Most electric awnings have a manual override if your awning motor breaks. Mine has a bolt in one of the arms you turn with an electric drill. You can bring the awning in and out. A good backup if you can't bring it in on a travel day.
First time viewing your channel. I have also heard that it is a good idea to roll your awning in before sundown. Just in case of unforeseen weather. Good information. Thanks!
Yes, I can testify that it is a great practice to bring in your awning at night, especially if there is any possibility of bad weather. I got caught with my awning out when a sudden storm rolled through about midnight. It was touch and go getting the awning back in with high winds and rain, and we both were soaked and frazzled. But we did it and swore that we would not put ourselves through that again. Great suggestion Susan. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Simple green for cleaning awnings,,we discovered a 1’ rip on the far right side of the awning, 2022 grand design had some manufacturing issues with the awnings at the factory,
My pleasure. I'm glad that you enjoyed it. There lots of other videos on my channel that are great for newer RVers. Feel free to poke around and see what you like. Thanks for watching and leaving a nice comment!
Really enjoyed the video. I was looking to see what the snow load of one of these awnings is. But I didn't take a chance I went ahead and rolled it up today. Great tip on the cleaning! Really helpful!
Glad you enjoyed the video Mitch. Yeah, snow can get pretty heavy. I wouldn't risk it on an RV awning myself. I think you made a good decision there. :-)
Your advise is spot on again. We've had one bad experience with wind on an awning. I guess that happens with over 30 years of camping experience. Did not know about the sunshade option. Our current awning set up is 2 large Girard automatic unit's with wind sensors. I don't trust the sensors. Plus those units need constant attention with the adjustment arms. I guess that is the deal with a 14 year old unit. Again thank you for you insight and help. i appreciate it.
Hi, great video's, thank you for producing them. I live in Canada, the mold only come during winter storage. I never have any during the summer months because I never store it wet. I guess a little water gets in during winter and this promotes mold. Do you have a solution to prevent this? Thanks.
Hi Maurice-Eric. A lot of people have this issue with their awning when opening them in the spring. It's a real problem. The thing to remember is mold only thrives in moisture. So somehow moisture is getting into the awning while rolled up, often from the end caps. Some people I know have fashioned a tube from PVC pipe that goes around the entire rolled up awning while in storage to prevent water intrusion over the winter. Others have just put plastic bottles like 2 liter soda bottles over the end caps and sealed around the edges to keep moisture from flowing into the awning that way. I don't know of any other tricks to solve this other than storing the RV indoors in a dehumidified area.
My awning on my HR Vacationer is electric but does not seem to have a way to adjust one end down for rain as suggested. Am I missing something? I am not new to RV's but this one has lots more advanced features than my past travel trailers Thanks Duane your videos are very informative.
Hi Mike. Not all awnings have a way to manually lower one side. I recommend that you check with your awning's user manual or even contact the manufacturer and see if they have a way to make one side lower than the other. If your awning doesn't allow lowering one side, you probably want to avoid having it out in the rain just to be safe.
Dwane thanks for your professional support. One question. Is there a way to wash your awning with out using water? Thanks for all your support! SAFE TRAVELS
Interesting question Ron. Normally awning fabrics is one area where the use of water can be best. I suppose that Wash Wax All could possibly be used. But I haven't used it that way. I'm sure it would be good for use on a vinyl awning. But I would try some on a small area of an acrylic fabric awning first and test it before using it on the entire fabric. Acrylic awnings don't take a lot of scrubbing well, as it removes the water resistant coating. But if you are gentle and use mop heads like Aero Cosmetics sells for their long-handle mop, it may work. I really don't know. Just be sure to test well before using. If it works please let me know.
Thanks Dwane we live in southern California and we are trying to be extremely frugal with water. My wife and I are still dreaming of purchasing our next RV. I am jumping the gun on washing the awning. I enjoy viewing your videos and am constantly looking how to service and maintain our last RV. Thanks Ron
My manual awning is stuck shut,what can I do to remedy that? I bought older RV toyhauler,it was out when I bought it(awning) been remodeling,took it out first time last week low and behold awning is stuck shut,any tips would be appreciated
Unfortunately Pete, that is a problem that needs someone who is a trained tech to diagnose and repair onsite. It could be caused by any number of things. I recommend that you inquire locally to find one in your area that is reliable. Thanks for watching!
