Regardless of whether your caravan is being taken to a storage facility for winter or its being parked on your driveway or in your garage, there are things you should do first.

Interiors

• Clean, vacuum and mop all areas of your caravan to ensure that it is clean following the summer season. Check all cupboards and storage spaces for food, lost items etc.
• Take off the sofa cushions and either store them in your home or stack them in the middle of the floor, on a table, away from the caravan’s walls.
• Pick up mattresses and stand them up away from the walls, to prevent mildew – these can typically be stacked in the middle of open floor space, along with the seat cushions from your sofa.
• Leave wardrobe and locker doors open to aid airflow and ventilation.
• Keep the fridge ajar to prevent mildew build up.
• Leave bowls of salt in open areas or buy condensation beads to soak up mildew and damp air while the caravan is in storage.
• Use WD-40 or a thin oil to coat hinges to prevent against rust during winter.
• Triple check all windows and doors are securely locked.

Body Work

• Clean the bodywork of your caravan regardless of how you’re storing it, of if you’re covering it. This also gives the opportunity to inspect bodywork for damage – particularly if you’re about to put it into storage.
• Caravan-friendly products are crucial to ensure that they don’t damage the bodywork and seals – for this reason, be careful when using power washers too.
• Any signs of green or black mould should be removed as leaving them over the winter period will hugely increase the chance of permanent marking.

Tyres

• Consider turning the wheels of your caravan every two months while it’s in storage and check that tyre pressures are correct as well. You can shield tyres from sunlight by using ‘winter wheels’, although you will need to check that they meet the required criteria for your caravan insurance policy.

Exterior Fittings

• Check caravan connectors for damage and wear.
• Wipe electrical contacts with WD-40 (or similar) or petroleum jelly.
• Moving mechanical linkages such as rotating screws and corner steadies will benefit from a slick of grease.
• Exterior light fittings should also be checked – remove and wipe the lens and seals before checking all electrical connections and replacing them if necessary (saves a job for when it comes out of storage)!

More advice?

Visit CASSOA’s website for a whole host of information about storing your caravan during the winter period.

If you would like to find out about Stanley Travel’s caravan storage facilities, please get in touch using the number below and we can also offer advice on what to do before storing your caravan in winter.

• Enquire about Stanley Travel’s caravan storage facilities and pricing by calling 01207 237 424.