Just like caravans need to be cleaned regularly, so do caravan awnings. Since they are made to be used outdoors, they will inevitably become dirty over time as they are exposed to things like rain, wind, and mud. It is vital to keep your awning clean as it will help them to last longer. If anything sharp such as stones or twigs gets caught in it, it’s likely that they can damage your awning. Cleaning your awning regularly means you can remove any of these objects that may be dangerous to your awning. When cleaning your awning, another thing to be mindful of is the products you’re using to clean it. Since awnings are made from a waterproof material, it’s important to ensure you use the correct cleaning products for the job.
Cleaning your awning can be quite a challenge if you’ve never done it before. When you’re cleaning your awning, the crucial things to remember are to use the right products, remove big pieces of loose dirt first, use a brush for any stains, rinse it off, and allow plenty of time to dry before storing it away. In this blog post, I will go through each step of cleaning a caravan and how to re-proof your awning after it has been cleaned.
This blog post will cover the following:
- The importance of keeping your awning clean
- How to clean your awning
- Re-proofing after cleaning
- Conclusion
The importance of keeping your awning clean
There are many reasons why keeping your awning clean should be a priority. No doubt keeping your awning clean will help to maintain its good condition. This means it will have a prolonged usage time, but it will also give you and your family a healthy environment to spend time in. Travelling around using an awning covered in dirt or grime can feel quite uncomfortable and can easily dampen the mood of your outdoor trip.
As explained previously, one of the things to consider before you begin the awning cleaning process is ensuring that you have the right cleaning products for the job. Caravan awnings are made from waterproof materials that are very similar to tents. This is why it’s important to ensure that the cleaning products work on this material and are gentle enough not to damage it. I will mention some of the best cleaning products in the market for awnings a little further in this blog post. However, you could also make your cleaning solution. You need to mix 2 parts of bleach with 8-10 parts of water. Put this solution in a spray bottle and test it by spraying once or twice. Once you can see that it is safe to use on your awning, you can pray it everywhere on the awning and then rinse it off.
How to clean your awning
Cleaning your awning can feel like a long and daunting process, especially if you’re doing it alone. Here I have broken the entire process down into some easy-to-follow steps that will make it much easier for you to follow, even if you are cleaning the awning yourself.
1: Expose the awning
The first thing you need to do is ensure that the entire awning is exposed. To do this, you need to set it up to see all the areas of the awning that might need a little more work than others. There is no need to detach your awning from your caravan for this process, as it can all be done with the awning still connected to your caravan; in fact, it may even make the process a little easier.
2: Remove dirt
It’s vital to ensure all the loose bits of dirt have been removed from the awning before you begin to use a cleaning solution. If you don’t remove the loose pieces of dirt first, adding the cleaning solutions will only make the dirt wet and therefore cause it spread around on your awning and make it even worse. Therefore, you mustn’t skip this step. To make sure you can reach the top of the awning, use a broom or a brush to dust the durst off the awning. If you can see any bits of mould or bird droppings, don’t try to force them off with the brush, these stains will come off once you use the cleaning product/ solution.
3: Use an awning cleaner
As I mentioned before, there are awning cleaning solutions available from numerous camping retailers. These have been designed specifically to use on awnings and are therefore safe for any type of awning material. They are usually chlorine-free and mild to prevent any discolouration or damage to the waterproof coating of your awning. To use these cleaning solutions, spray a generous amount on both sides of the awning. You can make your own awning cleaner by mixing 2 parts of bleach with 8-10 parts of water.
However, if you do choose to make your own, you should be aware that it will contain chlorine, so that it may be more aggressive on the material. I recommend the Fenwicks Awning and Tent Cleaner Spray, which works well on all awning materials. This cleaning solution is available to purchase from the Winfields Outdoors website. Click here to purchase or to learn more about the product.
Roll it up once the awning is covered in the spray, and let the cleaner sit on the awning for around 30 minutes. This will allow it time to react with the dirt and remove it all from your awning.
4: Brush the dirt off
After you roll out your awning, it’s important to use a wash brush to scrub off the hard stains. After using the cleaning solution, the stains will have loosened up quite a bit, making it much easier to scrub off the stains. It is vital to scrub the stains gently to avoid damaging your awning in the process. You should use a brush that has soft bristles or even a microfibre cloth if you want to avoid brushes as a whole.
5: Rinse off the awning
Now that all the stains and dirt have been scrubbed off, it’s time to wash off the awning. The quicker and most effective way to do this is by using a hose. This will allow you to wash away the dirt from every corner of the awning easily.
6: Dry your awning
The last step is a very crucial one. Once your awning has been washed, it needs time to dry. Leave your awning pulled out and let it air dry. To help the drying process go a little quicker, it may be good to pitch it up at an angle. This will allow any small pools of water that collect on the awning to roll off.
Re-proofing after cleaning
Now that your caravan awning is all clean, washed, and dried, you may want to think about re-proofing it. This will restore the waterproofing ability of the fabric that might have been scrubbed off during the cleaning process. If you notice that the water on the awning is no longer beading, this could mean that the awning needs to have a re-proofing agent added.
One thing to note is that if your awning is made from a natural canvas/cotton material, it will have its own natural waterproofing ability by swelling up when exposed to water. Awnings made from synthetic acrylic fabric do not have their own waterproofing abilities and will need a waterproofing agent.
Before using the re-proofing agent, find your awning manual and read it carefully regarding the pre-proofing products you should use and how often. I would recommend the Grangers Fabsil Universal Protector, which can be used on most awning materials. This re-proofing agent is available to purchase from the Go Outdoors website. Click here to purchase or to learn more about the product.
Conclusion
Cleaning your awning can seem like a long and challenging task; however, once you know how to clean it and which tools to use, it can become a lot less daunting. Hopefully, this blog post provided you with all the information you need to clean your awning and keep it in its best condition for as long as possible.
