Shade and shelter - the awning
Written by am
The mounting of an awning was unquestionable to us. On sunny days, we escape into its shade; on rainy days, we hide there from the wet.
In addition to the actual purpose of an awning - to protect from sun and rain - it also has a very different aspect for us. With the setup of the awning, you expand your living radius; accept and occupy the site as your short-term home.
The perfect awning
Our "Gumtree" awning from Gordigear runs with its length of 2.50 meters almost along the entire side of our vehicle. For the mounting of the awning the space was limited and, strictly speaking, the only option was to attach it immediately below the pop-up top. Unfortunately, it was not possible to directly mount the supplied rail there.
Escape into the shade of the awning.The solution was a z-shaped profile, which was made by a tinsmith and afterwards got galvanized. To this device, the mounting rail with the awning could be riveted effortlessly on the ouside of the G. With this, we have gained approx. 20 cm in height, what provides for sufficient headspace under the awning.
Quick set-up guaranteed
The Gumtree awning is built up and dismantled almost in the twinkle of an eye; all parts required are attached to the awning itself and can not be lost. Of course with the exception of tent pegs. The awning is surprisingly stable, an additional fixation with cords is necessary only under very windy conditions. In our experience, the awning can remain built up in the rain. In order to prevent water from collecting in the middle and possibly tearing the fabric, we simply lower a telescopic pole so that the water can flow off.
Supplemental to the awning, we also purchased a tent room with which we can create an additional 5 m² of living space. The tent room is easily zipped to the awning. Its setup takes a little more time than the awning, hence we only use it when we stay on a site more for than a day.
