New Members Karen and Dave

Hello Everyone!


My wife Karen and I finally took the plunge earlier this year and bought our very first motorhome, a 1997 Symphony 2 litre petrol. As total novices we seemed to go through every option in our minds regarding what to buy.....big or small, van conversion or coach built and so many different makes...the choice seemed endless.  Eventually we decided on a panel van conversion as we felt it would suit us best to start with something compact and easily manageable that we could use comfortably for day trips as well as longer adventures and we could keep on the drive at home - ready to go.  After a few more trips to shows and dealers we saw, fell in love with and bought "Claudio Vanieri" - named in honour of our football team's historic league winning manager.  The name started out as a joke but has stuck! As I said we have never had a motorhome before and the learning curve has been steep but we were lucky enough to find this forum and have already picked up some useful tips.  It is reassuring to see that many others have asked the same questions that we have popping into our heads and has been a fantastic source of information.
So far we and our 2 dogs have been on some great away days plus an overnight sleep on the drive to establish for sure that we can all find a place to kip on board.  The neighbours think we are insane.  We are now looking forward to our first proper holiday trip in the next couple of weeks and will be looking at the section on site recommendations with interest - especially any suggestions for good, quiet dog friendly sites around the UK.
Regards to all,
Dave and Karen
Leicester

  If we were into naming the motorhome it would be called "Van Blanc" in honour of . . . . . well, you can guess the rest. 

Welcome from N.E Wales.    
Our first van was a 97 petrol Symphony , had it 5 years.

Hello and welcome to this most friendly and informative forum.

Hi and welcome to the forum from Inverness (A96)
Boaby

Hi Karen and Dave and welcome to the forum from Melton Mowbray, hope you enjoy your van as much as we enjoy ours.

Welcome from a wet Castle Douglas

Hello and  :asof_welcome2:from Leicestershire,

Hello both
That was our dilemma. Small for parking and to be used like a car or bigger for more space but with more  size considerations like parking and narrow roads! We'll have to see in the coming months if ours was the correct one 

Hello and welcome from a wet Kent.

You find a very helpful forum, we are novices but are learning very quickly.

Hello & welcome  from S/Yorks. 

Hi All

Thanks to everyone for the welcome messages. We are pleased to report that our maiden overnight trip went exceptionally well. Due to wash out conditions leading up to our original planned departure we had a change of venue and shorter trip but the important thing is that everything went to plan and the dogs soon got into the routine. We stayed at the very nice Two Mills site in North Walsham which is about 8 miles from Cromer. They have a comprehensive web site and we would recommend them to newbies as an ideal first time experience.

We plan to continue to use the van through the winter but obviously want to make sure we are not caught out by a cold snap of freezing temperatures.
Our van is a 1997 Symphony with a carver water heater. We would be grateful for any advice from others who have or have had similar vehicles as to the main things to do. We plan to drain down the grey water, empty the water heater - should we run the pump briefly when doing this to make sure as much is out as possible? We have also read about going for a short drive to move the water around and would be grateful to know what other owners are doing.

Thanks in advance for any help!
Karen and Dave

Hi Karen and Dave

We are also newbies, and I'm sure more experienced people will be along to advise soon... But with regards to draining down, we have done all the things you mentioned - drained the grey waste, water heater, don't forget the fresh water tank! Also ran the pump till there was no more water coming out. Then we left the sink, basin and shower taps in the open position with a note to selves to close them when we fill up again haha. We will drain the toilet flush later but we are going away tomorrow so will need the toilet in action. We can manage without the sink/shower as there will be site facilities and we will take some bottled water. Would be interested ourselves if we need to do anything more, so hopefully you will get more replies!

Welcome to the forum! We enjoy travelling in Norfolk so I will look up the site you stayed on.

Emily

Hi Emily

Use the van as usual when you go away tomorrow. 

Unless the next ice age starts overnight you will have no worries in these temperatures. The problems occur when it doesn't rise above freezing for several days on end. One overnight frost isn't going to hurt anything when it's warm(ish) the following day, and you will be living in the van anyway so it won't freeze up.

Don't panic Mr Mainwearing!! 

Hi Everyone and thanks for the feedback. Today we have gone over the van as follows;
Grey water emptied.
Fresh water tank drained.
All taps open.
Water pump ran for approx 10 seconds.
Water heater drained, plug and O ring put away safely.
Toilet casette emptied filled rinsed emptied.
Casette seal lubricated with silicone.

Anything else we have missed anyone?
Many thanks
Karen and Dave

Hello from Dorset. I think you have it covered! I started with a Mazda Bongo and made a few mistakes early on  (getting the Bongo was one) .  But soon changed to a Nuevo, now still learning and loving it. The one about running for a while to clear the grey waste is good, I put some soda crystals down the plug with warm water and the drive sloshes it all around. Enjoy yourselves and ask anything here, someone will know the answer.