If you’re heading out on your annual camping holiday, it’s important to get a thorough check and service of your caravan or camper trailer before you go.

Caravan and camper trailers can develop minor problems just sitting in storage, so before you leave, spend some time checking the inside and outside of your van for signs of wear and tear. Don’t forget to book in for a professional caravan service as well, to check and service all the important mechanical and safety components.

Caravan Service & Maintenance Schedule

In addition to regular professional caravan servicing, getting into the habit of regularly doing a maintenance check of your caravan or camper trailer should be a part of your routine.

Ideally, a major clean and maintenance check should be done at the end of the holiday season, before storing your van. This is usually around the end of autumn. Doing caravan maintenance in winter gets many of the messy maintenance tasks out of the way and avoids a lengthy list of tasks a few weeks before heading out on the road once the weather gets warmer.

DIY Camper Trailer & Caravan Check

When you regularly check your caravan and camper trailer, you’ll find you keep on top of problems and avoid having bigger and more expensive repairs. You can also find more significant issues, earlier. Of course if you are short of time, a professional caravan service centre can take care of a lot of these checks as part of your regular caravan service.

You should check you caravan inside and out. Look for signs of any water leakage that have developed from broken seals around windows, doors or broken hoses. Check all appliances are working.

Other items to check:

Water hoses & connections: Check water hoses and connections for signs of cracking or kinking.

Gas hoses & connections: check gas hoses and connections. Make sure the gas cooktop is working properly

12-pin or 7-pin connections: check for any wear and that connections are not loose

Electrics & lights: Check that all the lights, indicators, and electrical connections between your car and caravan are in good condition and working.

Battery: If your caravan is being stored for a while it is recommended to unhook and store your battery. Before embarking on a trip check that the battery is fully charged.

Tyres: The tyres on your caravan or trailer can develop flat spots during storage and if they are stored on bitumen check them for signs of deterioration. Check the wheel rims for damage and make sure they are the correct pressure.

Coupling, safety chain & jockey wheel: Check the coupling and if necessary grease the head. Check the safety chain for signs of rust and the breakaway cable and clip. Check the jockey wheel moves freely.

Wheel nuts: Check for tightness.

Awnings: Check awnings for mould and check the struts are operating properly. Treat any mould with a stiff brush and clean with mild detergent.

Professional Camper Trailer & Caravan Servicing

Caravans and camper trailers should be regularly serviced by a qualified caravan service centre to keep everything running smoothly and safely. While there are some basic caravan checks you can do yourself, all caravan and camper trailers should be serviced by a professional caravan service centre every 10,000kms.

A caravan service will check and repair the following major components on your caravan:

• couplings
• brakes
• bearings
• springs and bushes
• tyres
• lights
• chassis
• jockey wheel and jacks
• outrigger

 

Booking A Caravan Service

For professional caravan servicing in Melbourne, as well as advice on all caravan electrics and camper trailer repairs and modifications, book a caravan service with Emu Caravan Repairs. We do experienced caravan repairs for customers throughout Melbourne’s eastern suburbs and Victoria.

Our workshop is located on Burwood Highway in Ferntree Gully at the gateway to the Dandenong Ranges, Yarra Valley and Gippsland in Victoria.