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Rain canopy for camper

Great ventilation even during rain
Author: Christian Vierthaler, Zürich, Switzerland
Online since: 27/05/2010, Number of visits: 594629
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Table of Contents
I built a very practical rain canopy for the side window of my VW camper (already known from the application Flyscreen for the camper) with your magnets. Since the side walls of the camper are slightly tilted inwards, raindrops tend to come in through the opened sliding window, which can be prevented by a small canopy over the window. It can be attached and removed in seconds with 4 magnets and ensures good ventilation even when it is raining, for instance during cooking.

Materials needed

  • 1 large sheet of paper (to draw the pattern)
  • 4 block magnets Q-15-15-08-N
  • Waterproof fabric of sufficient size (e.g. from an old tent)
  • 3 carbon fibre or aluminium rods (e.g. rods from a kite)
  • Belt strap (here yellow-green) to attach the magnets
  • Hose strap (here black-white striped) to cover the magnets (e.g. in larger mountaineering stores)

Assembly of the rain canopy

1. Prepare the pattern for the three fabric parts. The roof part is the easiest (rectangular), so you don't necessarily need a prepared template. Since vehicle walls are often curved, the two side pieces should be cut out of paper first and then adjusted to the camper wall.
2. Transfer the outline (allowing for extra room for the seams) onto the tent fabric and cut out the shapes.
3. Cut the stabilising rods to the required lengths. For the side rods, you also need small strips of tent fabric to create the pockets to slide the rods in.
4. Sew a long piece of belt strap onto the long side of the canopy.
5. Sew two short pieces of belt strap onto the tips of the side pieces.
6. Sew the three fabric pieces together. To make sure everything fits, stitch them roughly together first and test it on the vehicles before you sew everything together.
5. To be able to take the block magnets off the camper without scratches, slide each magnet into an approx. 10 cm long piece of hose strap and sew around it. With the other end you can easily pull off the magnet.


Alternative to block magnets

Note from the supermagnete team:
  • Instead of using fabric protection in the form of a hose strap, you can also use rubberised neodymium magnets that protect delicate surfaces from scratches. Their advantage: They can simply be placed on the fabric and removed afterward. They won't start to rust even after longer outdoor use.
  • Alternatively, you can also stitch our sew-on magnets directly to the canopy. Thanks to their plastic coating they are waterproof too.
Suitable products are linked below.
The hose straps can easily be attached on the right and left on the belt strap of the canopy. Then you can fold the canopy forward and the two short poles stabilise it. Finally, the canopy needs to be anchored on the bottom part of the belt strap with a magnet each. The whole thing takes less than 10 seconds.
The finished rain canopy can be attached to the camper with only four magnets within seconds and it can be taken down just as quickly. You are able to open and close the sliding window with the attached canopy.

Simple dismounting of the canopy

Since the magnets are not part of the canopy, it can be rolled up and doesn't take up much room. The sewed-in magnets can be easily separated and attached somewhere inside the camper, so you have them handy when you need them. After all, you can use them for all sorts of other things besides attaching a rain canopy!

Other fascinating magnet projects for your camper van

In our customer project section, you will find many other projects to serve as inspiration. For example:

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