A Caravan Does Most of Its Ageing While It Sits Idle
Through an Australian winter, when the touring season is over and a caravan sits for months, the shelter that protects it is a fabric motorhome storage shelter.
The enemy in the cold months is not the sun so much as the damp and, near the coast, the salt that rides on the air.
Standing Damp Is What Quietly Harms a Stored Rig
A rig left in the open through a wet winter holds moisture in every seam, and mould and corrosion follow the damp.
A motorhome storage shelter keeps the rain off first, so the van is not sitting wet week after week.
A Shaded Rig Also Stays Cooler and Drier Inside
Even a winter sun beats down on a dark roof, driving heat and then condensation through the van as the day cools.
A motorhome storage shelter breaks that daily swing, so the inside stays nearer an even temperature and drier for it.
Long-Standing Storage Is Where a Cover Pays Back
A van used a few weekends a year spends most of its life parked, and that idle time is when the weather does its damage.
A motorhome storage shelter over those long months is cheap insurance against a repair bill in spring.
Near the Coast, Salt Air Is the Harder Problem
Salt carried inland settles on metal and draws moisture out of the air, keeping surfaces wet and slowly eating fittings.
A cover between the van and that salt-laden air slows corrosion on the chassis and the metalwork underneath.
A Coated Fabric Cover Sheds a Wet Season
The seventeen ounce PVC fabric sheds rain and holds up across seasons, where a light tarp tears and lets the water straight through.
That coating is what lets the shelter stand through a wet winter rather than shredding in the first storm.
Air Has to Move, or the Cover Traps Its Own Damp
A rig sealed tight under fabric can hold humid air against itself, which defeats the whole point of covering it.
Open ends or vents let air pass through, so the shelter keeps the rain off without becoming a damp box.
Months of Standing Still Is Its Own Kind of Wear
Tyres left loaded in one spot for a whole winter develop flat spots, and a chassis left sitting settles on its springs.
An owner near Coffs Harbour stored a van under a shelter, moved it a turn now and then, and rolled it out in spring ready to travel.
A Little Care With the Standing Rig Goes a Long Way
- Vent it: let damp air move through
- Shift the tyres: turn the van now and then
- Anchor it: fabric catches wind when empty
Where the Fabric Cover Helps and Where It Does Not
- Strength: keeps rain and salt air off the rig
- Strength: cheaper and faster than a shed
- Limit: shade and cover, not a locked garage
- Limit: the cover is a wear item over years
Weighed against a metal building, a motorhome storage shelter gives up walls and security for the cover a rig standing all winter most needs.
Owners Are Storing for the Long Idle Months, Not Just Parking
As caravans sit out longer winters, the fabric shelters that TMG Industrial supplies are bought to carry a rig through months of damp and salt air.
With a Master’s in Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley, Alexander Martin has dedicated the last 18 years to enhancing outdoor living through thoughtful and robust structure design. His career kicked off in urban planning, giving him a unique perspective on integrating structures into diverse environments. In 2019, Alexander brought his expertise to our website, offering insights into creating versatile outdoor spaces. Since then, he has been the lead advisor for our outdoor design projects and is known for his ability to merge functionality with environmental consciousness. Alexander enjoys rock climbing outside of work and participates in community development projects, activities that reflect his passion for the outdoors and sustainable design.
