Get ready for the new season with our 7 essential tips

The temperature is beginning to rise, the mornings and evenings are getting lighter, and we’ve packed away our winter coats in favour of something more lightweight and some sunglasses, fingers crossed.

It can only mean one thing:

Towing season is almost here.

Most caravan sites have opened their doors to the public once again, so now is the best time to make sure you’re ready to get out on the open road and have the relaxing getaway you deserve.

However, nothing can kill your holiday vibe more quickly than something going wrong with your vehicle either on the way or when you get on site.

Here are our seven essential tips for getting your caravan or motorhome ready for the new season.

The tyres on your car, caravan, or motorhome are the only part of your vehicle(s) that come into contact with the road. Faulty rubber can have catastrophic results if your tyres fail on the road, so ensuring they’re in good nick before you set off is essential.

Ensure your tyre tread depths meet the legal requirements, check for cracks, bulges, and defects in the walls, and check/alter tyre pressures to ensure they’re at the correct PSI for your vehicle(s).

Don’t forget to look at any spare wheels you have, too.

The rules for towing caravans and trailers changed on 16th December 2021, so you might want to check out how the new regulations might affect you (if at all).

You can find all the relevant details on gov.uk to ensure that you aren’t breaking the law.

What about your protective towing cover? Is it road-legal? Our blog “Are Caravan Towing Covers Road Legal?” will help clarify the issue.

The electrics in your caravan and motorhome aren’t only vital to meeting legal requirements while you’re driving, they’re also critical to your quality of life while you’re on holiday.

Check and test, check and test, check and test every electrical device and component that’s important to your trip before you set off to make sure you’re not blindsided when you get on-site. Or worse, while you’re on the motorway. Examining your electrical items a few days before you’re due to set off gives you time to repair or replace any faulty products.

And whatever you do, don’t forget your phone charger!

The winter months, coupled with unused caravans and motorhomes, are a breeding ground for damp, mould, and mildew. Allowing damp to take root is a caravan-killer and can be extremely costly to repair left unchecked.

Remove and replace damp-infected items as soon as possible to halt the spread. Better yet, get ahead of the curve and buy yourself a caravan or motorhome cover to eliminate damp and mould before it even starts.

One of the leading causes of jack-knifing when towing a caravan is poor weight distribution or sudden weight imbalances. Before you set off, it’s critical that you secure all loose objects in your vehicle so they can’t move around.

Make sure that all your hitch locks, doors, windows, and wheel locks are functioning correctly before your departure, too.

The sub-zero winter temperatures in the UK can play havoc with the internal plumbing of your leisure vehicle. The constant contracting and expanding of pipework as water freezes and thaws throughout the winter can cause the plastic to crack.

Ensure all your pipes are intact with no cracks and leaks, flush out your water system and swap out the filter. It’s a good idea to test your toilet too; what could be worse than arriving at your destination to find out you have a faulty loo?

Once you’ve made sure your caravan is ready for your first excursion of the year, don’t undo all your hard work on your journey to the site.

Your caravan is vulnerable to damage and dirt while you’re towing it, and installing a Towing Jacket is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to make sure your pride and joy is looking at its best for your holiday.