NEW CARAVAN
Banter in the campsite can lead to new caravans – just look at South Africa’s first plastic caravan, says
That’s right: the new Edgeout caravan is not made of wood, fibreglass or aluminium. It’s made of plastic, and some of it is even recycled plastic. But that’s not the end of this caravan’s unique features. With its modern and oblique shapes, it looks like something from Star Wars. Plus, Vonnie Heyns, the mastermind behind the Edgeout, and industrial designer Retief Krige provided several new elements.
How it all began…
Vonnie, owner of 4EVR Plastic Products that manufactures a wide range of plastic products, camps annually at Jamaka in the Cederberg. One day his friend Mike Smit asked him, “Why don’t you build a plastic caravan?”
The seed was planted, and Vonnie immediately started thinking about a teardrop caravan, a bed-on-wheels with a spacious outdoor kitchen at the back. Retief and Vonnie then set about making it happen and, two and a half years later, they completed the first Edgeout. For the chassis, Vonnie decided on one from Burquip. It’s galvanised and custom made for the Edgeout. Vonnie didn’t consider leaf springs an option and so the Edgeout boasts an independent torsion bar axle. The axle is equipped with brakes. With a gross vehicle mass of 1 300 kg, the caravan is light enough to tow using an ordinary sedan.
Bed and breakfast
The Edgeout’s hull consists of two sections cast separately: the sleeping cabin and kitchen. They are seamless and fit together on the chassis, but don’t get the same finish.
The kitchen unit consists of a single layer of plastic 8-10 mm thick, but the cabin consists of three layers. The outer layer is 4 mm with a 10 mm plastic foam layer on the inside. Acoustic panels form the third layer and all this results in the panel being 25 mm. This acoustic layer is made from recycled plastic bottles. This panel as a whole provides proper insulation for both temperature and sound.
With a typical teardrop design, the Edgeout has a door on each side near the A-frame. The top end of the bed – with a stacked shelve on each side and reading lights on the roof – is closest to the door. Above your feet are a number of built-in cabinets, their shape repeating the oblique exterior design. The headboard is not perpendicular to the mattress as per normal, but at a bit of an angle – perfect for leaning against while deciphering your last Sudoku for the day. The bottom end is adjustable and can slide out towards the nose, which has the mattress lengthen by a good 15 cm. The bed is now 2 x 1,4 m, just slightly wider than an extra-length double bed.
The mattress folds up into three sections, and underneath are three shallow cupboards where you can store items such as the ground sheet and other camping equipment. The door that gives you access to the outside kitchen opens like a hood, with two gas struts that lift it until it forms a roof over the kitchen. The light on the inside of the door is then above your head and the 136 x 35 cm worktop is just across from you.
The microwave sits in the middle behind the worktop, and on either side a cupboard. They have plenty of room for groceries: on the left is an open shelf and a drawer sits on the right.
Your fridge/freezer (up to 56 ℓ) sits on a sliding frame on the left below the worktop. A canvas bag in which you can store pots and pans fits in right behind it. Then the drawer that contains the two-plate gas stove pulls out from the right under the worktop. It can also serve as an extra workplace, as there’s a glass cover that flips down over the stove. At the end of the sliding frame are two smaller drawers – one for cutlery and the other with cut-out foam for glasses and plates.
On the right-hand side of the drawer, there’s a frame for a loose sink. Next to it is a tap with a swing mixer – for hot and cold water – with the gas cylinder for the stove around the corner. The inline geyser sits in the nose cone next to its gas cylinder.
What comes standard?
Standard items include a spare wheel, 12 V and 220 V power system with a deep-cycle battery, plugs, lights, a microwave, 110 ℓ water tank with pump, geyser, basin and tap. The rooftop tent, fridge/freezer, awning, solar panels and canvas dressing room are optional.