I used a combination of bleach and Dawn ® dish soap to clean awnings. Worked great but I suspect it contributed to the color fading. Wind sensors have saved many awnings. On our old travel trailer, I bought a screen room which helped hold it down however, in the event of high winds, it was a pain to undo.
Hi Roy. The bleach/Dawn combination is a great cleaning solution. But it's probably a little too aggressive for RV awnings. Most awning manufacturers caution against using any cleaning agent that is too aggressive as it wears away the water resistant properties of the awning over time. BTW, I love those screen rooms you are talking about. In Florida they are almost a must to keep the bugs out, especially at night. But you are so right, they are a pain to put up and take down each time!
I retracted my manual awning last week in a hurry as a big storm was rolling in, and somehow ended up with my trim fabric wrapped tightly around the roll. My pull strap was all the way to one end (rather than in the center) and now that the trim fabric is tightly wrapped around the roll I'm unable to slide the pull strap over to the center as the slot is blocked by the trim, and am unable to open my awning back up. My husband works out of town 25 days of every month so I do most of this camper care stuff by myself, but I just can't seem to get this awning back open. I've tried reaching up there and unwrapping the trim fabric piece but it won't come loose. Would you have any ideas as to how I might be able to get my awning open? If I get someone to help me and each of us pulls down on one arm of the awning, will it roll out without using the pull strap?
That might work Tracy. I've never seen this happen before so I don't have much to offer on this one. Please let us know what worked for you when you get it released.
I’m custom to anchoring my awning on my old camper but don’t see many newer campers anchoring their awnings, is there a reason? I feel like I want to do it with my new camper also
Hi Mario. Many modern awnings aren't easily anchored by tie-downs these days due to the way the awning is supported. But if you have an awning that allows it, I think anchoring is a great idea!
Hi Linda. We use tie downs all the time and have had no problem so far. Of course there are different kinds of awnings out there. So if it appears that tie downs are putting too much stress on the awning frame it would not be a good choice for that RV. Thanks for watching and I appreciate the positive feedback!
Been RVing full time for one year. I have dropped one side of awning if I know there is going to be some none windy rain. I always raised the dropped side back up B4 rolling it in. Can I roll the awning back in w/o bringing the dropped side back up? Just didn’t want to chance a bent roll up scenario.
There are several different kinds of RV awnings, but if it was me, I would level the awning out before retracting it. That way it has its best chance of retracting and storing properly.
How about instead of tilting the awning for water run off following manufactures instruction☺ (at least on my class A's awning) and "do NOT leaving awning out during rain.
I have AAS, or awning anxiety syndrome. It makes me be a light sleeper and cut adventures short, because "ERMAGERD MY AWNING!! I LEFT THE AWNING OUT AND I FEEL THE WIND CHANGING!!"
LOL ... you and me both! I keep a constant eye to the sky when my awning is out. I just didn't realize that I exhibiting signs of AAS when doing that. :-)
We have an electric awning on our rig, can we repair the twist on the awning? On our first trip out we adjusted the awning to what we needed, it started to rain and did so for the remainder of the trip, several months later our awning is now wrinkled and we can not change the awning pitch.
Hi John. It sounds like your awning needs an adjustment. Rain should not alter the awning material so that it doesn't work properly. As far as I can tell, most likely it will require an awning professional to diagnose what is needed and take care of it.
@@gereshomeE I agree. Many of them also have automatic wind sensors to pull in the awning when the wind comes up. But I wouldn't completely trust that either. I personally like the older well-supported awnings that can also be made even more secure with the use of tie-downs. But that's just me .... 🙂
I’ve followed your exact suggestion on wind since I’ve started travel trailer living! Thanks much for the informative videos! This has answered my questions on stabilizing and sunshade as I face the west and intense afternoon sun of Centrel Florida.
