DIY Small Camper Awning Ep045

The test of an idea I've been working on all winter, our hopefully new awning. A DIY awning that's under $100. We'll put it to the test and hopefully it will be a lasting addition to Scampy.
www.amazon.com/Stansport-254-... Tent poles
www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00... Shells Suction cups
www.amazon.com/Paracord-Parac... Para cord
www.walmart.com/ip/Ozark-Trai... Tarp
#ourscamplife #scampingonabudget #scampcamper

[@dirtyharry5878]

Nice job, simple, basic and cheap! Great idea

[@danemmerich6775]

Simple is as simple does! Great simple design! Very nice.

[@AGilbert_81]

Cheers for the DIY'ers. A love seeing ideas that don't break the bank yet one can still enjoy the same things a break the bank person does.

[@2000talon]

That does work good affordable solution.

[@grettahoxie4814]

i whish i could give you more than 1 thumbs up. thank you for sharing

[@travelingrvrv4608]

I really Like it.

[@oldcrow6990]

I'm sure it will work out. Even the good ones can't stay out in bad weather. Best wishes for your upcoming camping season!!!

[@tinymission7821]

The biggest problem with the expensive awnings is the expensive part. They cost so much that you dare not leave them out if the weather looks the least bit ominous. I know someone who had a nice $900 awning and guess what? They damaged it and had to spend $900 again. And they are afraid to leave it open. This solves that problem. Put it up and forget it. If it tears, pull out the extra one.

[@jeffwagg]

Suction cup hooks was the last piece I needed. Thanks! You might want to update your link - the ones you used aren't available anymore.

[@VannaMae]

This is way more doable vs buying a whole big awning. I love that you can pack it down too. I definitely will be doing this! Thank you.

[@PlayingwithSticks]

That setup was fast! It looks really good too. If it holds up, which we think it will you just saved yourself $900+ We purchased some suction cups from Home Depot a few weeks ago that didn't work out. They only seemed to attach to metal. Good to see your suction cups are holding on fiberglass. We will be ordering a set tonight! Thanks for this great content guys!

[@ourscamplife5210]

Awesome guys! They are still holding up!

[@sallyhintemeyer9389]

Fantastic DIY awning without the cost of an expensive fancy-smancy manufactured one. Also love the easy install! Suction cups! Who would’ve thunk it😄 No cutting metal pipes to bolt to a roof rack. Thank You for sharing your great idea. Already own tarps and para cord so All I need now are the suction cups and poles. On another note I love y’all’s little Skamp. Happy travels.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Thank you and we're glad this helped. God Bless

[@gio_isabella]

Thank you so much for this! We recently bought. 13ft Burro and very quickly realized we need an awning. But with the prices so high I decided I'm going to wait until next year to purchase one and I needed a DIY and this is perfect, thanks!

[@shaneyoung3407]

Thanks buddy. I've booked marked the par cord, poles and suction cups. I custom ordered a cargo trailer I'll be using for a camper and this is what I need.

[@toppersouthtexas6625]

Thanks for the tip. Just ordered 2 sets, one for the jeep, the other for the Scamp.... I have an awning from the factory. Now I can put one over the front window to shade gas bottles and table....

[@kevinswinyer3176]

Thank you for your video, you just solved my "No Awning" Situation for the 22 foot Class A Motor Home I am currently making weekly payments on. It has no permanently attached Awning on it, and like you, I am not about to spend $400+ for a Commercially built Awning to attach to my Motorhome. The Suction Cup, Tarp, Extendable Poles, and Paracord will have to do the job.

[@docink6175]

for several years Ive been using the long tool holder magnets from Harbor Freight to add a tarp canopy to my trailblazer, I use walmart paint poles to support it but I recently got a van with a fiberglass roof... hhhmmmm browsing Dollar Tree as I do I saw a 4 pack of suction cup hooks... LIGHT BULB moment, they seem to work pretty good but I added a couple stronger suction cup tie downs from amazon fpr each corner, I haven't shown it yet because the weather hasnt been cooperative here in Florida and then I found your video! Im glad to see it works well.

