by naomi fiddes-baron

How do you go about cleaning your campervan to minimise the risk of spreading coronavirus? Lockdown and social distancing measures are still in place, so we recommend that you stay put in your home as much as possible. However, there are a few reasons that people might need to use their campervans that fall within the essential use guidelines.

The precautions you take inside your home also need to be applied when it comes to cleaning your campervan if it is being used for transporting vulnerable people, being rented, bought or sold.

What Equipment do I Need to Clean my Campervan?

To get the most out of your materials, we recommend you clean your campervan first, then disinfect it. Cleaning first gets rid of the dirt, and disinfecting will kill the germs which lowers the risk of coronavirus infection.

Car-specific cleaners are ideal for the job but heading out to the shops to pick up specific cleaning products is definitely not advisable! If you don’t have anything suitable, then soap and water and a dash of elbow grease will also do the job!

Don’t forget, if you are going to order products online, it’s recommended that you leave them unopened for at least 24 hours before bringing them in to your home to mitigate any possible contamination. Also – cleaning products come under the same category as loo roll – you really don’t need to stockpile; a small amount goes a long way!

What do I Need to Clean?

What you need to clean on your campervan will depend to a certain extent on what it is being used for. Cleaning the inside of your campervan and the main cab will ensure you reduce the risk of spreading coronavirus. As a quick checklist, make sure to regularly clean the areas that will frequently be touched:

• door handles;
• gear stick;
• infotainment centre;
• all the buttons on the dashboard;
• handbrake;
• seats and seatbelts;
• steering wheel!

Of course, a campervan has more to it than a standard vehicle. Therefore, if you are transporting vulnerable people in your camper, coming into contact with them; or indeed living in it during the lockdown, you also need to extend these regular cleaning measures to the living area. That means carpets, mats, cupboard handles and cooking equipment needs to be cleaned and disinfected as well as any other surfaces.

Cleaning a Rental Campervan

If your campervan is being used for self isolation accommodation; we recommend you adhere to the following precautions:

1. If you have received a campervan back after being used, you should try and leave it for at least 24 hours before cleaning it;
2. Ensure that fabrics on the sofas, bedding or curtains are not forgotten about;
3. If your guests have used your bedding or towels, make sure these are washed at the highest possible temperature setting. Ideally, we recommend people using their own bedding and towels to minimise the risk of contamination.
4. Make sure your campervan is stocked with disinfectant and cleaning products that can be used for the duration of the hire;
5. Try to leave at least 24 hours in between your cleaning and the next person coming to collect your campervan for use.

Cleaning a Campervan for Sale

If your campervan is being collected or viewed, we recommend you clean it at least 24 hours in advance. Leaving this time gap will minimise the risk of contamination.

If you are selling a newly converted campervan, you should still clean everything that you will have touched. You should also wait 24 hours before the new owner takes posession of the vehicle.

Check out our specific blog about how to go about buying or selling a campervan in the curent lockdown situation.

What is the Best Way to Clean my Campervan?

We recommend that you clean first, and then disinfect your campervan. It’s important to reiterate that if you are coming into contact with vulnerable people then you need to clean your campervan regularly.

First, give your campervan a jolly good scrub with whatever cleaning product you’ve chosen for the job. Afterwards, wipe it down with a disinfectant cleaning liquid that contains the viricidal agents needed to kill flu viruses. Using a disinfectant on the regularly touched areas we listed above is really important.

Keep yourself Protected!

There are a number of things you need to adhere to when cleaning your campervan, for your own safety.

• We recommend that you use protective equipment such as gloves and a face mask when undertaking cleaning if possible;
• Wash your hands with soap and hot water for at least 20 seconds after each clean;
• Please make sure that you keep your campervan well ventilated when embarking upon the clean;
• If you’re using disposable cleaning products; dispose of them safely and swiftly after use;
• If you’re not using disposable cleaning products; make sure you wash them at the highest temperature setting after each clean;

Remember, you should only be using your vehicle for essential trips over the next few weeks whilst social distancing measures remain in place.

Government advice might change more frequently than this blog is updated; to make sure you’ve got the latest advice, click through to these web pages for the most up to date information:

• For the latest Government advice;
• For NHS updates.