Category: Services

Air conditioning has been a theme of June so far. With a spate of good weather, we have seen an increase in requirements for air con for caravans and motorhomes, and customers have all sorts of reasons for wanting to stay cool, from keeping pets comfortable to travelling abroad. But one thing remains constant – all of our customers go away cool and happy with their new air con. From little caravans, to extremely large motorhomes, and all in between, we have cooled them all

Our top picks for motorhome and caravan air con

Truma caravan air cons are compatible with almost all leisure vehicles whether with Truma heating or Alde heating we can join the aircon to your heating system control panel to ease the use and control of both systems from one familiar control panel. Truma also offers an unrivalled 5-year warranty on all their products when installed by a Truma installer like us.

The Truma air con comes in two types.

Roof mounted or storage box both vastly different units but with the same Truma cooling power.

Storage box type are notoriously more difficult to install due to the size of the unit and you do minimise any storage you do have.

The roof mounted aircons are a perfect solution as most of the time the old kitchen rooflight is removed and replaced with the aircon this way you don’t loose any storage and is a nice trendy addition to your leisure vehicles roof.

The roof mounted air con comes in three sizes.

TRUMA AVENTA COMPACT

With cooling power of 1700w this air con is lightweight and as the name states extremely compact which means it will fit on almost any roof even if you already have solar panels, satellite or WIFI solutions. This unit is perfect for single axle caravans up to 24ft in length, small motorhomes or van conversions.

TRUMA AVENTA COMPACT PLUS:

The compact plus has a higher cooling power of 2200w but is still the same compact size which means it will fit in all the same places as the compact but will cool that bit more which makes it perfect for larger vehicles up to twin axles and larger motorhomes. This truly is a remarkable piece of kit!

TRUMA AVENTA COMFORT:

The Aventa comfort really is a step up when comparing to the compact,  this unit comes with a cooling capacity of a massive 2400w meaning it is perfect for the largest of caravan or motorhomes you can throw at it but it doesn’t stop there ,  there is a built in heat pump which means this unit will also heat your leisure vehicle and when installed by us we will connect to your combi boiler meaning the combi and air con will work in conjunction to heat your vehicle or cool your vehicle as required.

The aventa comfort also comes with LED lighting on the internal diffuser so it is has a nice ambient lighting feel

If you have any queries regarding air cons for your caravan or motorhome, give us a call we will be happy to discuss and advise what we feel the best solution is for yours and your leisure vehicle’s needs. 01254 386284

How to replace Alko hitch pads

This procedure is the same for hitches with red or black handles.

The Alko hitch has two sets of hitch pads they are side to side pads and front to back pads

Those to its left and right grip the tow ball when the handle is pressed down, while those forward and to the rear do not move.

When hitching your caravan up next time be sure to check the indicator markers for both of these pads.

Checking front to back pads

When hitched up before clamping the stabiliser handle down take note of the indicator situated at the end of the black handle you should be able to see some green as shown in the picture below if you can’t see any green and its all red like the second image then the front to back pads have worn and require replacing.

Checking side to side pads

You’ve checked the front to back pads as advised above now you are ready to clamp down the stabiliser handle as you move the handle down you will start to feel some friction when you feel this friction this is when you see where your indicator arrow is if you feel friction within the green zone then your side to side pads are good however if the friction only starts when the arrow is in the red zone or you feel no friction at all your side to side pads are worn and need replacing

Now you’ve learnt how to check your hitch pads lets see how we change them.

Tools we will need for this repair:

Gloves

Small flathead screwdriver

Small punch

Small hammer

14mm open-ended spanner

T30 Torx key

Fine emery cloth

Brake cleaner

Clean cloth

Replacing the pads

Ensure your hands are free from grease or oil that may contaminate the stabiliser pads before starting this project if you contaminate the hitch pads, they will be very noisy and not work effectively or efficiently

In most cases, the noise will be from the stabiliser, if dirt has contaminated the friction pads and caused them to ‘glaze’.

A temporary fix is to give the pads a quick clean in situ with fine emery paper or cloth if they are extremely noisy.

Let’s get started

SIDE TO SIDE PADS

To carry out this repair the caravan must not be hitched up, firstly remove the small red / black caps on either side of the hitch and use a small punch to tap out the friction pads from outside to inside.

Occasionally, a washer or shim comes out with a pad. These are necessary for correct adjustment, so make a note of which side they come from and put them back in the same place during reassembly.

Examine the pads, and if they appear at all shiny, rub them with fine emery paper or cloth until the glazed look has gone and they’re smooth. Give them a final clean with brake cleaner.

Once you’re satisfied with the pads’ condition or you’ve opted for new ones, replacement is the reverse of removal.

First, ensure your hands are free from grease or oil. Put the stem of each pad into the hole from within the hitch head.

Press firmly until they click into place – you may need to push hard with both thumbs. Replace the red/black caps.

FRONT TO BACK PADS

To take out the front pad, start by pulling off the red/black dock from the front of the hitch.

Push up from the inside the button on the front and fit a 14mm spanner around it to prevent it from retracting this will help us to remove the front pad without the button fouling on the pad being removed or being re-installed.

Look at the front of the hitch, beneath where the red dock was, and you’ll see a Torx-head screw. Remove this with the T30 Torx key. The front friction pad will now come out easily. Clean or renew and fit it by reversing the previous steps ensuring the pad is correctly positioned before removing the 14mm spanner, ensure the pad is correctly fitted by pushing the button up a few times and the button should not foul on the pad at any point

The Torx-headed screw only needs to be nipped up (Al-Ko recommends a torque setting of 5Nm).

The rear pad, which is at the back of the hitch area, is also held by a Torx-head screw. To access the screw lift the black handle to create an angle for the screwdriver remove the screw and then the rear pad, which may need gentle assistance from a small flat-head screwdriver.

Clean or renew and reverse the steps ensuring the pad is correctly positioned.

Check your work

Hitch up your outfit, ensure that the stabiliser is correctly engaged, and double-check the wear indicators in case something is not refitted right.

If it all looks OK, unhitch and replace the red/black dock.

This may be the hardest part of the job – you’ll get one side attached as it pulls off the other.

The repair should take no longer than 15-30 minutes for people that are comfortable with DIY repairs and we deem it to be fairly easy.