Awnings...are they worth it?

There seems to be a difference of opinion about using the roll out canopy in the rain...some use it to shelter in the rain i.e. when cooking outside and others never have it out in the rain....I am with the latter but are we not using it to its full potential? I would be concerned that it would get mouldy and we bring it in at the first raindrop...and NEVER leave it out overnight like we see some people do

Fiamma recommend that awning should be used as a sun shade, I've used mine (F45) many times in the rain, in fact more often in the rain than in the sun, and all year round.
When I first got the van the awning did have some mould on it but it wiped off easily with soapy water, its still in perfect condition.

Dave

fenderbender wrote:Fiamma recommend that awning should be used as a sun shade

I think this is more a manufacturer protecting themselves from having to provide replacements when people misuse them i.e. don't dry them properly and them complain they've gone mouldy etc.

I think reading between the lines of the manual (it mentions if they get wet to dry them off) it's just being sensible and letting them dry properly and keep clean so they don't go mouldy.

Thanks for your advice...we might now leave it out in drizzle but not in the rain...old habits die hard!

As fenderbender says, the plastic material is easily cleaned and any surface mould basically just washes off.
The awning on our previous van was initially covered in black mould underneath when we bought it, which mostly disappeared after being used several times, then completely when I cleaned it with soapy water. It went from looking awful to looking as new.

We're happy to use ours in heavy rain, but we need the curved rafter to protect it during heavy rain and strong winds.

Dont forget to drop one leg slightly in rain to allow a route for the water to run off.

Prevents water pooling and wrecking the awning under the weight.