Bailey • Alicanto Grande Deluxe • Porto • 2026

This edition rates its circuits as follows. At 10A: Lights 1, Lights 2, and the Aux Socket. At 5A: the Pump, Radio/Aerial, Boiler, Roof Fan, Ignitions, Spare, Alarm, and Fridge Ign. The Car circuit sits at 15A, while Van Battery + and the Fridge circuit are both rated 20A. Whichever fuse blows, its replacement must match that same rating.

Most UK campsite hook-up bollards cap out at 16 amps, and some sites abroad only offer as little as 5 amps - go over whatever your particular pitch provides and you'll trip their breaker, not just a fuse in the caravan, so it's worth asking the site what your pitch is actually rated for before you plug in. As a rough guide to what's drawing power at once: a fridge on electric typically pulls around 0.5 amps, a TV about 2.5 amps, the battery charger roughly 1 amp, a microwave close to 10 amps, air conditioning around 4 amps, and a blown-air or convection heater about 8.7 amps, and a 2kW kettle draws around 8.7 amps too.

Add up whatever you're planning to run together and keep the total comfortably under your site's stated limit.

Start by making sure the old cylinder is actually empty, then shut the tap on the gas regulator followed by the cylinder's own valve and every gas appliance in the caravan. Disconnect the hose/regulator from the empty cylinder, undo the strap holding it in place, and lift it out of the gas locker onto the ground - fitting its plastic cap back on once it's out.

Before loading in the replacement, give the cradle and tray a quick check to make sure they're clean and debris-free (plain warm soapy water is fine for this), then take the cap off the new cylinder and set it into the cradle inside the locker. Reconnect the gas hose, refasten the retaining strap, then open the cylinder valve and relight your appliances one by one as needed.

Climate class SN (which Dometic calls 'Extended Temperate') means the fridge is designed to work reliably when the air temperature is from +10°C up to +32°C (taken at the bottom vent grille, outside the vehicle).

In a hot summer the outside temperature often reaches about 32°C - the top of the fridge's rated range - and once it climbs higher, the temperature inside the fridge will inevitably rise. An absorption fridge needs a heat source to move its refrigerant around the cooling unit (which is why it can run on 12V, 230V or gas), so it has to get rid of the heat from its power source as well as the heat drawn out of the food compartment.

To help it in hot weather: park where the fridge vents get as much shade as possible during the day; unclip the outside vent grilles to improve airflow; and if you regularly travel somewhere hot, consider having a ventilator kit (a fan fitted behind the fridge) installed to boost the airflow - Dometic lists these among its accessories.

Dometic's 2023 'New for old - simply swap' guide covers both its absorption and compressor fridges, showing which current models replace older ones. It's available from the catalogues section of Dometic's website.

Check the fuse in the mains supply and replace it if it has blown, and make sure the vehicle is actually plugged into a mains supply. If both are fine, the AC heating element may have failed - that needs an authorised Dometic service centre.

Possible causes, and what to do: the vehicle's own fuse has blown - replace it (see the vehicle's handbook); the vehicle battery is flat - test it and recharge it; the ignition is off - switch it on. If the fuse in the fridge's DC cable has blown (the fuse on the relay) or the DC heating element has failed, contact an authorised Dometic service centre.

Check the gas cylinder isn't empty (change it if it is) and that the gas valve is turned on. If air has got into the gas pipe, turn the fridge off and on again, repeating this three or four times if needed; if a gas hob or cooker is fitted, switch that on, then try the fridge again if needed.

The mains voltage is too low. The fridge switches back to mains by itself once the supply voltage recovers.

Work through the likely causes: the cooling unit isn't getting enough air - make sure the outside vent grilles aren't blocked; the evaporator has iced up - check the door shuts properly and the seal is seated and undamaged, then defrost the fridge; the temperature setting is too warm - turn it to a colder setting; it's very hot outside - take the vent grille off for a while so hot air can escape faster; too much food, or too much warm food, went in at once - take some out, and let warm food cool before putting it back; the fridge was only switched on recently - give it four to five hours, then recheck the temperature.

These codes apply to Dometic's 10-series fridges.

