Caravanning Hints & Tips
Checklists - Never Forget Again
24 January 2020,
It is the silly little oversights that can spoil a good caravanning adventure. What is most annoying that if we had only taken the little extra time to check the incident could have been easily avoided.
We are great believers in the use of checklists and the cross checking of same for both inside and outside of the caravan.
Do the same things the same way time and time again you won't go too far wrong.
Ever taken off for that family holiday in your caravan and had that sinking feeling that you may have forgotten to do something? Then later when you arrive at the caravan park, you quickly discover that the fridge door had not been shut properly allowing it to swing open during your journey. Way to start a holiday…Bugger! Let’s face it none of us are exactly perfect. But the good news is things like this will only ever happen to you if you let them. We are great believers in the use of checklists and the cross checking them as well. We recommend a separate list be made up for both inside and outside of the caravan. A separate person responsible for each if possible. When you think you are all good, swap with your partner and put it to the test. That way everyone has set duties for preparing the caravan for travel and should you get distracted or called away you have a documented process to return to and pick up from.Being one of the many who have managed to drag a caravan for some distance with the hand brake engaged or jockey wheel down, it is a most unnerving feeling that can easily dampen what should be an enjoyable relaxing holiday.
A comprehensive checklist, that has been cross checked by your partner, will significantly reduce the risk of some unfortunate mishap occurring because we missed something. Much like the arming and cross checking of aircraft doors, a 1% failure rate can be catastrophic. Your checklists are living breathing documents that may well need to be amended over time to reflect changes in your circumstances.
A comprehensive checklist, that has been cross checked by your partner, will significantly reduce the risk of some unfortunate mishap occurring because we missed something. Much like the arming and cross checking of aircraft doors, a 1% failure rate can be catastrophic. Your checklists are living breathing documents that may well need to be amended over time to reflect changes in your circumstances.
To create your caravan checklists:
INDIDE CARAVAN CHECHLIST:• start at one end of the caravan and document each task that needs to be done in order as you move to the other end of the caravan. • Be sure that the flow is logical and systematic• Leave nothing to chance, document even the most obvious tasks. These are usually the ones that get forgotten
OUTSIDE CARAVAN CHECKLIST:• Start with your hitch up procedure (working from the car to the caravan)• Don’t forget the ground around the caravan for the hammer and tent pegs hiding in the grass.
It might seem like overkill to some, but using these checklists religiously your chances of getting caught out are next to nothing. We have been using checklists for many years now, and the number of times they have saved our bacon are staggering.
Happy Caravanning......