If you’ve been camping with your RV, you’ll know that the awning is an essential element.
When thinking about replacing the awning on your RV, there are two different types out there. The kind that your awning needs will depend on the maintenance and care required.
When you have an electric RV awning, it can be opened and closed simply with the flick of a switch. This means that there will be little maintenance involved. If your RV awning is electric, you’ll need to keep the joints lubricated.
If the joints themselves begin to seize up and the electric component on your awning stops working, you may have to look at replacing the entire canopy.
Surprisingly, manual RV awnings require a bit more maintenance. This is because there are a number of different moving parts that are separate from one another. It’s important that you make sure the canopy is deployed correctly every time you bring it out. Otherwise, you risk causing damage either to the canopy or the RV itself.
If the awning of your manual RV is in need of replacing, then you’ll be able to replace just the fabric.
Different RV Awning Fabric Options
You may not know too much about the fabric that your awning is made out of. Learning a bit about this will help you when it comes to replacing or repairing it.
On nearly all existing RVs, the canopy part of the awning is made out of vinyl. This is a great fabric to use on an outdoor accessory because it’s durable, naturally resistant to water, and lighter than cotton.
However, it does come with its own set of challenges, which may result in damage that needs replacing. Most of these challenges are related to water.
It’s vital that you never put an awning away while it’s still wet. When water is allowed to sit on the canopy of your awning for an extended period of time and isn’t allowed to escape, it may form mold or mildew on the fabric. The best-case scenario from this is staining on your awning, and the worst-case scenario is having to replace it altogether.
Whether it’s pre-replacement or post-replacement, it’s crucial that you clean your awning at least once a year. You can do so by scrubbing it with bleach or vinyl cleaner.
Finding and Installing Your RV Awning
When you’ve decided that it’s officially time to replace your awning, you need to determine if standard vinyl or modern acrylic is the best fabric to suit your needs.
Regardless of the type of fabric you wish to use, it’s important to do your research ahead of time. As well as making sure that the product you choose can hold up against rot, mildew, mold and sun exposure, you also need to ensure that the canopy is designed to fit the model and make of your awning specifically.
Always request a warranty for your awning before you purchase it.
There are two ways to execute an RV awning replacement. The first is to do it yourself, which we’ll discuss below. When you install an RV canopy yourself, it’s essential that you’re confident and know what you’re doing.
If you’re not confident enough to install it yourself, we suggest having a professional help you with the job.
The manufacturer of the product you’re buying will be able to help you find a professional who can do the installation. Remember, if you follow the following instructions and install it yourself, make sure to heed all the manufacturer’s guidelines.
RV Awning Replacement: A Guide
Let’s take a look at how to install an RV awning yourself.
How to Keep up with Basic Maintenance
Now that you’ve got your brand-new awning, you need to take care of it and keep up with necessary maintenance.
While your awning will experience some natural wear and tear, there are preventative measures you can take to make sure your awning fabric stays in great shape. Let’s take a look at what these are:
RV Awning Replacement: What You Need to Know
The awning on your RV provides you and the family with shade on those hot summer days, a place to park the bikes and even somewhere to set up a table for eating meals outdoors.
Whether you like it or not, your RV awning is going to wear and tear over time and will eventually need to be replaced. You can either recruit the help of a professional to do this or attempt to complete the job yourself if you’re confident enough.
Whether you’re learning a hard lesson about RV awning maintenance or it’s well overdue for a replacement, make sure to apply these tips and tricks when getting your new RV awning.
Featured Image by Koun G from Pixabay
