Rack Mounted Awnings

hi Derek

But what sort of Vehicle do you drive? no sign in riig profile

Cheers Richard

Definitely worth working out just how much shade you'll get from one (if shade is your major concern) before purchase. Maybe checking with a cheap polytarp first, as awnings are great for rain, but can cast a very small shadow.


ed

before you go spending 00s of dollars somthing like this can be done for less than $50 and sets up in no time the legs are rolled up inside


Ive got it on a slant coz it pizzled down and it kept the water off the swag no worries

Hi there Derek I put a polaris on the side off the Camper trailer before our trip to the cape last year,Best thing ive done!!Even the wife agreed!!! So easy to set up!! Good to deal with and a great product, quite a bit cheaper than the rest to!!!
Shakey!!!

Sorry I don't have a picture, but I use a similar set up with a few easy mods that make it work better (IMHO).
Use a silver tarp. Last much longer and the heavy ones are much stronger in heavy winds.
Roll the thing around a length of timber or aluminium with holes at each end for the spikes on your tentpoles to go through. Roll your poles up around this when putting away. The tarp should be permanently attached to this length right along the length. I reckon timber is better as the extra slight flex is not going to bend (like aluminium ) I used two smaller diameter pieces of timber and sandwiched the tarp between them and screwed them together to spread the strain evenly on the tarp. This horizontal pole connecting the upright tent poles makes the structure a lot more rigid and makes rolling the thing up a little easier. Worth the small gain in weight.

Now here's the really good bit. Attach the horizontal pole about 3 feet in from the outside edge of the tarp. You now have a sidewall you can peg downwards from the horizontal pole. This gives you a considerably bigger shade area in most situations. If you use extendable tentpoles and there is wind or rain, you can drop the height of poles and you have a walled tent , open at each end. The lower height is also a lot more stable in high winds and rain runs off easily without pooling, especially if you have the horizontal pole because everything is so much tauter.

Another trick. Dont attach the edge closest to the vehicle directly to the roof rack. I have another 2 lengths of light timber screwed together on each side of the tarp so that it sandwiches the material on the end that attaches to the vehicle full length roofrack with U bolts. But, the timber poles are about 6 inches in from the edge of the tarp. This allows me to tie down a windbreak that blocks between the roofrack and the vehicle. An amazing amount of rain gets blown off the top of the vehicle into your sheltered area if you have rain- sort of like your house roof catchment area collecting and dumping on you. The tie down windbreak on the vehicle side, plus the ability to make a wall on the outer edge can make a surprisingly secure shelter.

That makes 4 horizontal (screwed together sandwiching the material to make two lengths) of timber the length of your shelter. This sounds heavy and complex but really it isn't as quite light timber can be used. I use aluminium adjustable poles for the uprights as they are very light and just roll them up with the tarp around that outer permanently attached horizontal pole.

I would send a picture but to set it up means putting the large heavy full length roof rack up on the vehicle and that wont happen until my next planned trip over the Simpson in September.
If this doesn't make sense or you want me details, let me know and I will try to be clearer.

Look at the Open Sky or ARB Bag Awning. (Same thing)

We've got the Gunyah and we are very happy with it. The whole thing is constructed from top quality materials, a good Aussie product! It is easy to extend and retract with one or two persons. You do need a couple of guy ropes if it is windy, but for normal touring gives an instant shade patch for lunch times etc.

We always put it out when setting up camp. The Turbo tent goes nearby but not next to the awning. Cooking and relaxing is done under the awning. When travelling in a group it is amazing how others gravitate towards our awning!

It is also great for day trips to the beach. Here in SA we can drive onto some beaches and set up nicely.

The only negative is the cost (around $600.00) but I have seen cheaper versions advertised.

Kingo

Hi Derek, you have been given some fabulous ideas for putting together your own awning set up, & thats what I would do.
The pre-packaged ones look like a lot of money for a bit of shade.
But I admit to being a miserable old fart. There is a lot you can do with the $500 odd bucks you could save...thats a lot of Bundy.
cheers...oldbaz.

For $420 you can get a good quality PVC awning from Universal Canvas in Adelaide. It rolls away into a zipped bag, and you can set it up however you like:
[url=http://www.universalcanvas.com.au/bagAwning.htm]

try something like this. lots better than spending big dollars on something that will not give much shade.
this is a 3mx3.2m tarp,,,heaps of shade. Afew select pieces of aluminium and a few pop rivets and away ya go.'
if you want the details,,,just ask.