Through asking on here I have gotten links to the instructions how to use the water heater and contact details for Swift for further information. I am actually rather upset at seemingly being labelled silly. I'm not a stupid person, but then again I am not that technically minded either and new technical things do worry me, probably more than the average person. It took me a year of driving before I learned to changed a wheel. I was worried about the car dropping off axle stands or not being able to tighten the nuts tight enough again. Now I can repair/replace brakes, change bulbs, wipers, filters, spark plugs, even part of the exhaust etc as well. Bit by bit I learn a little more, and I have been helped tremendously by the car owners club forums I am a member of. I had hoped to get similar support and useful information by joining this forum but it appears I am not welcome to ask such silly questions.

 

[colin-yorkshire]

hi netti

I am sorry that you think it was your question that sparked of this whole thread and that in some way it should dissuade you from asking future questions or that in some way as a newbie you are not welcome in case a question you post may seem silly to some BUT actually is was not.

the thread arose because some my self included have noticed in recent weeks a spate of what one could call for a better word "silly" posts that is to say questions and some answers that at appear to be a bit of a wind up simply because they are so fundimementally naive in nature it would seem impossible not to know, the answer. if you get my drift.

I gave a few examples in my original post you will notice yours was not one of them,

colin

 

[swpostie]

Stop digging Colin!

 

[WatsonJohnG]

We were asked to help a new arrival at C & CC rally in Brittany one year

The steward explained that thing between the couple could get a little heated and help might ease the situation

They had a new Freelander and new Avondale but had motorvanned before

We went jsut in time as he was hooking up to the mains

He had made up a hook up lead which he first plugged in to the site box

On the other end of the cable lying on the wet grass was a 13amp square pin UK plug that he went to pick up

When asked what it was for he proceeded to indicate the 13amp awning socket (power out) as his van hook up connection

This would have avoided all the van trips

When questionned he produced the hook up lead that came with the van still sealed up in the plastic bag

Things could have got very heated

He then related a wire stripping with teeth tale that involved still being connected to 230V!!

 

[WatsonJohnG]

We were asked to help a new arrival at C & CC rally in Brittany one year

The steward explained that thing between the couple could get a little heated and help might ease the situation

They had a new Freelander and new Avondale but had motorvanned before

We went jsut in time as he was hooking up to the mains

He had made up a hook up lead which he first plugged in to the site box

On the other end of the cable lying on the wet grass was a 13amp square pin UK plug that he went to pick up

When asked what it was for he proceeded to indicate the 13amp awning socket (power out) as his van hook up connection

This would have avoided all the van trips

When questionned he produced the hook up lead that came with the van still sealed up in the plastic bag

Things could have got very heated

He then related a wire stripping with teeth tale that involved still being connected to 230V!!

His name was Colin by strange coincidence!!!

 

[BigAl1]

Sorry Netti.

You were not meant to be singled out.

You have convinced us doubters that (at least) your questions were genuine so please keep them, comming.

But

I stick to the comment that I made on April 28th and my potential appology still stands.

However, Colin is perfectly right in that he says that many outfits must be dangerous because of the apparent ignorance of the "caravanner". Is it these "caravanners" that lead the likes of Mr Clarkson to reach the conclusions that he does?

Al

Al

 

[alaintaylor]

The biggest laugh by far is Milenco, taking us all for idiots - see 'illegal mirrors'!!!

 

[alaintaylor]

The biggest laugh by far is Milenco, taking us all for idiots - see 'illegal mirrors'!!!