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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To want to buy an old used cheap caravan?

91 replies

Fabulassie · 21/02/2015 15:56

I have done a lot of tent camping. I recently met someone with a small four berth caravan they got for a song. It had no shower or toilet (just a cupboard where one could put in a potty) and the kitchen was rudimentary (don't remember the sink situation).

It occurred to me that this would be so much better than a tent. Like, we could still use the on site toilets, showers, and washing up, but enjoy sleeping off the ground, have a reasonable place to sit if it rained, and enjoy the option of cooking on a hob and keeping milk in the fridge if we wanted to pitch up to an electric outlet.

My husband swears that he will never, ever be one of those annoying people towing a caravan and he says they're very expensive things to keep.

I think I'm capable of towing the thing and other than the initial investment in the towing apparatus, a few bits and bobs, and then the only expense would be to find a place to park it, which I doubt has to be prohibitively expensive.

We can't afford to travel to resorts. Even holiday parks seem too expensive. I think a modest caravan would open up lots of possibilities.

What do you think?

OP posts:
Original poster
Fabulassie · 21/02/2015 15:57

By Park it, I mean a place to store it when not in use. Not a permanent pitch.

OP posts:
windchime · 21/02/2015 15:59

YABU if you drive on the road in front of me Grin

Original poster
Fabulassie · 21/02/2015 16:00

I used to live in Argyll! I know the frustration of being behind a caravan. I promise to take every turn out!

OP posts:
kennyp · 21/02/2015 16:03

sounds bliss. i'd love to have a caravan. so what if you have to drive slow? every time we see a caravan i either sing caravan of love or barbara dickson's "caravan". happy days.

Camolips · 21/02/2015 16:07

I'd sort out a storage unit first. It's big business these days and lots don't take old caravans as some people are prone to just leaving them there and not paying the fees. Before we got rid of our caravan last year we were paying £60 a month (london area) which we felt was very expensive for an unsecured field.

Ragglefrock · 21/02/2015 16:08

Sounds good to me plus you'd have an escape place to go to if your family are driving you crazy you want a quiet place to read when you're at home.
My only hesitation is where will you keep it when you're not holidaying? I've seen some that entirely block the front garden which is very ugly and reduces light as well as being bad for security.

Mrsjayy · 21/02/2015 16:33

We have a caravan we love it its stored at a caravan storage place it costs £200 a year to store we go to campsites and not holiday parks we have done in the past it is reasonable anyway I use the sites toilets and showetz and washing up as they have bigger sinks. Thing is with older caravans they get damp and the walls turn to mush. Our first van was cheap but dh renovated it pulled walls out and replaced them. So be careful when you look to buy

Fairylea · 21/02/2015 16:37

My mum and her partner have just bought one. They have found a retirement village nearby that has mainly static oap type caravans that are prepared to store it for them. I think the biggest issue that they have had so far is they needed to attach a tow bar to the car and that was quite expensive and obviously the caravan needs servicing etc.

They're pleased with it so far but they haven't really given it a good go yet so I'm not sure of more than that !

youmakemydreams · 21/02/2015 16:44

We did exactly this last year. It is bliss. We use campsites not holiday parks as well and have travelled all over scotland in our first summer. Great in the bad weather as well. Electric heater if it's a cold morning. We don't have hot water in ours either. Just use onsite facilities.

Cannot recommend it enough.

CuttedUpPear · 21/02/2015 16:47

Storage is cheap as chips and you'll never regret going for the transition between crawling tent dweller and caravanus erectus, identifiable by their upright position.

CatThiefKeith · 21/02/2015 16:47

The caravan storage place nearest to me is £520 per year. Have you considered a camper van?

FuzzyHeaded · 21/02/2015 16:54

How old are you thinking? The caravan in which I enjoyed many lovely holidays as a child was bought secondhand the same year I was born (almost 25 years ago), and it had a hob, cooker, and one of those portable toilets for if you didn't want to go out at night - poor Dad was always on emptying duty. So you might be surprised by what you can get even if looking at very secondhand caravans.

Anyway, YANBU at all - I have both camped and caravanned in my time and caravanning is so much more pleasant if you're going for a comfy family holiday (rather than actively seeking the camping experience IYSWIM). I remember feeling so warm and snug in our caravan which us not a sensation I associate with camping...

AliceLidl · 21/02/2015 16:54

DH bought a four berth touring caravan for £450 last year.

We've been all over the place in it and it will be good for this summer too.

It has a toilet (usable) and a shower (not worth the bother) plus a three ring hob and a sink in the kitchen bit.

