Keeping the Caravan on the drive over winter...

Most important is to ensure it is secure on your drive,

It will depend on what sort of winter we are going to get  ,if you have access to an electricity supply you can use van heater? on low or a small low wattage convectoor heater will keep it dry its up to you if you take seats out, it helps with security

You will get loads of opinions on this.

The solar panel will easily keep your battery in good shape as there will be no load on the battery.

Keeping the heating on will cost an arm and a leg and does nothing but increase the relative humidity - cool, dry and well ventilated is better IMO.  On nice days you may even want to open up the van and give it good airing.

Damp traps are a total waste of time - you will find your caravan floor is full of holes so you will just be trying to dry out the planet.

We make sure everything is well cleaned and wipe surfaces down with an anti-bac spray before shutting up for winter.

Taking seats out for security is a good idea if you have somewhere to store them.

Obviously make sure you drain down all water systems etc.

Move the van a few feet every so often to help the tyres.

To some extent it will depend on whether, with the sun being low in the sky, it is in permanent shadow. If it gets a bit of sun each day, just move cushions from the sides, leave cupboad doors ajar and let the solar panel do its thing. With mine, I jack it up until the wheels are only just touching the ground and block off the chassis to save the tyres, which would benefit from being covered against UV degradation. Angling the roof line to ensure any water runs off easily is also prudent.

I've been caravanning for best part of 50 years. We only use it during British Summer Time so our last trip will be at the end of October. My procedure is to park up, drain the water, open the frig door, make sure the battery isolator is off and shut and lock the caravan door.

In the spring. Open the door, plug in the mains to charge the battery, clean inside and outside hitch up and go. Simples!

You do have to ake sure the water is comploetely drained down. If you are using it again before winter I would drain before leaving the last site. Blow into the taps and shower to get any last drops pout and leave the taps open half and half hot and cold. The drain should then be left open on the way home to allow any last drops of water out. If you are not using the caravan again before Spring, after draining I would give it a short run and try to get a couple of hills in if possible.

If not using the van until spring make sure all water is drained including flush for loo. My last van was a 2005 Swift Charisma. It had two drain plugs on the near side. Present van just has the one from the hot tank. I used to open drains and taps and bloe doen taps using tubes if needed to clear water from the system. Noeadays we finish a tout early December and hop off for a couple of weeks from mid December. If it looks to drop below freezing I put the Alde heating on 5C.

Firstly, why stop caravanning over the winter months? It's often the best time of the year to get away, sites are quieter, vans are well insulated etc

However if you do lay up your van either completely remove your shower head & pipe or at least lay in down in the shower tray. Ensure that the taps are fully open midway between hot & cold.

Good Call! When I have drained system I leave all taps/shower set half way between hot and cold and open. Anything freezes then room for expansion. Also take off shower head as I have lost one in the past.

Not mentioned above - make sure you take all food out of the van and hoover up crumbs in cupboards etc, so that mice aren't tempted in.

When we had roller blinds in our first van, we were advised to leave them open over winter to save the springs. To stop the sun from fading the soft furnishings I used garden weed suppressing fabric cut large enough to cover each window & kept in place by clothes pegs onto the curtain rails. The fabric is extremely light & it worked a treat.