Power Awning use in the Rain

[69SoulShine]

Question. Is anyone with a power awning able to use it in the rain. Even light rain
We cannot, it will not drain even with the rear tilt all the way down.
AS says it’s a (SunShade) not meant for rain. Sounds like BS to me.

[wulfraat]

I've used mine in the rain several times. If there is wind I definitely pull it in though.

I do miss the steeper tilt that I could get out the manual one on my previous 25', but the current electric one seems to work OK on my current 30' so long as the trailer is level.

I always til from front -> rear.

[Rocinante]

We use our power awning in sun and rain. We tilt down in front because we have a FB. Water drains off just fine. We pull it in during windy or snowy conditions, and usually at night just in case a windstorm comes up.

[rperrym]

We do the same as Rocinante, it drains well for us. We do however tilt it depending upon the lay of the land. We want it to drain away from the trailer, even if it means falling near the rear door. There is enough distance and overlap that it does not splash near the door if its tilted towards the rear. We also roll it up for the night. We do have a Zipdee panel just for the power awning and we turn it off at night and when traveling.

Rick

[Daquenzer]

We use ours in the rain. Great for parking the bikes underneath as well as other outdoor items to keep dry. Just need to slope it a bit more. And we make sure to get it dry when we can so it doesn't get moldy. But the purpose of that awning has to be to use in the rain.

[Rocinante]

Exactly. I can't imagine AS corporate declaring that Zip Dee power awnings are nothing but a sun shade. Have never heard anything like this before.

[mdaley21]

We’ ve been pulling ours in both in wind and rain, but agree it should be more than just a sun shade (why have a tilt if not to remove rainfall??). I am curious about what your recommendations are for a trigger point with respect to wind speed —at what speed do you feel it is necessary to detect it? Do you have a different trigger point for the curbside awning than the narrower roadside awning?

[Rocinante]

Our triggers for high probability of pulling in our main awning include:

• Bedtime
• Leaving the trailer to go somewhere
• Forecasts for windy weather
• Hey, it's getting windy out there

We are generally less concerned about our streetside awning and our rear awning because they are smaller, but under more extreme conditions we pull them in too.

[69SoulShine]

Originally Posted by Rocinante

Exactly. I can't imagine AS corporate declaring that Zip Dee power awnings are nothing but a sun shade. Have never heard anything like this before.

Was told by AS customer service 3/2/18 Awning was not for rain. And also basically told same thing by Zip Dee customer service.
I find this hard to imagine also. They sure didn’t mention it when ordering our Streamer

[xrvr]

Read the booklet thatcame with the awning. It might say it js only a sunshade.

[kendrick.l.j]

I have not and don’t plan on using it in the rain. Mine is on a 30 footer and I am just too concerned about too much water weighing it down and pulling it right off the body. I have seen it happen. Not fun. I am also of bit of a chicken and try to void problems before they happen. I much less concerned about the other awnings as they have a much bigger angle and aren’t as deep.

[Rocinante]

We use ours in the rain and we will continue to do so, though we would never leave it out in a combined rain and wind situation.

[Visioneer]

Our experience: We have a 2018 30 Ft Serenity with Power Awning. You can use it in the rain if and only if you don't put it all the way up. The manual tells you how to stop and start it and you can open it up and stop it at any angle, the steeper the better for rain but enough to open the door (or mostly open the door depending on the rain, location, etc). Tilting one end or the other when level does not really work for us (every awning is different, if the fabric is not stretched tight it will sag even tilted and that = "water catcher") - we had to have ours replaced after a light rain in the first month because it built up too much weight and bent the roller (not coevered by warranty or insurance). I used to tilt it and watch it like a hawk and make sure no rain built up until one time when I fell asleep and bent it!!! Ouch! Suggest practicing openning and stopping it in many different positions and learning how it "reacts" because sometimes you can open it and stop it then "ask" it to close and it opens and vice versa . . . we have learned how ours operates so we can have it in unlimited number of positions so we are now confident, example: we can be right up next to a canopy open it up with a steep angle and get both the coverage from the ZipDee and the canopy in the rain and sun. AND, these awnings are not designed for (nor expected to be) to be used in any rain or wind especially moderately wind, rain, hail, snow, leaves, acorns, large birds, kids using it as a trampoline, etc . . . we love our Airstream and ZipDee awnings (we have the full wrap around awnings) and have learned how they work and under what conditions . . . our previous AiIrstream we had the manual awning and had great use of it including anchoring it down in wind, rain, etc with great luck (one time 30 knots of wind and no problem except when rolling it up - definately not recommended) not so with the power awning . . . treat her with great care and learn how to use her and she will be a good friend and offer lots of protection.

[switz]

This user manual is from the ZipDee website on the care and maintenance (plus all the parts) of the manual awnings. No where on their website does it say the awning can not be out in the rain. The caveat is wind.

http://nebula.wsimg.com/34d0c6e027d0...&alloworigin=1

[Rocinante]

Agree, wind is the arch-enemy of all awnings, regardless of whether they are attached an RV, a boat, a building, or a tent.

[switz]

Even Mary Poppins had an issue with the wind.....

[Lljones07]

We accidentally left our awning out in rain and it messed it up. It was so out of alignment that it wouldn’t function properly. Had to have it serviced.

[switz]

Must be a new "feature" of the newer trailers. We have zero issues with our multiple stock ZipDee awnings on our 2014 Classic even when it rains in the mountains during the monsoon season. No issues with the three stock ZipDee awnings on our 23D International Serenity that is often in the same type of weather.

[greenflag]

We were away from our trailer when it rained heavily. Upon our return the awning would not retract due to the weight of the water on it. Tilting the front or back was useless. We finally used a broom to push up from underneath to get the water to roll off.
My opinion is they are not rain friendly.

[Rocinante]

See rule 1: never ever leave the awning out when away from the trailer. Never.