Make a storage solution for your TV aerial cable

A simple fix to solve an irritating problem, by Tony Brown

Many campsites provide visitors with a TV aerial point on their mains-connection pillars, just beside each pitch.

This is particularly useful in areas where the television signal is weak, or the number of channels that can be received via the roof aerial is limited.

Ideally, 25m of coaxial cable is required, and this should reach any aerial point. More flexible versions of coaxial cable are available than the type that is normally used for the TV at home, and this might be worth researching, because the cable will be easier to manage in regular use and storage.

Coaxial cable does not take kindly to being twisted or bent, so providing a storage drum will keep it in the best possible condition and save a lot of time and effort when you are laying it out or storing it away.

Select your drum

First, choose an extension reel that is similar to the one shown below and remove the cable and sockets, which will not be needed for this project.

If you purchase a trailing socket or multisocket, your mains cable can be converted into a drumless extension lead for domestic use.

The next step is to attach an off-cut of aluminium or a strong plastic strip over the end recess, where the original sockets have been removed.

This forms a storage space for the cable that connects to the external aerial point.

Next, feed a metre or so of the 25m length of cable through the drum and out into the recess, then wind the rest of the cable onto the drum.

Now your cable is ready to connect up. When using it, you can just unwind the length that you need, unlike your mains cable, which must be fully unwound before you use it.

Al-ko’s underslung spare wheel carrier was a revolution. Before, most spares (if the caravan had one) were mounted in the front locker. I had a couple of vans like this, and I dread to think what the noseweight was.

Al-ko’s solution addressed the problem of storing the spare and, being mounted behind the axle, had very little effect on weight distribution.

Access issues

However, accessing the spare (even in ideal conditions) is tough enough, but imagine having to do it at the side of a motorway in the rain. And that brings me to another problem.

For the UK, the underslung carrier is installed so the wheel can be dragged out from the nearside – what if you take the van to the Continent?

Thankfully, I haven’t had the misfortune to suffer a puncture. But just imagine if we did. If we left the carrier as it was, it might mean having to drag the spare out into the nearside lane of a fast-moving motorway.

I’d prefer to limp to a safe place and risk destroying the tyre, and possibly the wheel.

So the solution would be to reverse the carrier, to make it accessible from the Continental nearside (right), wouldn’t it? Well no, not really – what would happen if you had a puncture while travelling in the UK?

Then a couple of years ago, we were preparing the Swift caravans for the impending

Tow Car Awards, testing many models with fixed beds, and we discovered they had a wheel mount inside, under the beds.

The ideal answer. Not only would the spare be accessible, it would stay cleaner, and it would be easier to check the pressure.

Soon, courtesy of

Yorkshire Caravans, I had one of these mounts; similar items can be found elsewhere.

What is involved in removing the Al-ko underslung carrier and fitting the internal mount? Tools required for the job are few:

19mm socket/spanner

Pliers

Cloths

Screwdriver

4 x self-tapping screws

(3/4in long maximum)

You will need to get partially underneath the caravan, so first and most importantly, ensure the handbrake is fully applied, that wheels are chocked and that the corner steadies are down.

The next step is to remove the spare wheel. To do this, on the nearside end of the carrier, you’ll see a handwheel, which should have a clip on a chain through the thread. Remove the clip and the handwheel.

You should then be able to slide the spare out on the carrier. To remove it from the carrier, you need to remove the lock-nut, spacer (if fitted) and the plate holding the wheel in place, from the centre of the wheel, and then the nut that keeps the wheel in place. All are 19mm.

With the wheel removed, you’ll probably find it’s full of dirt and grit in the middle.

Give both wheel and tyre a wash, then inspect the tyre and its date stamp, and check the pressure. Next, remove the bolt holding the handwheel in place, and its lock-nut.

Simply loosen the bolt with the socket/spanner and unwind it and the lock-nut.

Moving to the offside, you’ll see split pins holding the carrier in place. There are two more on the inside of the chassis.

Remove the split pins and the washers from the inside and outside of the chassis, then the two black plastic bungs should pull out from the ends of each tube. The tubes push out of the rubber mounts in the chassis. I left the mounts in place, but you can remove those, too.

Now reassemble everything so that nothing goes missing!

Check noseweight

Find a suitable place inside the van to mount the spare. Think about when you might need to get at it and the effect it might have on the noseweight.

You’ve lost the weight of the carrier, but you don’t want to create towing instability, so it’s wise to measure the noseweight before securing the mount.

With a location chosen, mark the floor through the centre of the wheel and lift the wheel out of the way. Place the centre of the mount’s baseplate over the mark and secure it to the floor with four self-tapping screws.

Place the wheel over the baseplate and secure with the threaded thumbwheel and washer. Job done!

‘Not only is the spare wheel more accessible, it stays cleaner and you can check the pressure’

3 Wind on the rest of the coaxial cable, where it will be safely stored, free from any bending and twisting

1 The fairly compact mains extension lead drum once the cable and sockets have been removed

2 Fit a retainer bar across the mains socket recess to retain the short cable end

4 The final result is neat and convenient, and can be quickly unwound for use when you are going to watch TV

This is also a good opportunity to clean the wheel and check the tyre tread and pressure

Now replace the wheel-securing parts on the underslung carrier

Inspect the tyre on the spare and check the date stamp to see how old it is

Removing the handwheel then allows you to slide out the spare wheel

The Al-ko chassis’ underslung spare wheel carrier shown from the nearside

Now you should be able to remove the spare wheel from the carrier

Remove split pins, washers and plastic bungs from inside and outside the chassis rails

View of the chassis with the underslung carrier removed from the caravan

Now find a suitable location inside the caravan for storing the spare wheel

Next, you will need to remove the bolt that the handwheel screws onto

Remove the carrier. I left the chassis rubbers in place, but they can also be removed

It’s a good idea to reassemble the spare wheel carrier, so that nothing is lost

The spare wheel safely secured in position, in its new home

When you have chosen a location, mark the floor through the centre of the wheel

Secure the mount’s baseplate to the floor with self-tapping screws