Home Made "Silver/Cab Screens"

[Fetch Carry]

OK got a Hymer B534 1996 vintage, and am after some cab screens to stop the condensation.

 

Been looking at Silver Screens & Taylor Made.

 

Silver screens answer seem to be to condem the competition, verbaly on the phone and in it's literature, may be thats how they justify the £150 price tag.

 

Sent two emails to Taylor made but had no answer, so assume they are not interested.

 

Has anyone sucessfully made there own? I have worked out a fixing method being a A class with no passenger door, and it would not seem that difficult, just a matter of using the right materials.

 

Any ideas appreciated.

 

Thanks

[Clive]

I found the same attitude from Silver Screens. If you can wait then talk to Taylor Made at a show. I made my own internal screens from cardboard and adhesive foam backed reflective aluminium of the type sold for putting behind radiators. But I only want them to reflect the sunlight. Very thin and easy to store. Unlike the bulk of the external types. But if you want to stop screen condensation in winter then you need the external type.

 

 

Regards

 

C.

 

[Guest Frank Wilkinson]

I'm not sure why Taylor Made hasn't responded to your emails but you have to remember that this is a cotttage industry. I don't suppose that there's a factory with several workers and a sales office, more likely a bloke in a shed with his wife answering the phone. It could simply be that they're off for a few days as it's a quiet time of the year.

I got quotes from both and ordered from Taylor Made, who were substantially cheaper. It came quickly and I used it last week and found it absolutely fine.

My advice would be to persevere with Taylor Made. Their email may be down, they may be away, but from my dealings with them I would not have thought them the kind of people to deliberately ignore a customer.

[empress]

We found Taylor Made most helpful. At P'boro or York, can't remember which now, he came out to our pitch and measured up in driving rain. SSs were not interested as we were not a stock size. Pleased with the product.

 

Empress

[henry]

Hi.

 

Taylor Made were at Shepton so thay may be taking a few well earned days away?

 

Regards Henry (lol)

[peejay]

Hi F&C;

 

Another company that do int/ext screens.....

 

http://www.vancomfort.co.uk/VanComfort-InsulationScreensNew.htm

 

pete

[Randonneur]

We actually paid a visit to TaylorMade at Holmfirth and foun d them to be very genuine. They work from home and usually do the shows. I believe they are at Gmex Manchester at the moment, so that could account for the "no reply". They are a husband and wife team and when we visited them they were in the process of doing some house renovations as well.

Please be patient as I am sure they will get back to you.

[Mel E]

Sorry, folks,

 

I can only report our own experiences. Wanted rear window screens for our Renault Master, ordered from TaylorMade at a show and took delivery at the next - but they were too small.

 

Gave them a pattern and then checked at every show afterwards. A year later they were still making excuses, but not silver screens. (short of material; they've been sent - they should be with you soon; sewing machine broken, and so on). I'm talking 12 MONTHS. Nice people, totally indescribable service.

 

So we went to Silver Screens - this time for an external front screen. Gave the order at a show, but then they rang to check whther we had Remis Blinds (we have) as that affects the door fit. Marvellous service and the screens were with us in less than a week, fit beautifully and are well made.

 

I'm about to order some rear screens from them now.

 

Mel E

====

[Steve OReilly]

I can't comment upon Taylormade as I've never contacted them. However, Silverscreens were helpful and delivery was prompt. Referring to another thread, I'd say that they were the best accessory for a motorhome!

 

Steve

[Derek Uzzell]

Fetch & Carry:

 

Last year I bought a set of internal insulated cab window screens from Van Comfort for our 2005 Ford Transit-based Hobby. Delivery was prompt and I've no complaints about the quality of the product. There was a problem with the large windscreen 'pad' as no cut-away for the rear-view mirror had been included, effectively making it impossible to fit properly. When I mentioned this to Van Comfort they confirmed, by checking other Transit sets, that this was a one-off manufacturing fault. The screens for the cab side-windows had to be radically revised to fit between the window-glass and our Hobby's REMIS blinds, and (to compensate for the fault) Van Comfort provided the additional edge-finishing tape needed to do this free of charge. (I must emphasise that, before we placed the order with Van Comfort, we were fully aware that major alterations to the side-screens would be required.)

 

Van Comfort's website indicates that internal and external screens are available for Hymer B-Series models. There seems to be an altered design for 1995/1996 models, so it might be sensible to discuss this point with Van Comfort in relation to your own vehicle (even if you eventually decide not to buy from them). Their external screen 'kits' for A-class Hymers include aluminium rails + adhesive to permit the side-panel tops to be securely attached to the motorhome's bodywork and this obviously ups the price. (I don't know if the Silver Screens product has anything similar.)

 

Based on their 2005 brochure, Caravan Accessories (CAK) Ltd (advert in MMM) may be able to supply the materials necessary to make up insulating screens. However, my wife did some serious swearing when she was machine-binding the edges of our re-vamped side-screens and the added mirror cut-out, so I wouldn't advise DIY-ing unless you really have to or have masochistic tendencies. As the insulating materials aren't particularly cheap, for motorhomes retaining the standard cab I'm doubtful that useful savings would be made over commercially-produced screens. Might be worthwhile financially for an A-class I suppose, but the bigger the area of the insulating screen the more cumbersome it will be to handle during the production process and the greater the opportunity for error.

