"the LPG Specialist on the Isle of Wight"
"the LPG Specialist on the Isle of Wight"
Established in 2002
22 years
Stephen Ward
Caravan & Boats
Buying or have bought a touring caravan or motorhome?
Have you just bought a touring caravan or motorhome? New or old? Or considering buying one?
Why not book our inspection and report service?
Here at Stephen Ward Caravan & we offer a consultation/inspection service that will inspect and report on any touring caravan, static holiday caravan or motorhome. This includes:
- LPG Installation safety check.
- LPG Appliance safety check.
- 12v equipment check.
- 240v equipment check
- Bodywork, dampness check.
- Chassis and Hitches
- Brakes inspected( extra cost).
When you buy a new touring caravan or motorhome your sales rep will go through with you how things work and give you the installation manuals for you to read which can be complicated and hard to understand. The equipment is getting more sophisticated and more computerised and even an experienced touring caravan and motorhome owner may need help.
Why not book our Instruction course with our specialist consultant?
We will go through all the equipment in your touring caravan, motorhome and static caravan at a time convenient to suit you. We will go through each piece of equipment; how it works, how it switches on and off to do and what not to do in an easy to understand way. This is all done in a relaxed unhurried way that suits you and we even can make up personal instructions that will be clearer just for your touring caravan and motorhome.
Its that piece of mind of somebody at the end of a phone line that you can call to ask again how something works or if your not sure that it is working properly.
Contact us now for our services.
For Specialist knowledge on buying a new or used caravan or motorhome and expert consultation please contact:
Mr David Dobson Specialist Engineering Services 01983 865834.
Second Hand Caravans Repairs and Restoring
Before towing an unknown caravan, safety to you, your passengers, your vehicle and the public around you must take precedence. Never tow a caravan that you suspect that the brakes may fail or are broken. Always check the condition of the tyres. Check they are inflated to the correct pressure and have not perished, damaged, have cuts or appear to have lost any tread. Never tow a caravan without working lights.
The tow hitch must be working and able to lock onto the tow ball correctly, the damper must be working and able to move freely activating the brakes. Check the last servicing and paperwork including receipts for parts and dealer stamps this will indicate the last brake servicing.
Water Ingress or leaks inside the caravan is the number one problem with second hand caravans repairs. By running your hand and pressing the walls around the vulnerable areas ie in the top corners, along the top sides
and around the if it's soft, feels wet or has dried and you can press through the paper then its got major water damage. Most caravans for the past 30 years have had the same construction, a thin painted aluminium panel is bonded to polystyrene for insulation, this is in turn bonded to a thin wooden panel which has the glued finish to it ie vinyl paper. This glue is waterproof so what happens is that all the water is retained behind the paper but any wood rots around the window, the corner edges and top edges where the awning rail is attached the wood will be wet and rotten. The picture shows the blackened area where the water has damaged the paper wood finish around a corner in a touring caravan, this damage is not easy to spot and may not even smell damp. One tell tale sign is that the paper may have hard spots on it, this is mold growth drying hard behind the paper when its wet. Repairing a damaged caravan like this is expensive and labour intensive, if the caravan has an immediate value then of course a repair can be made but on a second hand or older caravan then an expensive repair will resolve the issues but may not add any more value to the caravan. Other considerations of older caravans is the cost of replacing items that don't work. A mixer tap can be anything from £50-£120 a water pump system the same, integrated battery chargers £300, one window £500, let alone a three way fridge £800, truma fire with electric heater and blower £900. The front window restoration on the gallery pages cost over £1900 to undertake but the value of the caravan was maintained.
