New to pu camping!

[frieker]

Hello all, love the site.  Very helpful and lots of useful info.  I have been camping for years and have purchased a PU about 10 days ago and took it straight from the dealer to a campsite and broke it in for the weekend.  Totally loved sleeping on a mattress.  Beats the grounds hands down.  Just getting to old for tent camping.  The only regret - not having an AC in 100 degree heat!

I also had my first SPUT!  Put up the awning - if anyone saw me trying to do this alone for the first time they would have enjoyed a comedy routine.  After waiting for my friend to return to the site, we got the awning and screen room up.  It started to rain and I was all happy to have my own little room to sit in while the rain was coming down.  Then, after a while of a pretty hard rain, the rain started run in on the "floor."  Learned pretty quickly why astro turf is a good thing with a PU.  So decided before I wanted to be sitting in mud, it was time to go inside and turn in.  It rained pretty hard which I was thankful for so that I understood how the PU sustains in a downpour.  Better then sleeping in a tent in a storm!  At about 3AM, I heard a huge crash.  I turned on my flashlight and looked to see that the entire screen room came crashing down against the side of the PU.  I went back to sleep.  At 4AM it was time to run to the outhouse.  Found I couldn't get out easily.  I gingerly got out and started taking the screenroom down and flipped the awning up on top of the camper so it wasn't against the door.  I discovered that I had three bent poles.  The one in that sits in the middle of the awning that the pole fits into to hold up the middle was bent to a 90 degree angle!!  The awning was not taught enough for the water to roll off and it accumulated on the top of the awning in between the three poles.  Bummer!  So I need to go about replacing them before my next trip towards the end of July.  Thought I would give you all a chuckle by sharing my SPUT.  

I hope to learn more, camp often and make some new friends along the way!

[tlhdoc]

Welcome to PUT. It sounds like a nice first trip, except for the damage to the awning. Most people with an awning keep one end lower than the other so that the water doesn't build up on the awning. What brand awning do you have?  If it is a Jayco awning don't feel too bad.  They are the hardest awning I have ever helped to set up.  Thanks for sharing your SPUT with the rest of us.

[frieker]

Welcome to PUT. It sounds like a nice first trip, except for the damage to the awning. Most people with an awning keep one end lower than the other so that the water doesn't build up on the awning. What brand awning do you have?  If it is a Jayco awning don't feel too bad.  They are the hardest awning I have ever helped to set up.  Thanks for sharing your SPUT with the rest of us.

Thanks for the tip.  How do you make the pole lower on one side?  The vertical poles are two pieces.  One that fits into the other.  The lower of the two has a spring in it the upper pole sits on.  Couldn't figure out how to adjust height on these.  Got the hang of the horizontal ones and how to adjust those.

[Johnowolf]

Thanks for the tip. How do you make the pole lower on one side? The vertical poles are two pieces. One that fits into the other. The lower of the two has a spring in it the upper pole sits on. Couldn't figure out how to adjust height on these. Got the hang of the horizontal ones and how to adjust those.

That sounds backwards from what my PU does, and may have been the source of the problem. We also have the Jayco with the "stock" awning, and I haven't had any real trouble with it. Just have to take time to get it right LOL.
 
On our awning, the spring poles go to extend the awning. The spring poles should be the right size to keep that awning TAUT! The vertical poles are the "twist" poles for adjustable height. The process I use for setting up the awning:
 
1. Unzip awning bag and unfasten the two END velcro straps, leaving the middle velcro strap still fastened. This is done BEFORE the camper gets set up.
 
2. Pop up the camper (full setup) except for the door. That way you won't have to struggle with the door while setting up the awning.
 
3. Get all poles out and ready.
 
4. Stand in the doorway, reach up and unfasten middle velcro. Roll out awning.
 
5. Starting with the middle pole set and repeat for each set:
a) Assemble the spring pole and twist pole.
b) Put the "cap" end of the spring pole against the PU top (inside the bag is best, so it holds the bag in place).
c) insert the "eye" of the twist pole in the spring pole pin, and insert spring pole pin in the awning hole. This will stretch the awning tight.
d) Adjust twist pole to desired height.
e) Repeat for each end.
 
