The Bradcot Active caravan awning, a real life review of this popular caravan accessory...

I don't know about you, but do you always feel that you are short of space? It doesn't matter where you are, in the house, in your car, in your office, it always seems that the available space is gradually being eroded by more and more paraphernalia. When we first took delivery of a six berth caravan it seemed incredibly spacious for two adults and two kids. A couple more touring trips down the road and we had gradually started to gather all the caravanning "necessities" that the nuclear family can't be without!

All would be fine if the sun shined everyday. Bikes, barbecues, high chairs, boots, wellies, footballs could be left outside to free up a bit of breathing space inside but as we all well know, the British climate doesn't allow such luxury on many occasions. After one such trip with muddy boots, squashed rabbit droppings and sodden clothing distributed throughout the caravan, enough was enough and we took the wise decision to expand. We had seen all the other families run back to the shelter of their awning, de robe, take off muddy wellies and enter the caravan leaving all the wet gear to dry in the awning. So, an awning became a must and we started to look round for what would be the most suitable for us.

I did my usual caravan site survey, always the best product showroom I have found, and we decided on a Bradcot Active. The order was placed and we waited with eager anticipation to use our new annex on the next caravan adventure. I decided to order the "Easy Alloy" pole system as I had spied others trying to put the steel pole jigsaw puzzle together and it generally seemed to end in marital disharmony!

Being a meticulous planner, when the awning arrived I thought it might be a good idea to have a look through the bags and instructions so that I wouldn't look like an amateur on site. The main components were:

Now if you haven't seen an awning before the sheer quantity of parts can be overwhelming but you needn't worry as Bradcot provide superb instructions. No, they don't actually, the instructions are pitiful and require a good deal of interpretation. For example, the poles just come with the parts diagram and you assemble the various legs and roof stays from that diagram. There is a weatherproof card showing the order in which you assemble the poles and tension the awning once it is on the caravan but that is it. I'm afraid that you will probably need to take a peek at the neighbour's assembly as the positioning of some of the parts are not immediately obvious. As an aside, I have put a lot of different tents up and down in all kinds of weather but nothing beats the fun of getting the awning up or down in a force five!

   Bradcot Awning Assembly Video!

Apart from the instructions, the rest of the Bradcot Active is very good. Once the "Easy Alloy" poles are assembled, it is just a case of extending each section and the pole locking mechanism holds the pole in place when tensioned. One thing to note with these alloy poles is that like all alloy this is a very soft material and a small piece of grit inside the sliding tube arrangement can mean that the poles will seize against one another and it can be very difficult to remedy the situation. Once you have had a couple of runs assembling the awning, it becomes second nature though and I found that apart from feeding the seam along the caravan's awning channel, I was able to complete the operation on my own in about 30 minutes.

The Bradcot Active is supplied with a good amount of plastic awning and groundsheet pegs. These are adequate for soft grass pitches but I would definitely purchase some hard ground pegs as they are much easier to use and more resilient in strong winds. It goes without saying that you will need to purchase a mallet and take it with you :-( The awning doesn't come with a groundsheet and I decided to purchase one of the breathable varieties that is also easy to clean. Some caravan sites won't allow the use of groundsheets on grass pitches but it is an added luxury being able to keep the inside of the awning dry and warm, especially for little feet. The only other accessory that is worth considering is an after market bag/bags for the various parts of the awning. The bags that the Active comes with look rather flimsy and like most tents, the only time they fit with ease into these bags is when they are delivered from the factory! There are plenty of bags available for awnings if you look in the caravanning press or on the internet and having a little more space will mean that if you have to leave caravan site with a wet awning, you can still fit it in the bag and remove it later for drying. You won't then have a wet car as well!

Bradcot also supply zip in annexes if you wish to use the awning for extra sleeping accommodation - very handy for independent teenagers.

Overall, the Bradcot Active caravan awning is a good way to increase your storage space, provide extra play area for toddlers or provide extra sleeping accommodation. It represents good value for money and judging by the number seen around the caravan sites, is a popular choice amongst touring caravan owners.