[@melissahill446]

Great job and great idea 👍🏻💡

[@lauraweiss7875]

Fabulous idea! I have a Lance 1475. It’s small, and all I need is some shade and light rain protection for me and the dog.

[@funkymonkeyonice]

This is so helpful and clever!

[@BlazinBlades]

So simple so easy ❤️

[@davidfirth6535]

Well done, going to copy just what you done, thanks, regards,David.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Still working great for us!

[@panggiring]

Thank you for nice simple idea

[@pocketchange1951]

👍👌❤️🇨🇦, gr8 stuff, I own a 1977 Boler TT. The predecessor to your scamp, just Google Boler TT, your awning worked for us

[@biaj3429]

Exactly what I was looking for!

[@gerretoutdoors3710]

That's for sharing. Good idea

[@teresahunter4196]

Love it!!

[@simn4694]

great idea!!!

[@samsquanchoverland]

my cheap tarp lasted all of April till October and still going good for next summer...i tied mine to the roof rack on my WEEROLL and have had no issues even with high winds next to a lake ...nice vid keep up the great work! Got my tarp from harbor freight 8 x 10 grey color for 4.99 0n sale i think ..so we got 2 just in case

[@soundguyldn]

Mate that is really inspiring, I'm in a similar position with my self built camper - I don't want to spend £1k+ on a heavy duty, apocalypse-proof awning, and struggling to find an awning with the right height, dimensions etc for my 8' tall van. I'm going to give your idea a go with some inexpensive tarp to start with. Thanks for the tip!

[@MaxMiniTV]

Thanks for the video, this is going to be perfect for my short skoolie! Mine will have to be taller but it will work out just fine!

[@ourscamplife5210]

Very cool glad this helped!

[@idrisismail6523]

Love it....

[@superhandymanservice9413]

I''m going to try your design. Hopefully it works for my small teardrop plus

[@matthewlee3104]

I have the same setup with different parts. But it does a great job.

[@cambobby2011]

3:03 ''it's not absolutely perfect''.... Yeah, but it's doing a great job, it's cheap and personally, I don't really care what other people think. That's my way of thinking. I don't have the budget for a big electric awning, so for the buck, it'll my best choice!!!! Tks Sir for the idea.

[@raya7816]

Lower one pole one nuch so when it rains the water run,s off but is super when your doneyou can roll it up and put it in sampy for the next time

[@renerocha6334]

Good job on the set up. A cheap tarp likely won’t hold up to a solid wind though. A 2x6 chopped up with a hole drilled to drive your stakes would have been a much less expensive mod. Each would give you 1.5 inches of extra height and could be stacked.

[@wendymead8301]

You just made my day. Have a converted box trailer and was trying to figure out a quick/inexpensive way to fashion an awning. This looks great. Did it hold up ok?

[@chaconel29]

Look at Marti's Awning in California maybe a little cheaper. This is a great idea for beginners. I might try it.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Works great for us, but, we did hear from a viewer, if your fiberglass camper isnt smooth these suction cups dont stick as well on the non smooth campers.

[@jimkeeling]

Great,until it rains.

[@kevinburgess6112]

you say it’s not perfect, i disagree, good job, tnx for sharing 👍

[@ourscamplife5210]

Thank you and you’re welcome.

[@MrBeatenpath]

smart!

[@CountryCampers]

You made it with a low budget. Congratulations!

[@CountryCampers]

Any plans to come to West Tennessee? I wanted to recommend Paris Landing State Park on the Tennessee River. It lovely here.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Great to know! No plans yet to get out to Tennessee yet, but hopefully in the future. I've only ever been to Knoxville but really want to explore more. And do it as a family in the Scamp

[@artest7]

FINALLY! Just what I was looking for!! So…Thank you! I just hiope those suctrion cup things will hold up on my “Cargo Trailer.” It’s been almost 3 years since you did this video…..In hind-sight, is there anything you would’ve changed (other than perhaps the awning materials)? Thanks again! Kiko

[@randomstuffwithjoe]

I did the same thing with the suction cups. Unfortunately, it didn’t hold up in a moderate wind. The suction cups were rated at 40lbs each but they popped off in a mild wind on our first time using it. I’m going to screw a few small hooks along the top of my camper to hook the tarp to. That should hold it stronger.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Bummer Joe sorry to hear it didnt work for you. Ours are still holding. I did think about screwing in some hooks. That is definitely a more permanent solution.