I know what you mean Jessica. When you face the west on the entry side of your RV, the afternoon sun really hits the RV hard. It's great to be able to put an awning out on that side to help cool the RV, especially if your refrigerator is on the side exposed to the sun. Just be sure to take that awning in when the winds starts to really kick up. I'm glad that you are enjoying the videos! :-)
HaHa! Don't feel bad Ira, a lot of folks aren't sure about that. The good news is cleaning an awning is pretty easy and straightforward in most cases and doesn't require a lot of effort if you use the method where you apply cleaning solution, roll it up for a while, roll it back out and then rinse it off. It's pretty simple!
New to rv living. Thank you so much for the valuable info you shared about caring for your awning 😊
I'm glad it was helpful Grace. Thanks for leaving such a nice comment!
Most electric awnings have a manual override if your awning motor breaks. Mine has a bolt in one of the arms you turn with an electric drill. You can bring the awning in and out. A good backup if you can't bring it in on a travel day.
Good point Mark. Thanks for that info!
Electro-mechanical devices are subject to failure.
Manual for me.
Have a great day!
First time viewing your channel. I have also heard that it is a good idea to roll your awning in before sundown. Just in case of unforeseen weather. Good information. Thanks!
Yes, I can testify that it is a great practice to bring in your awning at night, especially if there is any possibility of bad weather. I got caught with my awning out when a sudden storm rolled through about midnight. It was touch and go getting the awning back in with high winds and rain, and we both were soaked and frazzled. But we did it and swore that we would not put ourselves through that again. Great suggestion Susan. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Simple green for cleaning awnings,,we discovered a 1’ rip on the far right side of the awning, 2022 grand design had some manufacturing issues with the awnings at the factory,
Yes, Simple Green is a good cleaner for lots of things around an RV. Thanks for that suggestion!
New to RVing, thank 6pm for the information!
My pleasure. I'm glad that you enjoyed it. There lots of other videos on my channel that are great for newer RVers. Feel free to poke around and see what you like. Thanks for watching and leaving a nice comment!
Great content, brother. Glad to learn from all your expertise.
Thanks for the positive feedback cibablea. I'm glad to hear that my videos are helpful for you!
Really enjoyed the video. I was looking to see what the snow load of one of these awnings is. But I didn't take a chance I went ahead and rolled it up today. Great tip on the cleaning! Really helpful!
Glad you enjoyed the video Mitch. Yeah, snow can get pretty heavy. I wouldn't risk it on an RV awning myself. I think you made a good decision there. :-)
Your advise is spot on again. We've had one bad experience with wind on an awning. I guess that happens with over 30 years of camping experience. Did not know about the sunshade option. Our current awning set up is 2 large Girard automatic unit's with wind sensors. I don't trust the sensors. Plus those units need constant attention with the adjustment arms. I guess that is the deal with a 14 year old unit. Again thank you for you insight and help. i appreciate it.
I don't completely trust wind sensors either OBW. And I certainly wouldn't trust them while I am away from the RV for a while.
Hi, great video's, thank you for producing them. I live in Canada, the mold only come during winter storage. I never have any during the summer months because I never store it wet. I guess a little water gets in during winter and this promotes mold. Do you have a solution to prevent this? Thanks.
Hi Maurice-Eric. A lot of people have this issue with their awning when opening them in the spring. It's a real problem. The thing to remember is mold only thrives in moisture. So somehow moisture is getting into the awning while rolled up, often from the end caps. Some people I know have fashioned a tube from PVC pipe that goes around the entire rolled up awning while in storage to prevent water intrusion over the winter. Others have just put plastic bottles like 2 liter soda bottles over the end caps and sealed around the edges to keep moisture from flowing into the awning that way. I don't know of any other tricks to solve this other than storing the RV indoors in a dehumidified area.
