21 methods to maintain your camper cool

Are you melting in your motorhome, campervan or caravan in sizzling climate? Undecided should you want air con or not? If you happen to battle with the recent climate in your van and need some tricks to hold your camper cool in summer time warmth wherever you might be, these are the most effective methods to cope with sizzling days!

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Summer time Van Life

It’s sizzling. Loopy sizzling. Garments-sticking-to-your-back sizzling. And sure, we’re presently in a motorhome within the UK. Thank goodness we’re not motorhoming in Spain!

I hate to complain about good climate, however generally it may be just a little TOO good. In ‘regular’ instances, we want to go to the mountains with our motorhome, reasonably than courageous the warmth and crowds of France or Spain in the course of the summer time months.

Nonetheless, it’s effectively over 30 within the UK proper now and journey isn’t an possibility, so we’re having to deal. Listed here are a few of our greatest ideas for staying cool in a motorhome or campervan throughout a warmth wave, to attempt to make vanlife just a little extra bearable.

Keep cool in your motorhome by parking within the shade

This will likely not all the time be doable, however you probably have a selection of parking spots or pitches on the campsite, attempt to decide one within the shade if the climate is forecast to be sizzling. Even when it’s solely shaded for a part of the day, it’s going to make it rather more bearable to be inside in excessive temperatures.

Open at the very least two hatches or home windows to permit airflow in your camper

The extra airflow you will get into your van, the higher. Opening roof vents, hatches or home windows on each side helps to create airflow, which in flip helps your motorhome really feel cooler.

Attempt to open them on reverse sides or ends to encourage much more air motion. One other additional advantage to an open window and permitting contemporary air in is that it helps cease condensation and mildew in your van from the nice and cozy air.

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Maintain blinds closed or use a display screen

Take a tip from the Europeans and hold your motorhome blinds or hatch screens closed. When you’ve got a reflective display screen or reflective insulation, use it. Simply stopping just a little direct daylight utilizing window shades is a good way to scale back the inside temperature dramatically, particularly within the hottest a part of the day.

That is much more necessary you probably have massive home windows as they’ll actually create a lot warmth inside your van- like dwelling in a greenhouse!

Keep cool in your van by maintaining indoor cooking to a minimal

Utilizing a hob, grill or oven in your motorhome is simply going to make issues even hotter inside. As a lot as doable, attempt to cook dinner exterior so the warmth doesn’t construct up. Some campsites have an out of doors kitchen you need to use as an alternative of yours, which is all the time an important possibility as an alternative of a sizzling van. Alternatively, use an air fryer!

If you happen to like a heat drink even on a sizzling day (weirdo 😉) then attempt to use a gasoline burner exterior as an alternative of the hob or kettle inside.

Don’t overlook that many campsites both don’t enable BBQs or they insist they’re stored off the ground. You possibly can discover our favorite BBQs for motorhomes and caravans right here.

Try to put your awning on the sunniest aspect, so it protects the most popular spot

A easy trick, however it requires just a little planning while you first park up at a web site. Strive to determine which method is south, after which put your motorhome or rv awning on that aspect if doable. The extra solar you may hold off the aspect of your motorhome, the cooler it’s going to really feel inside, even in partial shade.

That is particularly helpful should you’re motorhoming in Europe and want to flee the recent air and excessive summer time temperatures. Once more, some campsites insist on you parking a sure method, so it isn’t all the time doable BUT it’s value a strive the place you may.

For cooler summer time van life, head to the mountains

We like to go to the mountains throughout summer time, particularly now we’ve got a canine. The cool air at larger elevations is a welcome break from the intense warmth of southern Europe.

Don’t be fooled- you may nonetheless get sunburn up a mountain, however dwelling in a van and summer time street journeys will probably be rather more bearable within the cooler air.

A few of our favorite summer time mountain locations embody:

Park close to water should you can- though it’s possible you’ll get midges

We like to park close to water as a lot as doable. Partly for the views and partly as a result of our canine likes to swim. Being close to the water makes the whole lot really feel just a bit bit cooler than it does inland.

Nonetheless, some locations have midges or mosquitos close to water. And in some locations, they’re so unhealthy they’ll completely break your vacation. If you happen to’re going motorhoming in Scotland, don’t say I didn’t warn you!

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Don’t overlook to seize your free motorhome wild tenting guidelines right here that will help you arrange your van to remain in a single day with out electrical energy or amenities.

Use 12v Moveable Followers to maintain a motorhome cool in summer time

Now we have a number of 12v moveable followers within the van to assist transfer air round and hold issues feeling cooler. These are those we’ve got– they’re simple to make use of and cost, and aren’t too loud to make use of at night time.

We additionally use small followers which we are able to persist with the perimeters of the van, or put within the roof vents to create a do-it-yourself ceiling fan. Battery-powered ones are good for this.

Keep in mind lights give off warmth

If you happen to’re planning to spend any time staying off grid together with your motorhome (often known as motorhome wild tenting), then we extremely suggest switching out your van lights for low energy LED ones. This can assist scale back the quantity of battery energy you utilize AND they’ll give off much less heat- win win.

Set up a hard and fast motorhome air con unit

If you happen to’re planning to spend so much of time in international locations the place it will get REALLY heat throughout summer time, you would possibly need to sacrifice a piece of your motorhome payload as a way to match a correct motorhome air con unit.

These are very efficient, however they do weigh so much, so you’ll want to do your analysis earlier than you select and set up one.

Purchase a 12v Moveable air con Unit

Another choice to a fitted air-con unit within the van is to hold a transportable, 12v air con unit. There are many these in the marketplace. Some are ‘correct’ moveable air conditioner items, and a few are known as ‘swamp cooler’ or evaporative coolers.

We purchased a Transcool unit a number of years in the past and it does the job pretty effectively, utilizing chilly water to chill the air down. You possibly can see our overview of it right here:

Extra ideas to assist hold your cool in sizzling climate

In addition to the above tricks to hold your van or motorhome as cool and welcoming as doable in heat climate, there are some issues you are able to do to guard your self.

If you happen to’re travelling with canine, you’ll want to stroll them early/ late within the day when the climate is cooler.

For your self, you’ll want to drink much more than regular and bear in mind to put on solar safety! You too can get a transportable ice maker to assist hold your drinks cool within the warmth of the summer time.

Do you could have some other ideas for having fun with vanlife when the climate is heat? Drop them within the feedback under so we are able to all profit?