Winter

You don't get rid of me that easily,we may have stopped using the van till spring but for the benefit of newer caravanners here is a synopsis of what I do ( or have done ) to prepare the van for winter,you can adapt them for your own purpose or ignore them altogether,it's up to you ( our van is in storage ):-

1.Full draindown of the water system.I use a Floe but not everyone does,I usually get about 200mls out when I use it.

2.Remove wheels and replace with winter wheels,take wheels home and give alloys a good clean,sparay with Autoglym Wheel Protector and store in the dark under a sheet after checking tyres for splits and embedded stones.I am hopefully replacing the centre caps as ours look a bit grubby,more in a future blog post.

3.Remove toilet cassette and clean with Thetford Cassette Cleaner,spray seal with silicone,drain off toilet flush fluid.

4.Spray locks with lubricant to prevent freezing up,don't forget the hitchlock..

5.Either swap battery for a "winter" one or remove battery and put on a good bench charger such as a CTek ( Aldi charger very similar so I read at a fraction of the price ) things may be different if you have an alarm or tracker fitted,apply Contralube or similar to battery posts.

6.Open all cupboard doors to allow circulation of air and avoid damp.

7.Some people take the cushions etc home to avoid damp,we simply have not got the room at hone so I upend the cusions to allow airflow and have never suffered any damp.

8.Position taps half way and leave open.

9.Run fridge and Alde on gas for fifteen minutes or so to burn any crap from out of the jets

10.Cover the Alde gas exhaust with a plastic bag or the like to stop insects crawling in.

11.Wipe the solar panel and do so periodically throughout the winter to make the most of the weak sunshine,it gets surprisingly dirty.

12.Put sink plugs in and close waste pipe flaps once again to keep insects out.

13.If fitted give the motormover  rollers a brush,ours were covered in crud.

14.Give the walls and cupboard doors a wipe down.

15.Remove all liquids that will be in danger of freezing and causing a mess.

16.I remove the doormat and take it home for a good clean.


17.Being a pedant I grease and oil the wheel lock and jack.

18.Apply silicone to all door,locker and window seals.

19.Give underbed lockers a clean out.

20.Our Wastemaster lives in the front underbed locker so I put 5mls of Zoflora ( Poundland ) in it and leave the cap off to let it air.

21.Put protection gel on 13-pin plug prongs,I use Contralube but there are many others.

22.I don't usually clean the van prior to winter as it is Paintsealed so leave it till spring.

23.Make sure the gas is switched off.

24.Leave fridge and freezer door open to avoid mould forming.

25.Remove bedding to avoid getting damp.

26.Make sure 12v is turned off.


There,it seems like a long list but you can knock most of it off in an afternoon.

I have probably forgotten something,so bear with me.

Ian