It has two seating/table areas that fold out into double beds.

DS thinks it's better than our house.

It's much easier and quicker to prepare the caravan to tow than it is to put up or pack up a tent, which we usually ended up doing in the rain, it keeps some of the noise out, warms up quickly, and our usually nightly fee is anywhere between about £10-£20 for all three of us.

Pixel · 21/02/2015 16:57

We had some great holidays in our caravan when I was growing up. Even when it's raining you only have to put the kettle on for a cup of tea and you are lovely and cosy. My mum is all for getting another one (and letting Dh, me and kids use it Smile) but the storage situation is putting her off. It is quite difficult and expensive to find a place to put it.

I'd only go for a cheapy basic one too. Some of the modern ones are massive and they only have a few berths. Ours was 14ft and slept 5 comfortably but we had an awning as well because of my dad snoring Grin. We never felt the need for the full shower room, designer kitchen and mini bar thing that people seem to want nowadays. Besides I think the older ones were nicer looking. You need an expert to make sure the chassis etc is all sound though.

MsMcWoodle · 21/02/2015 16:59

We have a camper van. Would not be without one now. So cosy.

HalfSpamHalfBrisket · 21/02/2015 17:02

I got a caravan of Freecycle! Grin
It was very old and a tad manky, but for festivals it was far better than sleeping in a tent. Luckily I have friends with rambling outbuildings so had somewhere to stash it too.

notthedressiwanted · 21/02/2015 17:09

Go for it! You'll never look back :-)

raffle · 21/02/2015 17:36

Just spent an hour looking at second hand caravans and local storage sites. This was a great idea, cheers! Hoping DH likes it too :)

SantasLittleMonkeyButler · 21/02/2015 17:41

If you are happy with camping in a tent then you'll love a caravan Wink.

Less muddy in the rain too.

Original poster
Fabulassie · 21/02/2015 17:54

I am happy to hear that so many others see my logic!

Yes, I am aware of old caravans that cost less than £500 and I am pretty sure that we can find somewhere to store it. It doesn't have to be that close to us - if it's around the Oldham/Rochdale/Manchester area, it will be convenient enough to go get it.

I don't know how old this friend's caravan was. I think she was actually given it and had to do some minor thing to make it useable. It was certainly pretty old.

We're actually a family of 5, but DH insists he wants nothing to do with it and I usually take the kids camping by myself at some point each year, anyway. And if he did change his mind, I think I could squeeze into one double berth with two children and him with the third or maybe one of them would enjoy sleeping in a pup tent. I wouldn't reject the idea of a 5-berth caravan but I am more certain of finding a suitable 4 berth.

What things should I look out for? All I can think of is damp and the tail lights working properly.

I know that affixing a tow bar would be an expense but I think it would be worth it. Does each make of car have its own sort of tow bar fitting? Because I would like to remove it when it's time to replace our (old) car and put it on the next car.

OP posts:
Original poster
Fabulassie · 21/02/2015 17:57

Also, where would you look (besides gumtree?)

OP posts:
Camolips · 21/02/2015 18:05

Another thing, find out first the max. weight your car can tow! You don't want to be lumbered with a caravan that won't go up a hillGrin

Sunnymeg · 21/02/2015 18:10

You will need to do some research in to the towing weights. Your car will have a maximum towing weight which will be in the handbook somewhere. You can search caravan weights online and there are websites where you can enter the make/model of the car and caravan and they will tell you if it is a safe outfit to tow. If you ignore this and have an accident whilst towing then your insurance will be invalid. You may also have to buy an add on to any roadside assistance policy you have (AA, RAC etc) as a lot of them do not cover anything that is being towed, they will just recover the car if you breakdown. It is worth buying a caravan magazine and having a read to familiarise yourself with things and it will also give you some ideas about the different layouts so that you know the best one that will suit your family.

SantasLittleMonkeyButler · 21/02/2015 18:11

There are different types of tow bars. Some are wired in (apparently) and some aren't. I'm sure your local garage or Halfords (possibly) could advise.

There are always caravans for sale on eBay & they have a caravan section on Autotrader too!

Sunnymeg · 21/02/2015 18:17

Also many towbars are made for a specific make or model and are not really transferable. Whitter is a popular make and you can find out costs on their website. You will need to find out how many pins are in the electrical part that needs to be fixed to the car as there are different types, but you can buy adapters. It is best to have the towbar fitted by a car dealership or a specialist fitter, they can be quite tricky to fit so that everything works when you need it to. I
You can also watch YouTube videos that give you hints on towing and some sites even post videos to show the route in to their site.