 

Having looked at other makes of screens (not UK-produced ones I should add), it also seems that price and quality are related.

[chas]

We have always had screens to keep the heat out and gone for uninsulated ones. They fold up really compact, and that is inportant to us.

 

They work fine even in cold weather, leaving hardly any misting, and unless you intend going to really cold/freezing places (why would anybody) lol, their advantages are cost and compactness. We bought Taylormade and find them great in both price and quality. chas

[Pat]

Hi I have considered making my own cab/screens since I saw a wide roll of silver quilted insulated material for sale, in Jewsons, that I thought would be ideal. The only problem would be sealing the edges(would duck tape be suitable) or getting a waterproof edge sewn around.

 

Then there is the fixing method any ideas? Don't really want to drill holes and velcro seems to get very dirty very quickly making it very unsightly. what method do you have in mind?

 

Just adding input to your original thread.

 

Regards Pat

[Mel E]

Making your own isn't really an option. The edges need to be bound with tape and this need to be sewn on doubled over. This needs a really specialist, heavy-duty sewing mchine. Duck tape will probably do for a year or so, then start to come off. It will also look extremely unsightly.

 

To fix inside the windows, the normal method is to use suction pads and the silver screen will arrive with these fitted. We bought an extra pack of suction pads and the press-in ring washers that go with them as our last motorhome didn't have enough.

 

To fix outside, the normal method is to fit over the top corners of the doors. But if your motohome is an A Class with only one door, then there is a problem. Solutions I have seen with professionally produced screens include heavy duty velcro (looks awful and dirty after less than a year) and twist lock buttons that go through ring bound holes in the silver screen. This requires the twist locks to be fitted (screwed) to the van's exterior - again not a very sightly method. I suspect heavy duty suction pads for the non-door side are probably the best solution.

 

Mel E

====

[David Dwight]

Hi Guys,

WEe had Silver Screens on are ould MH they were great. Ordered them for present one spoke to the guy on the phone, very informative chatted about Motorhoming in geneal give us a few recomendations for sites to use. Screen arrived a couple of days later, well packaged. Had full set privacyand bid nowhere near £150 . I would use them and reccomend them anytime.

 

David

[David Dwight]

Hi Guys,

WEe had Silver Screens on are ould MH they were great. Ordered them for present one spoke to the guy on the phone, very informative chatted about Motorhoming in geneal give us a few recomendations for sites to use. Screen arrived a couple of days later, well packaged. Had full set privacyand bid nowhere near £150 . I would use them and reccomend them anytime.

 

David

[mike.T]

Ref- got a Hymer B534 1996 vintage, and am after some cab screens to stop the condensation.

 

We had an external set made for our A class with Taylormade [Edward will send you a pattern to check size for one off vans] ours were made and arrived in 7days. He also wanted up to make sure they fitted before paying for them !!

We also bought from Taylormade internal screen material cut to size ourselves [they also sell the stickers in packs of 10 or loose] I used duck tape to edge ours with [2years and still OK not liffted on the edges] we find that having both sets is a big advantage on the move or in the wet we use the internal screens, parked up the external ones.

The only problem with the external covers are when it rains you have to store them in the bathroom to dry .

 

 

[orleander]

Cak Tanks and Accessories Ltd Catalogue Page 58

 

This company sells material and fitting kits to make internal screens.

 

You can download the catalogue from www.caktanks.co.uk

 

 

[Keith T]

Have had 3 sets of Taylormade, and always exceellent, and will supply any extra suction pads, and also we bought some of the unlined silver material to custom make some front exterenal screeens.

They are a small company, and very busy, and perhaps the reason for a lack of contact was that they were at teh Shepton MAllett SHow last weekend, and no doubt that takes them a fair time to organise, both in terems of laking stock to sell, and the actual logisitcs of being there. Have always found them helpful, and you can always leave a contact number on their answerphone.

PS Have no contact with the company other than as a satisfied customer!

[Ralph]

I missed this thread so apologies for starting another one asking for a source of material.

We have the same problems with Pilote motorhomes that Taylormade are not helpful any more which is why I'm investigating making them. Wife has industrial machine and ability but we need the material.

 

 

[Fetch Carry]

chas - 2007-01-20 9:28 AM

 

We have always had screens to keep the heat out and gone for uninsulated ones. They fold up really compact, and that is inportant to us.

 

They work fine even in cold weather, leaving hardly any misting, and unless you intend going to really cold/freezing places (why would anybody) lol, their advantages are cost and compactness. We bought Taylormade and find them great in both price and quality. chas

 

Hi Chas

 

How do you find the condensation with just the uninsulated ones? To be honest we do not have a problem with the heat loss, just trying to stop the condensation we are getting during the colder months, the A-Class Hymer has a big windscreen so lots of condensation to mop up.