We’ve demonstrated how to replace awning & slide topper fabric, and now we’re sharing a great new product from Tough Top Awnings: Privacy Panels, which increase both campsite privacy & shade.
Optimizing life aboard an RV involves not only learning to manage a variety of systems and handle minor repairs, but also determining the best RV gear for our needs. We love innovative ideas and products that improve our experience on the road, so we feature them quite often.
How many times have you wished for a little extra privacy on your patio, especially when you’re in a park without trees or other screening between sites. Besides the additional privacy that Tough Top Awnings’ new Privacy Panels provide, the added shade is especially helpful in the late afternoon, when the sun is low in the sky. That’s especially true for us A&E WeatherPro awning owners. We’re sure we’re not the only ones who wish our power awning was adjustable… or at least angled down further. With the Tough Top Awnings Privacy Panel, we get shade on our patio all the way down to sunset. While the RV featured here is (obviously) not ours, we’ll be showing off our own Privacy Panel in a future video.
As always, RVgeeks viewers get a special discount when purchasing high quality replacement fabric for their awnings and slide toppers, and of course that now includes Privacy Panels, too.
Visit www.toughtopawnings.com and enter the
Discount Code “RVGEEKSROCK”
for a 5% discount on your entire order!
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Liz
Friday 28th of April 2017
Do you think I can use his for my deck?
TheRVgeeks
Friday 28th of April 2017
We'll bring one with us when we come to visit, Mom. :) 888
Pat Parker
Friday 28th of April 2017
I was wondering the same will it roll up with our automatic awning.
TheRVgeeks
Monday 8th of May 2017
Hi again, Pat & Rita. Just wanted to follow up on your question. We installed our new privacy panel on our A&E WeatherPro power awning this weekend, and it rolls up inside the awning just fine. The extra material, even with our metal wrap, isn't enough bulk to even be noticed. The only minor issue we had is the 12-year-old motor on our awning, which was already a little anemic. The privacy panel added enough weight that we had to pull lightly down on one of the arms when it first starts retracting to "help" get it started. Once it rolled up about a foot or two, it continued on its own with no problem. We're sure that if we replace that old motor, which we're considering doing, or add an additional turn or two to the roller tube spring, that minor issue will go away. In the meantime, we can either roll the awning our just slightly shy of fully extended, or pull down on an arm for the first foot or two of travel when retracting (for anyone not tall enough to reach the arm, the awning rod does the trick). No problem either way. We LOVE the amount of shade it provides. It was very sunny and warm yesterday, and even with our patio facing SW, it felt so much cooler and more comfortable under the awning. :)
Hope you two are okay. Stay in touch.
TheRVgeeks
Friday 28th of April 2017
Hi Pat & Rita! Tyler said that they will roll right up in our WeatherPro awning and he's bringing a privacy panel for us to try out next weekend. So even though we can’t report first hand yet that they roll up just fine inside a WeatherPro, we will be able to report back in just over a week to confirm. Nice seeing you two. Looking forward to this weekend, and next week, too. <3
Steve at M4LED
Friday 28th of April 2017
Hmmm, I am thinking a white one for Movie Night too! We bring the InFocus projector to big family trips and put a movie on outside at night, this would save the hassle of putting up the screen.
TheRVgeeks
Friday 28th of April 2017
Great idea. A white privacy panel would match your slide toppers, too. ;-)
John Schretlen
Friday 28th of April 2017
Bright idea of the month!
John Schretlen
Friday 28th of April 2017
The way John & Tyler installed that shade was impressively easy. I can imagine that it would be a great addition for afternoon shade.
If you want to leave it 'installed' on the roller during the day could you flip it over on top of the awning until needed? (At least until a gust of wind blows it back down.)
John
P.S. "While the RV featured here is (obviously) not ours, we’ll be showing off our own Privacy Panel in a future video." Waiting for two days in a row without rain?
TheRVgeeks
Friday 28th of April 2017
"Until a gust of wind blows it back down" LOL We'll be installing a Privacy Panel on our rig next weekend, and it will be considerably higher up in the air than the Carefree manual pulldown awning in the video (we have an A&E WeatherPro power awning that's pretty horizontal). We're expecting a new dynamic..... the ability to open our awning a pretty small amount and still get decent shade as the privacy panel begins to descend. If so, that would allow us to just let it hang down 2 or 3 or 4 feet and flap around in the wind if we want to. We'll be sure to report back after some time with it. We'll give it a good test during an upcoming trip to Vancouver Island and see how it holds up. ;-)
Steve
Friday 28th of April 2017
Will this work with the power Weather Pro awnings? I.e., can you leave it attached? Thanks!
TheRVgeeks
Monday 8th of May 2017
Hi again, Steve. Just wanted to follow up. We installed our new privacy panel on our A&E WeatherPro power awning this weekend, and it rolls up inside the awning just fine. The extra material, even with our metal wrap, isn't enough bulk to even be noticed. The only minor issue we had is the 12-year-old motor on our awning, which was already a little anemic. The privacy panel added enough weight that we had to pull lightly down on one of the arms when it first starts retracting to "help" get it started. Once it rolled up about a foot or two, it continued on its own with no problem. We're sure that if we replace that old motor, which we're considering doing, or add an additional turn or two to the roller tube spring, that minor issue will go away. In the meantime, we can either roll the awning our just slightly shy of fully extended, or pull down on an arm for the first foot or two of travel when retracting. No problem either way. We LOVE the amount of shade it provides. It was very sunny and warm yesterday, and even with our patio facing SW, it felt so much cooler and more comfortable under the awning. :)
TheRVgeeks
Friday 28th of April 2017
Hi Steve! As you may have noticed, this video was shot during the summer (early last September, actually), when the Privacy Panels had just been finalized. Tyler brought one with him as a surprise for our friends whose 5th wheel we were shooting an awning installation video on (the one in this video). He said that they will roll right up in our WeatherPro awning as well, and he's actually connecting with us next weekend for another video shoot, and bringing a privacy panel for our RV with him.
So even though we can't report first hand yet that they roll up just fine inside a WeatherPro, we will be able to report back in just over a week to confirm. But again, Tyler says it will be fine, and we trust him, so we're sure we'll be good. Can't wait to see for ourselves though, and report back. :)