van virgin

[flying_pig]

At the end of last summer i bought an old ace viceroy early 80s van as i wanted to see is it for us is there any local member around Wolverhampton area that could give us some tips and take a look on what ive bought.
At the moment i cant even get my interior lights working on battery and dont know where to start apart from charging battery
Any help much appreciated
Kind regards Mike

[IverRover]

Don't know if this will help as I don't know the layout/electrics of your caravan but on ours there is a main switchboard, a bit like you would have at home. On that there is a switch that allows you to switch electric supply between battery or mains hook-up, and fuses for each circuit. There is also an isolator switch under one of the seats next to the battery compartment.

As I say, don't know if that helps, you may have already checked those but if not, that's a starting point.

[RPWC]

Originally Posted by IverRover

Don't know if this will help as I don't know the layout/electrics of your caravan but on ours there is a main switchboard, a bit like you would have at home. On that there is a switch that allows you to switch electric supply between battery or mains hook-up, and fuses for each circuit. There is also an isolator switch under one of the seats next to the battery compartment.

As I say, don't know if that helps, you may have already checked those but if not, that's a starting point.

Exactly, on older caravans there will be a switch panel.one way will give you mains power, a second setting will be for towing, i.e. for keeping the fridge temperature cool, and a third setting will be battery. Get a volt meter on the battery and see what power output you have and take it from there. After that it's a matter of going through each circuit in turn , as the above poster has already said.
EDIT. Do your lights work when connected to the mains Mike? If so test the battery as I said, and if your battery has the quick release type connectors, check there is no green corrosion on the inside of them, I discovered this on my 9 year old van last year, no lights coming on on battery, tested it and it had good output, removed every fuse and checked it, eventually came across the fault by accident as I moved the q r connector and the lights came on.

[flying_pig]

I know where to start now but itll have to wait for my next Saturday which will be Tuesday for the rest of you ill post any progress
Thanks for replies
Still could do with somEone local that could explain water hook up and waste along with couple other things

[RPWC]

The water hook up point will likely be on the offside of the van near the front, under a small flap. The pump will plug in directly and is usually held in place by two slide levers one top and one bottom. Insert i the loud end to this point on the van, the other end goes in the water barrel. The waste will be on offside or at rear, usually , look for one or two pipes around 3/4 the way from the front, you will need plastic pipe to go from each of the outlet ports into your waste water container. Generally these go into a Y fitmemt, available from most caravan accessory shops so that two outlets go into one.

Fresh water container. http://www.towsure.com/caravanning-e...ers/roll-along

Waste water container http://www.towsure.com/wastemaster-38-litres


http://www.towsure.com/waste-outlet-...-dia-per-metre

http://www.towsure.com/easi-2-drain-...hose-connector




Water pump, white part to caravan ,other end to water barrel.

http://www.towsure.com/ultraflow-car...assembly-800mm

[RPWC]

If you need any more help Mike, don't be frightened to ask, or pm We all have been a beginner at one time.

[flying_pig]

Thanks again van was a bargain@ £280 with interior panels and floor replaced, suspension done and new tyres i just couldn't resist. Once it was parked in back garden came easy bit to convince my old lady that we should go out with it.
Now im on the hunt for a tow bar for astra
Looks like more cash to be splashed

[IverRover]

Originally Posted by RPWC

If you need any more help Mike, don't be frightened to ask, or pm We all have been a beginner at one time.

As RPWC says, if you need help or in doubt about something, just ask. As he says, we have all been beginners but you will always find in the caravanning world, just like on this and many other forums of all types, people are ready to help.

When we got ours, we didn't know how to hook up the water, gas and electric, how to get it properly level so the fridge would work, how to bleed the water through, and how to put the awning up, we were completely in at the deep end but working through the problems and talking to people is the best way to learn, and before you know it, someone will be asking you for advice.

[RPWC]

Very true Tony, I have had my van for 9 & 1/2 years, since new, and when we first got it, the dealer showed me how to go on with it, but first time out we were still a bit lost and I asked someone on the site,and they were happy to help. It's my turn to give back now as my brother in law has just bought a caravan, and is on the phone constantly asking for help. Mike , the hardest thing about caravanning is getting the hang of reversing it, whichever way you want the van to turn, give the steering wheel the OPPOSITE lock, and small turns ,it only needs a small amount of lock to turn it while moving. If you look up the caravan club or camping and caravanning club, they both do caravan manoeuvring courses. Cost is about £150 for a full day, and includes a session in a " classroom", watching a video clip and then practical course in an off road area, they provide the caravans, you just bring you car with towbar, and you usually work in pairs with another course participant. Invaluable if you're a total beginner.

EDIT just realised you took your HGV test a while back, so if you're on class 1 you won't need showing,.

[flying_pig]

Heh thanks for that but ive started driving transit van with a big trailer when i was 18 and now im a lorry driver so reversing is one of my latest worries