If you are setting up the full screen room, that adds a couple of extra steps into the "5 series". For a weekend I don't generally set up the screen room.
 
For an awning-only setup, I generally do all of this by myself. Takes about 5 minutes to set up the awning at most, once you've had some practice.
 
I do have to thank Walt McG at the GLPUC (Great Lakes Popup Club www.glpuc.org) for walking me through the setup the first time at camp. It really would have helped had the setup person at our dealership walked us through it, but when we picked up our new PU, I swear I knew more about setting up Popups than HE did! I think he was normally a MH/5er/TT setup person, and didn't have a lot of experience with PU camping.

[frieker]

That sounds backwards from what my PU does, and may have been the source of the problem. We also have the Jayco with the "stock" awning, and I haven't had any real trouble with it. Just have to take time to get it right LOL.
 
On our awning, the spring poles go to extend the awning. The spring poles should be the right size to keep that awning TAUT! The vertical poles are the "twist" poles for adjustable height. The process I use for setting up the awning:
 
1. Unzip awning bag and unfasten the two END velcro straps, leaving the middle velcro strap still fastened. This is done BEFORE the camper gets set up.
 
2. Pop up the camper (full setup) except for the door. That way you won't have to struggle with the door while setting up the awning.
 
3. Get all poles out and ready.
 
4. Stand in the doorway, reach up and unfasten middle velcro. Roll out awning.
 
5. Starting with the middle pole set and repeat for each set:
a) Assemble the spring pole and twist pole.
b) Put the "cap" end of the spring pole against the PU top (inside the bag is best, so it holds the bag in place).
c) insert the "eye" of the twist pole in the spring pole pin, and insert spring pole pin in the awning hole. This will stretch the awning tight.
d) Adjust twist pole to desired height.
e) Repeat for each end.
 
If you are setting up the full screen room, that adds a couple of extra steps into the "5 series". For a weekend I don't generally set up the screen room.
 
For an awning-only setup, I generally do all of this by myself. Takes about 5 minutes to set up the awning at most, once you've had some practice.
 
I do have to thank Walt McG at the GLPUC (Great Lakes Popup Club www.glpuc.org) for walking me through the setup the first time at camp. It really would have helped had the setup person at our dealership walked us through it, but when we picked up our new PU, I swear I knew more about setting up Popups than HE did! I think he was normally a MH/5er/TT setup person, and didn't have a lot of experience with PU camping.

So it sounds like I had the poles backwards!  Perhaps I didn't understand the written instructions and drawing.  It was so hot I had sweat dripping in my eyes while I was trying to figure it out and put it up by myself.  I wouldn't doubt that I got it backwards.  Thanks so much for taking the time to explain all this.  I wish they had gone through the awning set-up during orientation.  After all the tents that I have pitched I thought what could be so hard about this.  It turns out I did it backwards and broke it.  I have to call the dealer this week to see about replacement poles.  

Thanks again!  Farah

[campingcop]

So it sounds like I had the poles backwards! Perhaps I didn't understand the written instructions and drawing


Had a Jayco pop up and you are right about the written instructions and drawing they are not very clear.

[Johnowolf]

I wish more dealers would take the time to walk people through setting those things up. Most of 'em just say "it's easy, the instructions are self-explanatory". I have a feeling most of 'em have never set one up themselves! LOL

My first time setting up the awning, I had a couple of lovely SPUTs too (before someone had pity on me and helped!). First one was that I unzipped the bag, then cranked up ... had to get a stepstool to unfasten the velcro on the two end straps. Second was that I rolled out the awning, then realized the poles were still inside. Of course, I already had the door set up. Opened the door to get the poles ..........
 
Well, I guess it won't be TOO hard to patch the little tear I put in the awning!  That's why, in step 2, I added the part about setting everything up EXCEPT THE DOOR! LOL Personal experience does teach a lesson now and then

[aw738]

I always forget to unzip the bag before I crank up the roof. Good thing I'm 6'2".

[frieker]

You are all so sweet in telling me your "awning tales" to help me not feel like too big of a fool.  

Thanks for being so helpful and honest!

Farah