Daan Posted August 10 Share Posted August 10 Very neat. What's the front tent off? Daan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted August 10 Author Share Posted August 10 It's a proper caravan awning. It's actually a porch awning but this was deliberate so we didn't need rails up the front and back. It could do with being slightly shorter to fit better, but for a guessed off the shelf we're really happy with it. I don't like air beams but if nothing else it's a great template and it was dirt cheap because its quite faded. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted August 11 Share Posted August 11 Interesting comment on the air beams.... I'd take one over traditional poles any day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted August 11 Author Share Posted August 11 16 minutes ago, landroversforever said: Interesting comment on the air beams.... I'd take one over traditional poles any day. They don't like stronger winds, if you get a puncture no amount of gaffa tape is going to hold it, they change stiffness with temperature (wife says they look disappointing in the morning ), they're not cheaper than traditional, the pump is massive, our awning has poles that go between the air beams and they're designed for halfwits that can't put up a tent. In fact the only up side we've found is they're marginally quicker to put up, but not much. Mike 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
geoffbeaumont Posted August 11 Share Posted August 11 Our airbeam awning is significantly quicker to put up than an equivalent solid poled one, and it's never needed topping up even over a couple of weeks. But... I'm totally with @miketomcat on their ability to handle strong winds. The air beams can fold with the wind on them, especially if it's on the end. Anything that could be done to brace them against that would lose a lot of space inside. Compared to our old steel poled tent that we had before the caravan it's not in the same class - that stood up to some very severe weather (not sure if I'd have wanted to be in the 'van in some of it, never mind the awning). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bowie69 Posted August 11 Share Posted August 11 Do they not have guy lines to help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted August 11 Author Share Posted August 11 4 minutes ago, Bowie69 said: Do they not have guy lines to help? Yes they do, but they can't really pull against anything so tend to pull it out of shape once past a certain point. Don't get me wrong it works really well and we're happy enough with it, but when we come to replace it it will have proper poles. Mike 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 Interesting my experience has been the total opposite. Probably first used one ~12-15 years ago and would be absolute go to. They're dead easy to repair with a normal kind of puncture repair kit like you would a bike. I've not had a puncture in my Airgo in the 8-9 years I've had it. Also not had a single puncture in any of the Scout group's tents... but we have probably an average of 3-4 snapped poles a year. Other than traditional canvass patrol tents (and tiny hike tents) a friend's group has gone completely over to air. Also never had any issues with them deflating (other than when I forgot the cap once .... As long as they're pumped up properly I've never had had a limp one in the morning. Same for wind loading.... guys out properly like any other tent and no issues..... and that's even with a 25ft 2-flag pole cable tied up to the side of it on a fairly exposed Welsh campsite near St Davids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 18 minutes ago, landroversforever said: fairly exposed Welsh campsite near St Davids. You're fairly sheltered there Move a few miles south so you don't have Pembrokeshire protecting you then try again, or as Mike does the Western Isles of Scotland. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peaklander Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 53 minutes ago, Ed Poore said: Move a few miles south so you don't have Pembrokeshire protecting you Protecting from what? St David’s sticks out west as far as anywhere in south Wales. It was our go-to holiday destination. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Poore Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 Ireland, it's surprising what a difference it can make between Castlemartin and St Davids. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miketomcat Posted August 12 Author Share Posted August 12 The mother-in-laws would demolish an air beam in seconds. We've seen them laying flat in campsites due to wind, don't get me wrong poled weren't fairing much better but you could still sleep in them. The tipi shrugged off F9 winds, I doubt any awning will survive that but ours was quite mobile in moderate winds, pumped up as hard as the pump would allow and with all the guys correctly set. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landroversforever Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 There's always going to be somewhere more exposed . I could barely stand up one night but even as a larger figured gentlemen I still have considerably less frontal area than the tent even without the added leverage of the flagpole! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snagger Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 29 minutes ago, landroversforever said: There's always going to be somewhere more exposed . I could barely stand up one night but even as a larger figured gentlemen I still have considerably less frontal area than the tent even without the added leverage of the flagpole! Ah, but you have a higher mass to surface area ratio - area increases as a square function, but mass as a cubic function. So, for wind or extreme temperatures, you are better equipped for survival. 😜 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peaklander Posted August 12 Share Posted August 12 Ireland then, not Pembrokeshire. Daughter has a huge air beam tent. I’m not convinced but I’ve seen a lot weather over the years. Many years ago in St Davids, a mini tornado ripped through the Caravan Club site. It passed in the ‘alley’ between our caravan row and the ones across from us. We saw it coming through the window and Dawn & I were hanging from the pole across the front of the awning and just managed to save it. All the ones opposite us were flipped up and over and away! The kids were screaming and my words were an understatement “don’t worry, it’s only a thunderstorm”. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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