Practical Motorhome December 2020

Editor-in-chief The past couple of months have been busier than usual at Practical Motorhome HQ, as we’ve been preparing for Van Live! The Practical Caravan and Motorhome Virtual Show, which is proudly sponsored by Bailey. The event runs from 12-18 October on our website, at www.practicalmotorhome.com/vanlive, so be sure to visit us; you can also get a flavour of what you’ll find online with our 25-page special in this issue, starting on p47. And don’t worry if you miss the week – we’re planning to keep everything up online, so you can take a look again at a later date! Whether you’re considering a new, 2021 motorhome, would like to get the latest campsite news, or want to read about some brilliant ’van accessories, enter a competition or find out more about top dealers,…

letter of the month While away in our motorhome recently, I had a mirror broken. I am sure I am not the only one to have the dilemma of where to get a temporary replacement at short notice and not knowing the area. The answer? The children’s department at Tesco, where I found a mirror designed to fit on a car headrest and keep babies in the back amused. It fitted around my mirror with Velcro and a strap, was a good size and cost £12. It will now live in my motorhome as the perfect emergency spare – it could be used temporarily on any model of ’van and on either side, until you get home. Bob L You also said… On the last day of our recent trip to the Loire Valley in our…

★ STAR PICTURE Email your pictures and their stories (40 words, plus name, address and contacts) to hotshots@practicalmotorhome.com. The best photo will win these guides: All the Aires Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands; Go Motorhoming and Campervanning; Seaview Camping Scotland; Seaview Camping Wales; Seaview Camping West Country; Road Trip Europe – The Great War and More; Road Trip Europe – Go Dutch. All are from Vicarious Books, www.vicarious-shop.co.uk, 0131 208 3333.…

The Nightstop Scheme is run by us in conjunction with the Motor Caravanners’ Club (MCC), and the sites are certificated locations (CLs); you don’t have to join any club to use them. You’ll need to ring the relevant site to confirm whether there’s space for you before you visit: you’ll find information at www.practicalmotorhome.com/nightstops. For further information about the MCC, visit www.themotorcaravannersclub.co.uk. 1 Airman Hotel SG17 5JF 2 The Black Horse Pub HP16 9AX 3 The Seven Wives PE27 5RF 4 The Penrhiwgaled Arms SA44 6LN 5 Railway Hotel SA32 7LQ 6 Belmont Hall CW9 6JA 7 Mousehole Camping TR19 6XB 8 Blenkinsopp Castle Inn CA8 7JS 9 The Thelbridge Cross Inn EX17 4SQ 10 The Ship Inn YO15 1EW 11 The Crown Inn GL7 5QH 12 Elton Farm GL14 1JU 13 The Gloucester Old Spot GL51 9SY 14 Riverside Guest House LL36 9YR 15 The…

Our expert panel SARAH WAKELY Editor-in-chief sarah@practicalmotorhome.com PAUL CRITCHER Deputy editor paul.critcher@futurenet.com PETER BABER Reviews editor peter.baber@futurenet.com GENTLEMAN JACK Contributor askjack@practicalmotorhome.com CLAUDIA DOWELL Features/travel editor claudia.dowell@futurenet.com NICK HARDING Contributor practical.motorhome@futurenet.com DIAMOND DAVE Contributor practical.motorhome@futurenet.com HOW DO I ACCESS GREY-WATER TANK TO SORT OUT PROBLEMS? Q I own a 2009/2010 Autocruise Starburst, fitted with an NE222 control panel. On a regular basis, the control panel emits an alarm and the screen states that the depth-measuring device on the grey-water tank is faulty. Although I know how to access the fresh-water tank, I have no idea how to deal with the grey-water one. How should I proceed to get this fixed? Geoff Haines A Diamond Dave says… The waste tank will be located underneath the vehicle, so first of all, raise it and chock it securely, so you can safely access the tank. Check any electrical connections you can find, for corrosion. Some tanks have an access cap on…