Yesterday wasn't a good day and I didn't sleep well because of it. Not dwelling on it though, following a bit of rain this morning this afternoon has been lovely, sunny and warm. We've had some nice chats with our wonderful van neighbours again today, husband and Charlie did a few little jobs together, whilst Jean and I chatted about plants and garden and van plans for next year. Jean finished by saying she's become very fond of me, we've made their summer and they'll miss us over winter - that brought tears to my eyes, they really are a lovely couple and in truth it's them who have made this first season in our van such a brilliant and happy one. Having lost my mother on Christmas Eve 2019, Jean has become almost a surrogate Mum (although she's not actually quite old enough to be my mother!), and we've discovered we have a shared love of crafting and flower gardening, so have lots in common. We've both said we'll look forward to meeting up again here in March next year.
Thinking about keeping warmth in the van, I've decided I'm not getting new curtains for next year.....I like the curtains I bought this year, they just need to be a bit thicker. So I'm going to buy thicker linings - the curtains already have a built in lining but it's quite thin, the new thicker linings I'll just add on. And I'll see if I can make some sort of cover or blind to cover the 2 skylights, to reduce some heat loss there. The bathroom window needs a thicker blind or some sort of insulation too, Rambler suggested cling film (thank you) but I think we'll go for window film I've seen on Amazon, it's stuck onto the frame with double sided tape and you then use a hairdryer on it to seal it. Cheaper ones have mixed reviews, but pay a bit more and the reviews are better.
HH suggested rugs - the new carpet we bought for the van is laid on top of the old carpet (which I'd steam cleaned first), so the lounge floor is quite well insulated. The bedrooms have rugs on top of the original carpets. I think we're very lucky - we've had some really heavy rain showers this week and the van hasn't leaked at all, anywhere, and there are no damp patches, not bad for a 30 y.o. van. Whereas 2 of our van neighbours have both had leaking skylights.
Going off early tomorrow to have our flu jabs, booked at our home surgery. We'll nip home to drop off a few things we no longer need at the van, and to see if husband's hospital appointment letter has come, then we'll be coming back to the van.
How nice to have made such dear van friends to look forward to seeing them next March. Your van improvements are good ideas.
ReplyDeleteSo pleased you have found a dear friend. Maybe you could meet up halfway during the winter season. The new vans are so much better insulated these days with double glazing and central heating it get too warm for us sometimes but it does stop all that condensation you get in single glazed vans when you cook. I hope you solve the problem in your van as you have given an old van a new lease of life and that is commendable.
ReplyDeleteHow lovely to have made such good friends. I'm sure you'll keep in touch, one way or another, over the winter. I think, with the plans you have, your van will be snug in the cooler days of spring and autumn. I hope you have a better night's sleep tonight. xx
ReplyDeleteYour caravan has given you much more than a lot of work and a nice place to stay, hasn't it? Jean sounds absolutely delightful.
ReplyDeleteSuch a blessing. xx
That window film sounds an even better solution than cling film, with using a hairdryer to seal it in place. It should make quite a difference to keeping the 'van nice and snug. I hope you get to enjoy a few more 'nice weather' days before battening down the hatches for the winter.
ReplyDelete