Tales from the Previous Owner: The Awning

[hampstead38]

OK, folks, I have photos coming on this one. I just need my lovely bride to download and send them to me. Let's turn back the clock the of teh sale. We're hitching up our tin girl having paid the cash, inflated the tires, etc. My wife comments on how nice it is to have an awning. Since we're with the "PO," I try avoid my usual dubious look. The Overlander has been parked for six years and the bolts on the awning look rusted pretty tight. The PO--a genuinely nice guy--says, "The awning's in pretty good shape." Yeah, OK, but I'm not feeling it. After we get home, my wife asks me to unroll the awning. I suggested we have some other things to do. (Why burst the bubble on the first day).

So... today I'm looking at my gutters and start thinking, maybe part of the water problem in the Overlander is the awning. I unbolt the "Carefree" awning and pull it away from the body. Ggrrrriippppp....! The "pretty good" awning is tearing rather than unrolling. The fabric has all of the flex of a 2x6. My wife rushes to get the camera. Having seen the floor, she's increasingy immune to "issues."

It's take a bit, but I wrestle the awning off... wondering how I'm going to get the 20' roll to the landfill. I powerwashed the roof and cleaned out the natural "dam" where the awning was trapping debris. My guess water was finding its way back in the frig vent. I agree with my wife... I think awnings are nifty. None, however, are truly "carefree."

[Minnie's Mate]

Uh...Zip-Dee makes a good awning.

[hampstead38]

The 20' is lashed for an early morning landfill run. As for Zip-Dee, I have heard the awnings are quite good. I think it will be one of those "finishing touch" things we do after all of the heavy lifting is done. For now, the focus is getting everything to the landfill.

[overlander63]

Before you trash everything to do with the awning, how is the hardware? If it's still functional, you can get fresh, new material to go in place of the stuff you took off.

[hampstead38]

The hardware was questionable enough that I just "punted." I made my run to the landfill today, dropped the metal in the metal recycling area and the fabric in the dump. Maybe I'm just overly cautious, but an awning malfunction might end up like Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction." Since this thing is hanging off the side of the tin girl at highway speeds, I think "safety" is critical. When we get the girl close to camping ready, it will be time to pick up a nice Zip-Dee with some fabric to match our "trim package."

[Minnie's Mate]

We had the dealer install additional Zip-Dee awnings to match the factory awning on the street-side and rear end to cover the windows on those sides. The street-side awning runs the length of the trailer and gives good shade that really helps reduce the heat gain. You might consider ordering matching Zip-Dees for those areas on your coach when the time comes. It ain't cheap but I think it was well worth the expense.

[hampstead38]

As a new Airstream owner, I can say with unfettered confidence, "Nothing is cheap." I agree with the idea of two awnings and the benefits of shade. My wife and I are considering paint/coating rather than polishing the roof. This might help a bit with the conductive heat issue. We're also leaning towards a bit more "color" around the trim than some Airstreams. Hopefully, Zip Dee will be able to accommodate color choices in fabric to fit with out theme.

[juel]

Wanted a bit more color on the 76 Sovereign and also covered a long scratch. Was a bugger to put on, but I really think it adds to the trailer. Put all new vinyl inserts on and repainted all the emblems and names too.

[hampstead38]

I like the splash of color... very nice. By the way, I have some new pictures up on my blog showing the awning, the tongue and some other odds and ends.

[purman]

Hey, hampstead38, If you don't want that big antenna on the right side on the front, you can take it off, I put a flag pole holder over the big hole that was left instead of patching it... Put rivets in the screw holes...
I think it looks nice.
You can see a pic here
http://www.airforums.com/forums/f4/h...air-44105.html

[Excella CM]

You could be charged with impersonating an Excella!

[hampstead38]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm still a good distance away from worrying about stuff like the antenna.

As for paint... what the heck. My wife and I are railroad fans and we're playing with a "Great Northern Railroad" theme for the trim. The primary color is "Pullman Green."

RS28-Page_8

The whole polish thing is nice, but I have to say, I'm not really enthused about polishing the roof of a trailer no one except low flying planes will see. I think a mix of polish and paint will be fun... Excella ribbing or not.

[3streams]

Originally Posted by hampstead38

As a new Airstream owner, I can say with unfettered confidence, "Nothing is cheap." I agree with the idea of two awnings and the benefits of shade. My wife and I are considering paint/coating rather than polishing the roof. This might help a bit with the conductive heat issue. We're also leaning towards a bit more "color" around the trim than some Airstreams. Hopefully, Zip Dee will be able to accommodate color choices in fabric to fit with out theme.

You can basically chose any Sunbrella fabric and Zip-Dee will use that- a rainbow of choices. We have different colors to match the different trailers. The vintage ones are cool and look great- but a bit of a PIA to put up. For our 30' we are going with a Zip-Dee for sure!