ladder and awning questions

[ArkSlim]

Can awning bows be used on an eletric awning to keep it out for extended time periods? And how much weight should I put on the rear ladder. I have a folding 12ft ladder that is somewhat on the heavy side. Also I have a bicycle with a 35cc motor about 50# would either of these be suitable to carry on the ladder? Thanks

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

ArkSlim, the ladder is rated at 300#. That said, I'm not so sure the mounting points to the fiberglass rear cap are that strong. I'm real close to that 300# mark and I won't use the ladder. The ability of the ladder to carry objects is good but make sure they are securly fastened. The weight of the item/items bouncing could cause more problems than the weight of the item alone.
I don't know much about the electric awnings so I don't feel qualified to respond to that question. If I had to guess, I would say to not use bows to support the fabric.

 

[jmgratz]

I have the electric awning and would not use the bows. On our previous 5er we had the manual awning and used the bows and they worked well. The electric awning are designed differently and I cannot even use the deflappers on it. When the wind begins to blow over about 8 mph it is time to put up the electric awning.

 

[Rmcgrath53]

I put two bikes on my lader. I am very carefull in bungie cording the bikes up the ladder and down. It distributes the weight along the whole ladder not just a few steps. I have been doing this for a year and a half with no problems. The rack I bought was pretty cheap.