New Member Intro

[Eoin]

Hi to all and hoping for some expert guidance on here.

One of our kids has severe learning difficulties and is now resident in a college in South Wales.  It's an amazing facility, he's 17 now and finally settled in a place that is helping him to learn and communicate.  We made a difficult decision to send him away, over 200 miles from home, and with Covid we hadn't seen him for 5 months until last week.

We had a static at Porthcawl for the week and Will came over to see us with a couple of carers.  He enjoyed chilling in the caravan and having a bit of time with us, including me giving him a hatchet job of a haircut to tame the lockdown mop.  We're going to do the same again every few weeks, and are now thinking that getting our own place will make the visits a better experience for us and him.  We previously stayed in a hotel, but the static was so much better.  Hopefully, he's there for the next 5 years, so we have a decent timescale to look at.

We have no real idea what to look out for when buying a static.  We stayed in a 3 bed, it was OK but seemed like it wouldn't stand up to much abuse (a 6'3" autistic teenager can dish out some destruction) and creaked quite a bit in last week's high winds.  We would be using this for year round visits (closing down period excepted).

Any tips or pointers appreciated!

Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,643.msg1426.html#msg1426

[Scorpio]

Welcome Eoin, you should find all the answers to your questions here..
Are you looking to buy new or used?
Do you want a quiet site, or a commercial site with lots of facilities?
There is a thread about buying a static caravan which should be helpful to you.
Keep asking questions and the guys here will help you.
Good luck.

Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,643.msg1427.html#msg1427

[Slattster]

Hello Eoin , a 2 bed would give you more space in the rooms , if your only planning on having it for 5 years then a new van will more than likely depreciate a lot more than a 2nd hand one. Caravan walls won’t stand much abuse no matter how many bedrooms it has and high winds are never pleasant. If using all year round then you will need a site that is open all 12 months , the van will need double glazing and central heating and the more insulation it has the better it is  for winter use.

Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,643.msg1428.html#msg1428

[DaveE]

Hi and welcome to the forum.....Hopefully we might be able to offer some helpful advice.

Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,643.msg1429.html#msg1429

[Sparkalicious]

Hi Eoin,

Welcome to the site.

The points Slattster mentioned are top notch ones. You definitely want double glazing and central heating if using all year around. Also means no delicate gas fire in the living room.
The site is a really important thing. A more family orientated (noisier) site may be more suitable. You don't want NIMBYS complaining and making it difficult for you. If it went far enough they could try and squeeze the site to make you leave and that is a very costly operation.
A family site that is mostly made up of letting caravans may be your best bet. Turn over is high so you will probably never have the same neighbours. You don't have to let yourself either but if you decide to it will also help contribute towards the site fees etc.

All things that are worth considering. You'll be really happy when you have it. You just need to make a calculated choice to ensure a happy years ahead

Linkback: https://staticforum.co.uk/index.php/topic,643.msg1430.html#msg1430