[@randomstuffwithjoe]

@@ourscamplife5210 Sorry for the 9 month delay in responding (perhaps I should check my wife to see if she's prego.. lol). I did end up screwing a few closed loop anchors to the top of the trailer. They've worked great. I just use re-usable zip ties on the holes of the tarp and attach it to the anchors. Also, on the polls.. I purchased a couple of fishing rod holders that spike into the ground and I seat the base of the poles into the rod holders before I use the guy-lines and tension it. Works like a charm. Cheers.

[@NatePrins]

When it rains try putting the poles a little shorter so that water doesn't sit in the middle.

[@ourscamplife5210]

Thats the plan my friend.

[@lynneb.r.6176]

It can even extend shade. Bummer for me my tent poles only go up to seven feet. I was thinking about a shade awning too but was coming up with command hooks on the Scamp and I didn’t want to do that. Thanks for coming up with your plan that has inspired me yet again. It’s been a down day in Scamp world here. Having an issue with some wayward riveting in the interior between the partition and side dinette chair. All in good time 🤞 ☮️

[@ourscamplife5210]

@@lynneb.r.6176 oh man sorry to hear about the troubles. Ya every year I go around and make sure all the nut heads are tight in and out. They must shake loose as we drive. Glad to hear this may also work for you.

[@denniskuenze659]

Great idea. How are the suction cups holding up for you?

[@ourscamplife5210]

They held up good though we've heard that on less smooth surfaces this method does not work as well. God Bless

[@billredding2000]

If it your cover needs to be waterproof, then I can see using a tarp. However, if it's mainly needed for shade, then it's been recommended (by experienced RVers, like Bob Wells @ cheapRVliving KZbin channel) to use "shade cloth" instead...as it can handle wind better. IIRC, I've seen 12x12 shade cloth "tarps" for $40-50 on Amazon: Just do a search for "shade cloth" and see them come up. Here's Bob's video on this (he's using 90% shade cloth): kzbin.info/www/bejne/fHmZY6CGeLZ0iNU I also have heard it's the "sun cover" of choice for people who go to Burning Man... You could always get one of those and have an "alternative" (second) cover on hand with you -- in addition to your tarp -- and put up the one you need at the time (tarp for for rain, shade cloth for shade only). Of course, you make your own from a roll of shade cloth from Home Depot, Lowes, or whatever. Happy Travels, -- BR

[@ourscamplife5210]

Sounds like a good plan to have both. We really want it for shade and rain but if this continues to work we'll have to look into a shade cloth. Thanks Bill

[@matthewsalvador9783]

May I ask the temp before and after the install?.?

[@ourscamplife5210]

Not sure what you mean but under the canopy was a noticeable difference.

[@matthewsalvador9783]

@@ourscamplife5210 you did answer the question… I was trying to say was sitting outside away from the awning what was the temp, then from under the awning in the shade what the temp was…. But no worries great video tho

[@garygoldsmith9844]

Still working?

[@ourscamplife5210]

It is all the suction cups are still on to.

[@garygoldsmith9844]

@@ourscamplife5210 SO you leave them on all of the time, interesting, Have to get some. Thank you sir!

[@ourscamplife5210]

@@garygoldsmith9844 yep some people have had trouble with these though. It seems they don't stick as well if your fiber glass shell is oxidized. we wax our camper every year and the fiber glass is still very smooth. That seems to make a difference.

[@garygoldsmith9844]

@@ourscamplife5210 I plan on using them on a new van, metal roof. Any ideas on if they would work?

[@ourscamplife5210]

@@garygoldsmith9844 not sure if its smooth they should.

[@michaeljenkins4895]

It will never hold up in wind and or rain.

[@420BLUNTLEY]

Very far

[@420BLUNTLEY]

Fat

[@shaneyoung3407]

Question, 4 years later, how are those suction cups holding up?