RV Inspection And Care , thanks
My awning on my HR Vacationer is electric but does not seem to have a way to adjust one end down for rain as suggested. Am I missing something? I am not new to RV's but this one has lots more advanced features than my past travel trailers Thanks Duane your videos are very informative.
Hi Mike. Not all awnings have a way to manually lower one side. I recommend that you check with your awning's user manual or even contact the manufacturer and see if they have a way to make one side lower than the other. If your awning doesn't allow lowering one side, you probably want to avoid having it out in the rain just to be safe.
@@RVInspectionAndCare thank you Duane
Dwane thanks for your professional support. One question. Is there a way to wash your awning with out using water? Thanks for all your support! SAFE TRAVELS
Interesting question Ron. Normally awning fabrics is one area where the use of water can be best. I suppose that Wash Wax All could possibly be used. But I haven't used it that way. I'm sure it would be good for use on a vinyl awning. But I would try some on a small area of an acrylic fabric awning first and test it before using it on the entire fabric. Acrylic awnings don't take a lot of scrubbing well, as it removes the water resistant coating. But if you are gentle and use mop heads like Aero Cosmetics sells for their long-handle mop, it may work. I really don't know. Just be sure to test well before using. If it works please let me know.
Thanks Dwane we live in southern California and we are trying to be extremely frugal with water. My wife and I are still dreaming of purchasing our next RV. I am jumping the gun on washing the awning. I enjoy viewing your videos and am constantly looking how to service and maintain our last RV. Thanks Ron
My manual awning is stuck shut,what can I do to remedy that? I bought older RV toyhauler,it was out when I bought it(awning) been remodeling,took it out first time last week low and behold awning is stuck shut,any tips would be appreciated
Unfortunately Pete, that is a problem that needs someone who is a trained tech to diagnose and repair onsite. It could be caused by any number of things. I recommend that you inquire locally to find one in your area that is reliable. Thanks for watching!
As usual, good info! Thanks
Glad you enjoyed it Ken. Thanks for the positive feedback. It's much appreciated!
Thanks for these videos! Very helpful!
Glad you like them Jay. Thanks for watching and for leaving such a nice comment. It's much appreciated!
I used a combination of bleach and Dawn ® dish soap to clean awnings. Worked great but I suspect it contributed to the color fading. Wind sensors have saved many awnings. On our old travel trailer, I bought a screen room which helped hold it down however, in the event of high winds, it was a pain to undo.
Hi Roy. The bleach/Dawn combination is a great cleaning solution. But it's probably a little too aggressive for RV awnings. Most awning manufacturers caution against using any cleaning agent that is too aggressive as it wears away the water resistant properties of the awning over time. BTW, I love those screen rooms you are talking about. In Florida they are almost a must to keep the bugs out, especially at night. But you are so right, they are a pain to put up and take down each time!
Thanks for your info
I'm glad it was helpful Pete. Thanks for watching and leaving a nice comment afterward!
I retracted my manual awning last week in a hurry as a big storm was rolling in, and somehow ended up with my trim fabric wrapped tightly around the roll. My pull strap was all the way to one end (rather than in the center) and now that the trim fabric is tightly wrapped around the roll I'm unable to slide the pull strap over to the center as the slot is blocked by the trim, and am unable to open my awning back up. My husband works out of town 25 days of every month so I do most of this camper care stuff by myself, but I just can't seem to get this awning back open. I've tried reaching up there and unwrapping the trim fabric piece but it won't come loose. Would you have any ideas as to how I might be able to get my awning open? If I get someone to help me and each of us pulls down on one arm of the awning, will it roll out without using the pull strap?
That might work Tracy. I've never seen this happen before so I don't have much to offer on this one. Please let us know what worked for you when you get it released.
I’m custom to anchoring my awning on my old camper but don’t see many newer campers anchoring their awnings, is there a reason? I feel like I want to do it with my new camper also
Hi Mario. Many modern awnings aren't easily anchored by tie-downs these days due to the way the awning is supported. But if you have an awning that allows it, I think anchoring is a great idea!
Curious, I watched another video where they said putting tie downs might pull the awning off the rv a little? I like your videos, thanks!
