Sun Canopy

[JSiggy]

To forgo the work needed to erect and peg down a conventional awning I was thinking of purchasing a rollout sun canopy. The canopy I was looking at is normally stowed in a long bag that hangs on the awning rail. The videos I have seen show that it only takes minutes to unroll from the bag on the awning rail. The downside I have just realised is that the canopy is rolled in bag around a pole, the length I would need would be 3 metres. Although the bag slides onto the awning rail easily it does really need to be fitted onto the awning rail when leaving home simply because the 3 metre long canopy on the pole would not easliy fit into the van.
The question is does anybody have experience, good or bad,on towing with the 3 metre long canopy/bag attached to the awning rail ?

 

[Blackbird]

Hi as an alternative consider an Isabella Shadow sunshade. Very simple to put up five minutes from threading into awning rail, erecting poles (two or three) dependant on length. Folds up small and does not weigh much. Cheaper than rollout sunshade and does not put any stress on awning rail when travellin.

 

[Ern]

We use a Thule Omnistore 3m. They are 2.5M deep (We found the Isabella Shadow good but not deep enough at 2m, sometimes leaving us sitting in the sun). The 3m Omnistore weighs 9KG and lives on the rail from the beginning of the season to the end of it. Absolutely no problem towing with it in place. I'm happy to provide more info if required.

 

[Johnb]

We have had a Caravanstore which is similar to the Thule Ern has. Extends 2.5m and present one is 366cm long (bag) weighing 12.3kg.
Previous van had a 448cm long version.
Although we have sides and a front they are rarely used - certainly when in Europe it's the shade we need usually.
Absolutely no issues when towing. they will not damage the van in any way. They are designed to hang from the awning rail and frankly, to carry one inside the van completely misses their prime benefit - almost instant deployment.
We would and do, pop ours out for anything over a 1 night stop.
I remove around this time most years to allow a small air awning for winter use. As soon as spring arrives it goes back and stays in place for 8 or 9 months.
I know of no damage caused to a sound van by either the Fiamma or the Thule.

 

[Jcloughie]

We have had a Caravanstore which is similar to the Thule Ern has. Extends 2.5m and present one is 366cm long (bag) weighing 12.3kg.
Previous van had a 448cm long version.
Although we have sides and a front they are rarely used - certainly when in Europe it's the shade we need usually.
Absolutely no issues when towing. they will not damage the van in any way. They are designed to hang from the awning rail and frankly, to carry one inside the van completely misses their prime benefit - almost instant deployment.
We would and do, pop ours out for anything over a 1 night stop.
I remove around this time most years to allow a small air awning for winter use. As soon as spring arrives it goes back and stays in place for 8 or 9 months.
I know of no damage caused to a sound van by either the Fiamma or the Thule.

I concur. we have a 4.1 metre Fiamma. It is normally left on the van with no towing issues.

John

 

[Mr Grumpy]

We used to have an awning in a bag mounted on our van. A Quest Elite Rolli. No effect on towing.
Simple to erect on site but an absolute pain to roll up and get back into its bag.
We took it off after discovering some damp along the top of the wall just inside where the awning rail ran. Upon investigation it seemed the constant pull of the awning had opened the seam very slightly.
Once removed we also found a few marks on the bodywork where the bag had apparently bumped the van whilst traveling.
For short stays we now use simple sun canopy that goes up in about 2 minutes and down in the same. Any long stays we erect the air awning.

 

[Beachball]

For a alternative consider
Dorema Starcamp Quick n Easy Air caravan sunshade canopy 265cm is lightweight touring awning very easy to put up only one single air tube Approx 7kg

 

[Peanut]

We was lucky we had a 4mtr fixed Omnistore on the nearside, and a bag type on the offside, we did have the front and the Rainblocker sides for the main one, but the offside was just for shade. Never had a problem with either. The point made about pulling of the awning rail , should not be an issue with these type of awnings as the are a lot smaller than a full size awning, obviously the fixed one is bolted through the wall of the caravan, so as long as you give it a bit of support while winding in and out, you shouldn't have any problems.

