How To Keep Your Caravan Cool In The Summer: Proven Tips!

Taking your caravan on the road in the summer is the best! The weather is comfortable, and the surroundings are stunning. The heat, on the other hand, can be uncomfortable if you’re not prepared.

Today We’ll look at how to keep your Caravan or Motorhome cool in the summer heat.

You’ll be able to have a wonderful time without melting in your wobble box if you follow our tips!

What Are The Best Methods to Keep Your Caravan Cool?

 1. Look For a Pitch In The Shade

If you can find a pitch in the shade, your caravan will stay much cooler and more comfortable. If you can keep your van in the shade for at least the hottest part of the day, the sun’s rays will have less of an opportunity to heat it.

If your caravan is likely to be in the sun for the majority of the day, consider manoeuvring its position (if possible) during the midday sun.

You can also download a sun path app for your phone so that when you arrive on-site you can find out where the sun is likely to beat down most during the day and avoid the hot spots.

2. Encourage Air Flow

When the temperature gets hotter, your caravan’s first line of defence is to increase airflow. This requires opening the windows and doors of your van to let the heat and hot air out.

Make sure to pop the top of your caravan open and open the vents so that heated air may escape and cool breezes may enter if your caravan has one.

Nevertheless, it’s important to keep in mind that if you’re visiting a region with a lot of bugs, mosquito netting should be installed to keep them out. Buy a fan or air conditioning unit to help keep cool.

Maintain a constant flow of cooler air through your caravan or motorhome by opening windows that are not in direct sunlight and turning on any additional roof fans you may have.

To keep the rays out of the van, close windows in direct sunlight and use blinds. Film-like deflectors are extremely effective, blocking up to 80% of the sun’s rays from entering.

3. Beat The Heat With The Right Bedding

Because room in caravans and mobile homes is limited, it can be tempting to forego the home comforts of quality bedding in favour of a compact sleeping bag.

However, if you want to make sure that rest and relaxation are at the forefront of your holiday, we recommend ditching the space-saving sleeping bags in favour of cotton sheets and a light summer duvet.

Your body will find it easier to maintain its temperature with more room to move in and out of the duvet and breathable cotton sheets, so you won’t be tossing and turning all night.

If the heat becomes intolerable, try soaking a bed sheet in cold water and then giving it a quick spin in the washing machine or on the laundry line for the ultimate cooling blanket before bedtime.

4. Keep Blinds and Curtains Down

Keep the sun out of your caravan by closing the blinds and curtains while you’re on the road or leaving your caravan to go off for a bit of exploring.

This will help keep the air inside the caravan cooler. It’s a simple trick, but it can make a huge impact on the internal temperature of your caravan.

5. Awnings, Annexes and Canopies

When the inside of your caravan becomes unbearably hot, spending time outside is going to be preferable. You can still get shelter from the sun’s rays by installing a pull-out canopy, awning or annexe. Some canopies are manually controlled, while others can be adjusted with a tap of a button. While waiting for your caravan to cool down, you may pass the time in your awning.

Check Out Our Best Caravan Awnings for 2023

When enjoying an ice-cold drink outside, a pull-out side canopy will protect you from the sun’s heat and rays, while an enclosed awning or annexe will be handy for that much-needed extra living space.

6. Get a Decent Fan!

When using a fan, be sure to position it so that it blows directly onto the caravan. This will help to reduce the amount of heat that is produced, and in turn, make the caravan cooler. If you are using an air conditioner, try to position it so that the fan is blowing onto the air conditioner itself.

This will help to circulate the air and make the caravan cooler. Finally, if you are using both a fan and an air conditioner, be sure to set the air conditioner to cool mode. This will help to reduce the amount of heat that is produced, and again, make the caravan cooler.

There are a number of small desktop fans on the market which can be effective at circulating the air. One tip is also to place a wet towel in front of the fan to cool the air slightly – don’t drape over the fan or place to close to any moving parts though and always turn off electrical equipment when you’re not in your caravan or when retiring to bed for the evening to prevent fire.

We bought the Dyson AM-07 cooling fans last year. It really gives a powerful stream of uninterrupted cool air. They’re not cheap but are quiet, energy-efficient, easy to clean and safe around children as they don’t have any blades – it’s brilliant!

7. Air Conditioning

If you’ve tried all the tips above and your caravan is still unbearably hot, consider investing in an air conditioning system, especially one that is designed for caravan use. Not only will these units help lower the temperature inside, but they’re also bound to make your entire trip more comfortable.

If you already have the air-con on board (lucky you!) you will want to use it economically if you are on a metered pitch.

You’ll need to close all doors and windows for it to be effective, however, as warm air rises, it’s a good idea to use your roof extractor fans at the same time to expel it.

Turn off the air-conditioner for a while in the evenings when the outside temperature begins to drop. Open all doors and windows to let the cooler air circulate through the van. If the air-con is needed, you can turn it back on but it’ll use less energy to maintain a cooler temperature.

Check the air-conditioning filter according to the manufacturer’s instructions, as a filthy or blocked filter will make the compressor work harder. And make sure there’s enough airflow when your caravan is pitched so it doesn’t overheat.

The most important thing to remember when using air conditioners is that you should never turn them up too high or leave them on for long periods, as this will use a lot of energy and depending on your hook up could trip out the electrics.

You Might Be Interested In: Caravan Solar Panels: All you Need to Know

8. Cook Outdoors

Indoor ovens and stovetops can rapidly make any caravan uncomfortable, so while camping in the summer, it’s preferable to cook as much as possible outside. When camping in the summer, it’s better to cook as much as possible outside.

opting to cook and eat outside will do wonders for keeping your caravan cool – while also giving you plenty of opportunities to admire your natural surroundings.

This is the ideal time to use your outdoor barbecues and portable barbeques. If you must cook inside your caravan, keep your doors and windows open to prevent the heat from cooking from becoming trapped within.

We were recently treated to the Quest electric frying pan which has been brilliant so far – you can literally cook any thing on it and it sits nicely on the table in the awning as the bottom doesn’t touch the table.

9. Keeping Children and Pets Cool

One of the simplest ways to keep your pets and kids cool and comfortable during hot weather is to provide them with plenty of fresh water, shelter from the sun and plenty of shady areas to rest.

Drink cans filled with frozen water bottles or ice cubes wrapped in a wet cloth are also great at keeping their drinks cold.

Cooling sprays and pet cooling mats can also help to keep them comfortable.

10. Cooling Sprays

A cooling spray will instantly cool and refresh your skin if you start to feel hot and bothered in hot weather. They’re readily available on the high street and in supermarkets and are suitable for adults and children.

They work by spraying a fine mist onto your face or body and are ideal when it’s hot and humid for some instant cooling relief. Spraying them in a hot room also helps dampen the heat.

Whether holidaying in the UK or further afield, we hope these hot weather hacks will give you all the inspiration you need to deliver cool caravan interiors that optimise comfort and relaxation – so you can focus on enjoying a well-earned summer break.

Caravan cooling is essential for a comfortable stay, and there are a number of different methods that can be used to achieve this as we’ve listed above.

We hope some of these tips will help you during those long, hot sunny days in your home from home!