Guide
Indoor, covered or outdoor caravan storage: what you get for the money
Updated
This is the choice that moves your bill most, and the one where the words on the advert are least reliable. Ask what the pitch physically is before you compare anything.
The three products
- Outdoor
- An open pitch, usually hardstanding, sometimes gravel or grass. The cheapest option and what most people use. Surface matters more than the advert suggests: standing on soft ground through a wet winter is a different experience from standing on concrete.
- Covered
- An open sided canopy or carport. Keeps direct rain, sun, tree sap and bird mess off the roof and reduces UV on the sealant and graphics. Still exposed to wind, damp and temperature swings.
- Indoor
- A bay inside a closed building. Best protection from weather, UV and casual interference, and usually the most expensive by a clear margin. Often the least accessible too, because vans get parked in around each other.
What each one is actually protecting against
| Risk | Outdoor | Covered | Indoor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rain and standing water on the roof | Exposed | Largely protected | Protected |
| UV on sealant, decals and plastics | Exposed | Largely protected | Protected |
| Tree sap, bird mess and green algae | Exposed | Reduced | Protected |
| Frost, damp and condensation inside | Exposed | Partly reduced | Reduced, ventilation dependent |
| Wind damage to covers and awnings rails | Exposed | Partly reduced | Protected |
| Casual interference and opportunist theft | Site security dependent | Site security dependent | Usually best, but still site dependent |
| Ease of getting it out on a Friday night | Usually easiest | Usually easy | Often the hardest |
Who should pay for which
- Outdoor suits most tourers. If you use the van regularly through the season and it is a few years old, a secure outdoor pitch on hardstanding is what most people sensibly buy.
- Covered suits long dormant periods. If the van sits from October to April, keeping weather off the roof and sun off the seals for six months is where covered earns its money.
- Indoor suits high value and low use. A new or expensive motorhome, a classic, or anything you use twice a year and want to find in showroom condition.
- Check the access trade-off before you upgrade. Indoor bays are often the slowest to get out of. If you tour on impulse, that matters more than the paint.
Ask each site what the pitch physically is: surface, roof, sides and how it is accessed. Then compare. Get quotes for all three and see what the step actually costs near you.