Hi Linda. We use tie downs all the time and have had no problem so far. Of course there are different kinds of awnings out there. So if it appears that tie downs are putting too much stress on the awning frame it would not be a good choice for that RV. Thanks for watching and I appreciate the positive feedback!
Hi I new to your channel I enjoy your video Thank you stay safe and God Bless
Thanks for watching and subbing Ray!
Good stuff Duane! Keep ‘em coming!
Thanks Kenny! Will do!
Been RVing full time for one year. I have dropped one side of awning if I know there is going to be some none windy rain. I always raised the dropped side back up B4 rolling it in. Can I roll the awning back in w/o bringing the dropped side back up? Just didn’t want to chance a bent roll up scenario.
There are several different kinds of RV awnings, but if it was me, I would level the awning out before retracting it. That way it has its best chance of retracting and storing properly.
Thanks!
Thanks for sharing. Really enjoy your channel.
Glad you enjoy it Daralen and thanks for watching!
How about instead of tilting the awning for water run off following manufactures instruction☺ (at least on my class A's awning) and "do NOT leaving awning out during rain.
That works too Jim.
I have AAS, or awning anxiety syndrome. It makes me be a light sleeper and cut adventures short, because "ERMAGERD MY AWNING!! I LEFT THE AWNING OUT AND I FEEL THE WIND CHANGING!!"
LOL ... you and me both! I keep a constant eye to the sky when my awning is out. I just didn't realize that I exhibiting signs of AAS when doing that. :-)
Thanks for the information
My pleasure. I'm glad you enjoyed it!
We have an electric awning on our rig, can we repair the twist on the awning? On our first trip out we adjusted the awning to what we needed, it started to rain and did so for the remainder of the trip, several months later our awning is now wrinkled and we can not change the awning pitch.
Hi John. It sounds like your awning needs an adjustment. Rain should not alter the awning material so that it doesn't work properly. As far as I can tell, most likely it will require an awning professional to diagnose what is needed and take care of it.
Thanks for the tips.
Happy to help! Charles. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Some really good information thanks 👍
Thanks Howard. I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you! ☺
Glad you enjoyed the video!
Many new electric powered awnings look ever more less secure! What are your thoughts, please?
@@gereshomeE I agree. Many of them also have automatic wind sensors to pull in the awning when the wind comes up. But I wouldn't completely trust that either. I personally like the older well-supported awnings that can also be made even more secure with the use of tie-downs. But that's just me .... 🙂
@@RVInspectionAndCare Well I totally AGREE with you on that too! I liked the way they looked also!
thank you so much!!!
You're welcome! I'm glad the video was helpful.
Loved it
So glad to hear that Jesse. Thanks for watching and leaving a nice comment!
Great info thanks.
Thanks Tim. I'm glad you enjoyed it! :-)
I’ve followed your exact suggestion on wind since I’ve started travel trailer living! Thanks much for the informative videos! This has answered my questions on stabilizing and sunshade as I face the west and intense afternoon sun of Centrel Florida.
I know what you mean Jessica. When you face the west on the entry side of your RV, the afternoon sun really hits the RV hard. It's great to be able to put an awning out on that side to help cool the RV, especially if your refrigerator is on the side exposed to the sun. Just be sure to take that awning in when the winds starts to really kick up. I'm glad that you are enjoying the videos! :-)
Didn’t know I needed to clean my awning
HaHa! Don't feel bad Ira, a lot of folks aren't sure about that. The good news is cleaning an awning is pretty easy and straightforward in most cases and doesn't require a lot of effort if you use the method where you apply cleaning solution, roll it up for a while, roll it back out and then rinse it off. It's pretty simple!
we have 2006 pace arrow.
That’s a great RV Flora. Thanks for watching!
Lubrication when they get noisy-lacking.
Thanks for sharing that tip with us Jo. And thanks for watching!
Speaking from experience, I never have my awning out if there is any wind. An expensive lesson!
Thanks for sharing your experience with us TOA. A little prevention goes a long way, right?