17' Series wet beds

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23chris

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Sep 20, 2015
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penrith
Well what a shake down weekend away that was,

So much water lol thought I was on a cruse,
van went well for its first trip away only issue is wet bedding on edges what's a fix? water sprays? as I have the factory bed flies
what is available? what are people using as for after market storm covers? canvas, PVC?
where to buy and how much?
 
Dobbie

Dobbie

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Jun 18, 2014
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We bought them when we collected the van but have never used them.

They're the ones jayco supplied with the 2014 model and were about $780 for the both ends.

They do fit ...each end is a slightly different size...and are relatively light weight but seem very robust.

Had we been away this weekend we'd definately have used them!

Ours haven't been used as we usually use the privacy screens which deflect a lot of the rain when clipped in tightly and always check that the mattresses are not touching the canvas anywhere.

So far, so good.

We looked at the holiday annexe version as well and, while well made, they seemed altogether heavier and less easy to tuck away for storage than we wanted.

Good luck with drying out!
 
dagree

dagree

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Mar 3, 2012
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Same as @Dobbie .. We have the Jayco canvas ones and they are a lot lighter than some others I have seen.
I water proofed the bed ends just in case but haven't had any issues with the covers fitted apart from a few drops of water entering the corner of the roof (Corners near the van) but even a cover won't stop that!!! Have got an idea of what to do to fix it if the issues happens again....

The only issue we have had with the bed covers was the first time we used them.... Wind was howling through and they kept coming undone from the press studs where they clip to the van.... Ended up buying some better quality marine studs and added a few extras.... No probs since!
 
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Crusty181

Crusty181

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Feb 7, 2010
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23chris said:
Well what a shake down weekend away that was,

So much water lol thought I was on a cruse,
van went well for its first trip away only issue is wet bedding on edges what's a fix? water sprays? as I have the factory bed flies
what is available? what are people using as for after market storm covers? canvas, PVC?
where to buy and how much?
Click to expand...
Seasoning canvas

Second repost today.
 
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B

Bluey

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Mar 31, 2014
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the factory bed end flys are crap to thin jayco geelong sell ones heaps thicker work very well we have been in very bad rain last 2 years chrissy time in nsw beds never got wet our mesh bed ends keeps it out they are so good from out side you cant see in either good for sleeping on a hot night with bed end windows open
 
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Dobbie

Dobbie

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Jun 18, 2014
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dagree said:
Same as @Dobbie .. We have the Jayco canvas ones and they are a lot lighter than some others I have seen.
I water proofed the bed ends just in case but haven't had any issues with the covers fitted apart from a few drops of water entering the corner of the roof (Corners near the van) but even a cover won't stop that!!! Have got an idea of what to do to fix it if the issues happens again....

The only issue we have had with the bed covers was the first time we used them.... Wind was howling through and they kept coming undone from the press studs where they clip to the van.... Ended up buying some better quality marine studs and added a few extras.... No probs since!
Click to expand...


Forgot to say that we replaced the press studs as they didn't really click into place....so the privacy screens now fit beautifully and keep most of the rain out.
 
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Drover

Drover

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Nov 7, 2013
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Follow Crusty's link then when it's all nice and dry, soak the bastard in waterproofing, the spray stuff in the squirty bottle for drizabone's, available from all saddle shops, not those pressure pak jobs though, once that is done you won't need a $600 weather sheild around it either, did mine and it would go thru Noah type storms with only the privacy screen and we were snub as a bug, and dry too boot......

At a recent caravan show the Jayco fella said you don't have to do that anymore, it's old school......I told him he needs to get out and use his product more.....lol,lol,lol.
(repost of answer given on another thread)
 
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Dobbie

Dobbie

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As said....and agree with Drover....if bed ends are totally waterproofed to start with, then the usual privacy screens will do the job 90per cent of the time.

Just need to make sure they're not loose but firmly fitted. A tight fit allows the rain to fall down the screen and away from the bed end.

The other 10 per cent of the time the storm covers are the go..

But no mattress touching the canvas!

That works.
 
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benmat

benmat

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Jun 2, 2014
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As a backup for extremely bad weather, we fashioned some makeshift covers out of the clear plastic that boat clears/cafe blinds are made of. Light weight and used velcro to hold it on under the hard lids. Survived 60mm+ and high winds over a long weekend. Worked perfectly and it was nice to open the windows and watch the rain over the estuary. Wouldn't be the best in hot weather, but worked great when needed.

Took about 1 minute per end to put up and packs down to nothing
 
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Bellbirdweb

Bellbirdweb

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Jan 24, 2014
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I have the factory bed end flys, and yes they aren't the thickest canvas, but the thickness is largely irrelevant.

As has already been stated, both the canvas bed ends and the flys need to be seasoned, add some waterproofing to both for good measure, BUT the big thing that makes the flys work is separating them from the bed ends, meaning the water hits the fly and runs down. Even if the fly was to soak through, provided it isn't touching the bed canvas, the beds will stay dry.

The light canvas on the factory fly has an advantage in that they are small and light compared to some of the other ones out there.
 
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Crusty181

Crusty181

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Bellbirdweb said:
I have the factory bed end flys, and yes they aren't the thickest canvas, but the thickness is largely irrelevant.

As has already been stated, both the canvas bed ends and the flys need to be seasoned, add some waterproofing to both for good measure, BUT the big thing that makes the flys work is separating them from the bed ends, meaning the water hits the fly and runs down. Even if the fly was to soak through, provided it isn't touching the bed canvas, the beds will stay dry.

The light canvas on the factory fly has an advantage in that they are small and light compared to some of the other ones out there.
Click to expand...
Ive found the factory one pretty good. To be honest i think my gas strutts would sag with much more weight
 
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23chris

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Sep 20, 2015
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Bellbirdweb said:
I have the factory bed end flys, and yes they aren't the thickest canvas, but the thickness is largely irrelevant.

As has already been stated, both the canvas bed ends and the flys need to be seasoned, add some waterproofing to both for good measure, BUT the big thing that makes the flys work is separating them from the bed ends, meaning the water hits the fly and runs down. Even if the fly was to soak through, provided it isn't touching the bed canvas, the beds will stay dry.

The light canvas on the factory fly has an advantage in that they are small and light compared to some of the other ones out there.
Click to expand...


are u talking about factory bed fly all the black privacy screens?
 
Mitchbat

Mitchbat

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May 27, 2016
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benmat said:
As a backup for extremely bad weather, we fashioned some makeshift covers out of the clear plastic that boat clears/cafe blinds are made of. Light weight and used velcro to hold it on under the hard lids. Survived 60mm+ and high winds over a long weekend. Worked perfectly and it was nice to open the windows and watch the rain over the estuary. Wouldn't be the best in hot weather, but worked great when needed.

Took about 1 minute per end to put up and packs down to nothing
Click to expand...
Hey Ben,
Any chance of a photo of your clears? I was thinking of doing the same thing but hadn't thought of velcro
Cheers
 
Daniel Peterson

Daniel Peterson

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Apr 6, 2015
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He had the same problem if something touches the inside of the canvas when its wet the water seeps straight through. Yesterday i went to ikea and bought 4 shower curtains for $4.99 each and but them behind the bed shaded using the existing press studs. It rained lastnight and the bed ends are bone dry! Money well spent. I will make more durable ones when we get back home. But these should last ok as they will just fold up with the flies on the lid.
 
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