Abcheetham Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 We've bought a 2008 Hymer A Class and are now contemplating what additions we'll buy or need. I'm thinking of a solar trickle charger and levellers, my wife is thinking about furniture and crockery etc. please share with me the best things you've bought, or acquired for your Motorhome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 The wife. Best darned combination of navigator, co-pilot, cook and bedwarmer that any van could ever need! Next essential to that without doubt is a sat nav as it's guided us all over Europe without fail and freed up the former navigator to enjoy the journey too! Next to that a solar panel and regulator with split charging so that neither engine or hab batteries ever goes flat no matter how long you leave it unstarted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Spin drier. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abcheetham Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Thankfully we have a portable Tom Tom so that will defo be in the van, and I don't know where to start witha trickle charger but it makes sense to do both batteries! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malc d Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 A folding toaster. .............. unaffected by reverse polarity - doesn't need charging up - and makes excellent toast every time. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 My 2 x 100watt solar panels and my Clarion Media unit with satnav. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tugga Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Our Solar Panel is our all time favourite accessory and coming a close second are our external silver screens from Taylormade. If you are thinking of all year round use, you need to think about a set of these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 lennyhb - 2014-07-13 9:17 PM My 2 x 100watt solar panels and my Clarion Media unit with satnav. ....so, have you come to grips with IGO, then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Robinhood - 2014-07-13 10:41 PM lennyhb - 2014-07-13 9:17 PM My 2 x 100watt solar panels and my Clarion Media unit with satnav. ....so, have you come to grips with IGO, then? Not yet had problem making a backup that works don't want to load anything on to the sd card without a working backup. I like the navigation interface & mapping far better than Garmin also the traffic is much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 ...you can use the Naviextras toolbox to take a backup (and probably get a one-off free map update as long as any deadline hasn't expired), but it is probably as easy (easier?) simply to copy the full contents of the card to your PC. Once I'd found my way round the interface, I found it the best I've used for most things, such as 'forcing' a route by putting in waypoints, etc....and I agree, the "traffic" interface is quite good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HymerVan Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Silver Screen Solar Panel (which came as standard) 220ah Leisure battery (which came as standard) Comprehensive toolkit and spares box (which we hope we won't need at all). Comprehensive First Aid Kit (which we hope we won't need at all). Decent sized Foam Fire Extinguisher (which we hope we won't need at all). And my most favourite 19 litre Waste water tank (which is slim enough to go under van. Bought at Hymer Factory accessories shop in Bad Waldsee, Bavaria Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Robinhood - 2014-07-14 7:49 AM ...you can use the Naviextras toolbox to take a backup (and probably get a one-off free map update as long as any deadline hasn't expired), but it is probably as easy (easier?) simply to copy the full contents of the card to your PC. Once I'd found my way round the interface, I found it the best I've used for most things, such as 'forcing' a route by putting in waypoints, etc....and I agree, the "traffic" interface is quite good. Tried both methods of backing up when I put the bacup card in the unit it says my licence is not valid, Naviextras have given me a work round not had time to try it yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abcheetham Posted July 14, 2014 Author Share Posted July 14, 2014 Is the silver screen better than the blinds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tugga Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Abcheetham - 2014-07-14 10:04 AM Is the silver screen better than the blinds? Your blinds are for privacy and you will find the windscreen and side cab windows are all single glazed and in the autumn/winter/spring and you have the heating on you will find when opening them that all three areas have lots of condensation on the inside. If you use external silver screens, the condensation will be either non existent or minimal at worst. You will also find it more comfortable to sit in the cab area when it is cold with silver screens in place. If you are in a hot country with the sun blazing into your cab area you can fit your silver screens to keep the inside of your motorhome cooler. Hope this helps :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HymerVan Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 There are lots of threads on here about solar panels (and "silverscreens"). "Silverscreen" is a word like "Hoover" and "Biro" There are different makes and types of which the (actual) Silverscreen and Taylormade are the best known external screens and there is fierce debate about which is best. If you are going to camp in colder weather (i.e. any season but summer) a screen is invaluable and well worth the significant cost. A trickle charge solar panel will probably be a waste of time as its output will be negligible , however if you plan to camp "off mains" or if you store your van where there is no mains connection a decent sized panel will save you a lot of grief. Consider pairing it with a batterymaster. Again there are many threads about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJay Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Have been looking to buy silver screens, as added insulation. Are they waterproof? or do you take them off when raining. ? Need them for a 2006 Ducato, (before face lift) Looked on silver screen web site. Who else makes them please, so I can compare prices PJay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldi Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Afternoon all, A blue plastic hose which I bought from brownhills , added a screw on connector which was bought from a garden centre in France, and saves lots of time with the watering can, the whole lot only cost about £15. norm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 PJay - 2014-07-14 11:41 AM Have been looking to buy silver screens, as added insulation. Are they waterproof? or do you take them off when raining. ? Need them for a 2006 Ducato, (before face lift) Looked on silver screen web site. Who else makes them please, so I can compare prices PJay Yes they are waterproof, if you leave them on the van all year when it's parked up they will deteriorate after 4 or 5 years. I have a brand new Silver screen(may have been used for one or 2 nights) for an X244 pre 2006 Fiat that I am selling for a friend PM me if you are interested. