whisturx Posted November 24, 2006 Share Posted November 24, 2006 Has anybody used a protec cover on an 8.0 metre long van. I have had an offer on a secondhand one to fit but I can imagine that its a nightmare to get on and off. Also I would have thought it would scratch the vans plastic windows ? I have had to move my van outside of the house and its half under a tree which when the vehicle is parked in the summer ends up with sap/bird droppings and leaves stuck on the roof. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted November 24, 2006 Share Posted November 24, 2006 Hi Ian, We have had our ProTec for two years now and use it at all times that the van is not in use, the van is not quite as long as yours at just a little under 7 metres. We are totally happy with it and it is really no problem to put on or take off requiring only a few minutes, but we have had a lot of experience with very large awnings on caravans. Putting the cover on ours is no problem we don't do it as the guidance says I normally place it on the roof by climbing the rear ladder and open it out and drop it down the sides front and back, it is only difficult if its very windy as it acts as a sail (something else we have a lot of experience with). Taking off is not a problem either however folding it and replaceing into the storage bag is not easy if you are not experienced with large quantities of cloth. Putting the cover on when the van is wet does not cause problems as the cover breathes and it dry's through it, however we have the problem that if the cover is wet when we remove it we have nowhere to store it open to dry so it usually ends up piled in the bath until we return!! Ours has not damaged the van or windows in any way whatsoever, I would have been suprised if it had as the inner lining is soft. The secret I think is to wash the van with water to remove any grit or loose road dirt before covering and tightening the cover straps to stop any movement as the wind blows (even a slight wind makes the cover expand and contract giving movement if it is left to loose). With regard to doing any damage when we removed the cover the first time, after a three month layup December to March, we saw a matt finish from what we in panic immediately thought was from rubbing but it turned out to be a 'Bloom' from moisture that had evaporated and had left a residue, (like hardness left from hard water but much thinner) this was easily cleaned off. We also learned from experience that as our van had roof rails a pond soon formed on the top in heavy rain that then took for ever to evaporate, it does not leak through so the only way for it to disperse is to evaporate, we cured this by placing 2inch thick sheets of rolled up foam (like large sausages) along the centre line of the roof to make an apex to stop the water forming in the first place, much easier than climbing up under the cover and lifting it as it is surprisingly heavy!! From our point of view the benefit of not having to continually clean and polish and the absense of the dreaded black streaks makes the outlay well worth while, we would thoroughly recommend but as usual the choice is yours. Bas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted November 25, 2006 Share Posted November 25, 2006 We used one on our caravan for a few years. Brilliant, polished van before layup and stayed nice and shiney all winter. Just took it off in the spring and went. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whisturx Posted November 26, 2006 Author Share Posted November 26, 2006 Hi Bas, Many thanks for the information. I had heard you should cover plastic windows with cling film and as we are retiring want to use the van as often as possible and it did sound a lot of struggling with a huge cover every month. As I have been offered a second hand one to fit a Hobby could you give me an idea what you paid new for yours ? It certainly would be cheaper than building a garage to fit which although we have a large garden would look a bit of an eyesore and detract from the rest of the property. The Hobby has roof rails but we have an Oyster sat. dish in between which would help the water to run off. Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peter Posted November 26, 2006 Share Posted November 26, 2006 Don't put cling film on the windows. It can make the Acrylic material get minute crazing. Also it leaves a sticky substance on them which is hard to remove. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Basil Posted November 27, 2006 Share Posted November 27, 2006 Hi Ian, The information I have regarding clingfilm is the same as Peter, the advice I was given is don't use it for the reasons stated. Regarding the cover I don't have the paperwork to hand but roughly rounded up it came out at about £425 but as we ordered it at the Peterboro show we got show discount that brought it down to around £380. We beleive it is a quality cover and can see the reason for the cost when compared to say an awning of similar dimensions. The protrusions on your roof will need to be built in to the cover so that it is not 'point loaded' as that will damage the cover the use of soft foam however is fine and solves the problem. Bas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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