Most motorhomes are used in countries with seasonal climates, hence motorhomes tend to get used during the summer time and then parked up during the winter. Inactivity and a harsh winter can cause untold damage to your campervan. Here are some tips how to protect your motorhome during the winter.

First up, if you can garage your motorhome, you should do so. Keeping it out of the wind, rain, snow, ice and even sunshine offers protection to both body and engine. Due to the size of the vehicle, it may not be possible to keep the vehicle indoors, so most vans will have to winter outside. One point to note if a van is indoors over the winter -- on occasions moving it outside on dry days is highly recommended. When housed indoors over an extended period, moisture can form in various places, causing corrosion. Putting the vehicle outside on a dry windy day is ideal to dry out these areas.

The second point is essential for any mechanical vehicle - don't leave it inactive for an extended period. Many parts of any vehicle work better and last longer, when used regularly. For example the brakes - the components stay lubricated when in regular use. The brake pads may perish if not used for long periods. Therefore, take your motorhome for a 20 minute spin every weekend or fortnight. At the very least, start the engine regularly. Top tip -- if you commute to work and have easy parking, then drive to work, once a fortnight.

When you finish using your vehicle, give the exterior a good clean and polish. This helps prevent dirt building up on it over the winter. You may wish to consider a protective cover for your motorhome or RV. These come in full cover or half cover forms and do offer much protection to the exterior. Icy conditions can cause damage, with water lodging in crevices and then expanding into ice, in extreme temperatures. Sap from nearby trees, bird droppings, black rain streaks etc can all be avoided with the use of a motorhome cover.

Battery maintenance is essential over the winter. Motorhome leisure batteries tend to lose their capacity over long periods of inactivity. The effect is even worse during cold periods. The best solution is to keep your battery fully charged during the winter using a "trickle charge". You can either remove the leisure battery from your vehicle and plug it into a trickle charge device in your home or attach some kind of trickle charging device to you battery as it resides in the vehicle. If you choose not to trickle charge, at least be disciplined to charge and discharge your battery on a regular basis over the winter.