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Solar panels are almost a must-have accessory and as mentioned above, a little trickle-charger solar panel is a waste of time. We have 135 watts of panels which seems to keep our two 85 AH leisure batteries charged (and the engine battery) if we are not on an EHU (eg on Aires abroad) so something of that size. The Schaudt Electroblok 12 v system in yor Hymer is designed to take a special Schaudt solar panel regulator, so that it works with the existing (excellent) charge management system on the MH. Once the panel regulator is installed (which requires reconfiguration of the Schaudt Control Panel on the MH) you will have a display of the charge from the solar panel anytrime you care to look. False economy to install any other type of panel regulator on a Hymer. An automatic satellite dish/receiver system is also worth paying for. (I got fed up of fiddling with a dish on a tripod.) These days because of changes to the satellite footprints you probably need to spend extra to have a bigger dish and built-in skew adjustment to get reasonable reception across much of western Europe. I'm not expecting our low profile dome system to be able to cope well at all next trip. On a more modest level, we also have a folding wire mess toaster contraption to make toast on the gas hob, which works reasonable well, stores easily and cost under £5. We have roof aircon but although it can be very useful abroad when on mains, overall it hasn't really been owrth its considerable weight and cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 StuartO - 2014-07-14 1:08 PM Solar panels are almost a must-have accessory and as mentioned above, a little trickle-charger solar panel is a waste of time. We have 135 watts of panels which seems to keep our two 85 AH leisure batteries charged (and the engine battery) if we are not on an EHU (eg on Aires abroad) so something of that size. Agreed we had an 80 watt panel on the last van I have fitted 2 x 100Watt on the new van as they are so cheap now and we never use hook ups. The Schaudt Electroblok 12 v system in yor Hymer is designed to take a special Schaudt solar panel regulator, so that it works with the existing (excellent) charge management system on the MH. Once the panel regulator is installed (which requires reconfiguration of the Schaudt Control Panel on the MH) you will have a display of the charge from the solar panel anytrime you care to look. False economy to install any other type of panel regulator on a Hymer. The Schaudt regulator works almost as well as a MPPT regulator and if use don't use the Schaudt regulator the Elektroblock can shut down depends on the model of Elektroblock. An automatic satellite dish/receiver system is also worth paying for. (I got fed up of fiddling with a dish on a tripod.) These days because of changes to the satellite footprints you probably need to spend extra to have a bigger dish and built-in skew adjustment to get reasonable reception across much of western Europe. I'm not expecting our low profile dome system to be able to cope well at all next trip. Had an Oyster fully auto unit with 85cm dish on last van, with the new foot prints decided wasn't worth the expense so went for a Snipe a fraction of the price, works well in northen France not been any further yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robinhood Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 lennyhb - 2014-07-14 9:49 AM Robinhood - 2014-07-14 7:49 AM ...you can use the Naviextras toolbox to take a backup (and probably get a one-off free map update as long as any deadline hasn't expired), but it is probably as easy (easier?) simply to copy the full contents of the card to your PC. Once I'd found my way round the interface, I found it the best I've used for most things, such as 'forcing' a route by putting in waypoints, etc....and I agree, the "traffic" interface is quite good. Tried both methods of backing up when I put the bacup card in the unit it says my licence is not valid, Naviextras have given me a work round not had time to try it yet. I'm not sure if I'm interpreting your post correctly, but if you are trying to run your navigation unit from a backup (copy) of the original software on an SD card other than the original, then it is unlikely to work. It is common supplier practice to tie the official software to the internal (and not easily changed or cloned) hardware id of the supplied SD card. This is not copied and/or transferred to any backup copy, and thus a security check is failed when you fire up the unit. It is not simple to hack an SD card hardware ID. The backup and copy facilities are there to allow you to restore contents to the originally supplied SD Card (which will retain any internal hardware id throughout). SD cards are rather more robust than they used to be, but if you suffer a hard failure on it, you are at the mercy of the device supplier for replacement/exchange (though some people choose to resort to one of the illegally "cracked" copies :-S ). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted July 14, 2014 Share Posted July 14, 2014 Robinhood - 2014-07-14 2:25 PM It is common supplier practice to tie the official software to the internal (and not easily changed or cloned) hardware id of the supplied SD card. This is not copied and/or transferred to any backup copy, and thus a security check is failed when you fire up the unit. It is not simple to hack an SD card hardware ID. The backup and copy facilities are there to allow you to restore contents to the originally supplied SD Card (which will retain any internal hardware id throughout). I was fairly certain this was the case but I wanted to try anyway and as you say it does not work. I emailed Naviextras stating I couldn't get a backup card to work, they either didn't read my email correctly of what they said may work I suspect the former. I'll send a PM to explain further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tea Cup Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 My van's at the other end of the scale, ie smaller, but I agree with the external silver screen, solar panels (180 watts), 220 amp battery, roll out awning, but most useful of all is a small she-wee type bottle, which saves filling up the toilet, is very useful night time for us older ones, and can easily be used when travelling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayjsj Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Abcheetham - 2014-07-14 10:04 AM Is the silver screen better than the blinds? in Winter,definately Yes. and get the exterior type,the interior ones just create condensation. In the Summer, in strong sunlight, they also reflect the heat ,before it gets through the windscreen. I have blinds fitted as well, but still have a set of Silver Screens. Yes, they are waterproof, just shake the surplus water off before putting them back into the bag. SilverScreens or Taylormade, had both, both as good as one another. My 1st choice would be a 'wind out' awning though, Fiamma or Omnistor both good makes. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel B Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Tea Cup - 2014-07-16 6:21 PMMy van's at the other end of the scale, ie smaller, but I agree with the external silver screen, solar panels (180 watts), 220 amp battery, roll out awning, but most useful of all is a small she-wee type bottle, which saves filling up the toilet, is very useful night time for us older ones, and can easily be used when travelling. ... no doubt better than the 'Tea Cup'????? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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