How To Prepare Your Campervan For Winter

If you have recently purchased a campervan conversion, you’ll wonder how to best maintain it when not in use. One of the best ways for keeping it in good shape, ready for any travels, is to use it regularly. It’s possible various problems can arise while your bespoke van conversion sits dormant, including tyres going flat, mould build ups and mechanical components hardening. Although VW transporter conversions can be used all year round, sometimes it’s not possible for some owners to travel throughout the year. And so, the typical downtimes of campers is during Winter time, when such problems can easily arise. To ensure the likelihood of this happening is small, we’ve covered some of the best provisions you can take for your camper.

Even though storing your camper somewhere suitable in the long term is good, it's also ideal to drive your bespoke van conversion every couple of weeks. It’s vital to actually drive it for around 10 miles too, not just let it run on standstill. This especially applies to campervan conversions which run on diesel, as require a high operating temperature to ensure carbon has been burnt off efficiently. Feeling the heat coming off of the cab’s heating is one sure way to know you have warmed up your camper’s engine enough. Taking VW transporter conversions for drives also ensures the tyres are less likely to develop flat spots.

Many kinds of campervan conversions have varying water systems, which means it is important for you to know how to manage your camper’s water. Despite this, you’ll usually find automatic drain down features for your fresh water. If you intend on storing your camper for a long period of time, it’s a good idea to manually drain it. This is because any water left in the system over winter can freeze and potentially ruin the mechanics of your system. To ensure you have completely drained the system, you can use pressurised air to flush out as much water as possible throughout the piping.

One of the more simpler steps to prepare VW transporter conversions is to clean it thoroughly inside and outside. If this step is missed it can mean better chances for mould or mildew to grow on your camper’s surfaces, it’s important to use fairly strong cleaning products to clean down all surfaces and remove any residue from food. Make sure to use products that aren't too strong though, otherwise you could damage your unit’s surfaces. To also prevent damp taking hold, you should make use of your ventilation which can normally be found on the roof. In some instances, owners of bespoke van conversions like to use heaters that are suitable to leave unattended.

The batteries on board campers are one of the most fundamental components of the vehicle. Not only do you have the engine battery but also the battery to run everything on board, such as televisions and lighting. If a camper  has been left idle long enough during winter, batteries can easily go flat. So, during winter months you can either have your camper hooked up to the mains electricity, or keep your batteries separate from your van and connected to a specialist charger. Furthermore, if connecting to the mains isn’t straightforward, it’s recommended to install a solar panel system on board your van. Alternatively, there are separate solar panel systems which are free standing. These too are ideal for helping to keep your batteries at a good charge level.

The above steps are some of the most important provisions you should take to ensure your camper remains in good shape during the winter months. It’s good practice to also check on your van’s interior from time to time, just so nothing goes amiss.