Bradcot Active
Price £630 - £1045
Web www.bradcot-awnings.co.uk
Bradcot is one of a diminishing number of manufacturers that still produce awnings in the UK, rather than in the Far East. It also offers what may be the best warranty in the business: a three-year factory warranty, plus side and front panels that are guaranteed to resist fading for ten years if you register with the company within one month of purchase.
The company will also give you a one-year accidental damage warranty which covers a wide variety of mishaps that can befall your awning. This type of cover demonstrates the company’s confidence in its products. Indeed, we’ve tested several Bradcot models in the past and have been favourably impressed with them. The Active, which we’re reviewing here, is a prime example.
The Active is a five-piece full awning suitable for year-round use, and is available with a choice of frames: using steel or fibreglass poles, or the company’s own Easy System alloy.
For this review, we opted for the Easy System frame. We’ve used it before and believe it is one of the best frames around. It scores well because the poles lock and unlock, as the name implies, with ease. To lock them, you simply pull them apart and let go; to unlock them, press the tension release button and push them together.
A further advantage of the Easy System frame is that it comprises three main assemblies rather than a host of individual poles. The roof poles attach to the caravan with Easy-Fix brackets which slide onto a secondary bead stitched to the roof section The awning comprises the roof section plus two interchangeable side panels and two front panels. Two advantages of having separate panels is that only the roof section has to be pulled through the awning channels, and if you have to take the awning down wet, the panels are easier to pack away in plastic bags and to dry when you get home.
The roof, incidentally, is made from a single piece of material and has a heat reflective coating to help keep the temperature down inside on hot summer days. It’s made from TenCate- coated polyester, while the side and front panels are dyed acrylic and the mudwalls are coated polyethylene. Colours available are: wine, green and blue – all with grey as the second colour.
The Active is available in a range of ground-to-ground sizes, from 720cm to 1050cm (23ft 7in to 34ft 5in). However, please note that awnings measuring from 720cm to 810cm will only be made to order and only have a single front panel.
Prices start at £630 rising to £834 for the steel frame version. Add from £93 to £138 for the Easy System frame, or £106 to £211 for the fibreglass option.