 

[Ern]

If the relatively small force of 10Kg spread over 3M or so has been blamed for a bodywork leak, the bodywork construction must have been no good to begin with. The bond strength of modern caravan awning rail adhesive is massive, as anyone trying to remove one will have discovered.
We use a sun blocker front panel with our Omnistore and this provides a very spacious shaded area for lounging/eating etc - perfect for sunny France. We also carry a Rain blocker end panel (just one because they are reversible) and this turns the canopy into a reasonable shelter from wet and windy UK.
I agree with those who say that Fiamma and Thule offer excellent quality products.

 

[RogerL]

If the relatively small force of 10Kg spread over 3M or so has been blamed for a bodywork leak, the bodywork construction must have been no good to begin with. The bond strength of modern caravan awning rail adhesive is massive, as anyone trying to remove one will have discovered.
We use a sun blocker front panel with our Omnistore and this provides a very spacious shaded area for lounging/eating etc - perfect for sunny France. We also carry a Rain blocker end panel (just one because they are reversible) and this turns the canopy into a reasonable shelter from wet and windy UK.
I agree with those who say that Fiamma and Thule offer excellent quality products.

If modern awning rails are so well bonded they can't ever leak - can they?

 

[Johnb]

Just re-read your opening post! You say:

"The downside I have just realised is that the canopy is rolled in bag around a pole, the length I would need would be 3 meters. Although the bag slides onto the awning rail easily it does really need to be fitted onto the awning rail when leaving home simply because the 3 meter long canopy on the pole would not easily fit into the van".

Re-reading this makes me wonder if you have understood the "canopy in a bag" concept. Not being critical but hopefully helping.

The canopy itself is a sheet of fabric/plastic/whatever. One of the long sides is permanently sewn into the bag. the other end is fixed to a hollow tube.
The hollow tube (or similar) holds the two front corner upright poles. In my Caravanstore they slide inside the tube.

What you can't do is separate the bag from the canopy - they are one item.

To mount and dismount you need to have the full canopy opened out. The bag end is now flexible to be fed into the awning rail. You probably have a helper holding the metal tube with upright legs inside and keeping pace with the bag's progress into the awning rail.

In addition you must have a straight length of rail for the canopy to fit.

If you don't mind going through this process then you could mount and dismount the whole canopy and bag every time you stop. That would totally negate the vast advantage which is speed of erection and putting away. And you would probably trip over the thing inside the van! 🙄

On the matter of putting away Mr Grumpy mentions the "complete pain of putting it away".
Again it's horses for courses. The weight of the tube and the canopy is not trivial. You are rolling the thing up and raising as you roll until it fits inside the bag.

My wife holds one end and after sliding the corner upright inside the tube begins to roll it all up with an "underhand" motion. I do exactly the same with the other end.

The caravan step has already been placed near the side of the van at the center point of the canopy bag. When wife and myself have would up as far as she can reach I move to the center of the canopy and standing on the step continue rolling until the velcro strips sewn inside the bag are positioned around the rolled up canopy to hold it in position inside the bag. There are further velcro strips at either end but once the center strip is in position this will hold the canopy by itself.

If you can lift whilst rolling around 10 kg then putting away is not difficult. A 3m canopy that you are interested in will be lighter than 10kg I think.

On the continent I would say many more vans carry a canopy of some sort - in bag or wind out - than you see in the UK (Motorhomes excluded). They are ideal for speed and offer good shade. We have an end panel which is similar to a mesh and this will cut out the worst of direct sun. A similar much shorter version an be popped along the front tube (Yes, the tube of the Caravanstore not only carries the front legs but there are two channels running its length - one for the front side if used and a second channel for extras such as the sun shade.

Phew. I'll shut up now. Sorry this has been so long winded. Good luck with whatever path you take.

 

[JSiggy]

Thank you everybody for your advice and experiences, one reason why I subscribe to this Forum. I shall mull over your comments before coming to a decision. Thanks again