• W01: the temperature sensor in the fridge compartment is faulty - contact an authorised Dometic service centre.
• W05: no AC (mains) power, or the AC voltage is wrong - connect a supply, or choose another energy source such as gas.
• W06: no DC power - connect the fridge to DC power, or choose another energy source such as gas or mains AC.

W10 with a beep: the door has been left open longer than 2 minutes - close it. W11: DC overvoltage (above 16V) - reduce the DC supply voltage.

ERROR-type faults on Dometic's 10-series fridges have to be reset by hand: on the RM10.5T, RMS10.5T and RMS10.5XT, hold the control knob in for 2 seconds; on the RM10.5S, RMS10.5S and RMS10.5XS, press and hold for 2 seconds. You'll hear a beep once the error is cleared.

• E03: the power module and display aren't communicating - contact an authorised Dometic service centre.
• E07, E08 and E09: no cooling in gas, AC (mains) or DC mode respectively - check the fridge (and the vehicle) is level and correct it if needed, then reset the error; if it comes back, contact Dometic customer service.
• E12 (gas valve test failed) and E13 (internal communication fault) both stop gas operation - reset the error, and contact customer service if it returns.
• E14: the battery packs that power it in stand-alone gas mode have run down - fit fresh batteries before resetting the error.
• E50: gas has locked out after 3 failed ignition attempts, usually because the gas cylinder is empty - change the cylinder, then reset the error.
• E51 (gas lock-out from an internal power-module fault), E52 (gas valve earth fault) and E53 (ignition electrode earth fault): reset the error, and contact customer service if it happens again.

Press the remote control button once and you'll hear two beeps - after about 45 seconds the alarm becomes fully armed. Once set, towing, moving, tilting, or lifting the caravan onto a trailer will trigger the siren for up to five minutes (a passive infrared detector can also set it off). To switch it off again, press the same remote button once more - a single beep confirms it's disarmed, and the siren cuts out straight away if it was already sounding.

One unit and two remote controls come as standard, with spares available from your Bailey retailer if needed. Bear in mind that even if the alarm side isn't armed or working (say, from a flat remote battery), the TRACKER tracking and recovery service keeps running in the background - it just won't send you an automatic alert.

If the caravan is ever stolen, report it to the police first, then call the TRACKER theft line with the crime reference details so they can start tracking it and arrange recovery. The unit itself can't be swapped over to a different caravan if you change vehicles.

To get the CO alarm running, take the batteries out of their packaging and fit them into the battery compartment, lining them up with the polarity markings - a correctly fitted battery gives a short beep straight away. Press the test button to check it's working: you should hear one beep, then 4 loud pulses, a short pause, another 4 pulses, and a final beep.

You can also check the green LED is flashing roughly every 30 seconds, which shows the unit has power - this is easier to spot with the lights off or somewhere dark.

The smoke alarm runs off a single 9-volt battery, which under normal use should last around a year. A red light blinking every 40 seconds tells you the unit is powered up, and if you hear a chirp at that same 40-second interval, that's the low-battery warning - you'll get about a week's notice before it needs replacing, and it's worth doing so promptly since a flat battery means no protection if there's ever a real fire.

Pressing the test button checks the sensitivity, wiring, battery, and horn all in one go, and it's worth doing this after the caravan's been in storage, before setting off on a trip, and roughly once a week while you're using it. For general upkeep, give the alarm a gentle vacuum with a soft brush attachment every three months or so to stop dust affecting how well it works.

Start by working out roughly where the nearest transmitter is and whether it's broadcasting a horizontal or vertical signal - your site operator or a look at neighbouring pitches' aerials will usually tell you. Loosen off the mast's locking collar, wind the antenna up, and turn the mast until it's facing the transmitter (there's an H/V mark on the base of the mast that shows you which way is the back).

If you need vertical polarisation, twist the winder anticlockwise to tip the antenna over by 90 degrees, but don't force it. With the aerial in position, power up the amplifier - its LED should light - and wind the gain control fully clockwise to its maximum setting. From there, retune your TV to find the strongest signal, nudging the mast's direction if needed for a cleaner picture, then lock everything in place by doing the locking collar back up.

If you're getting a strong signal and the picture's breaking up, the gain can be wound back down (anticlockwise) - it turns through a full 270 degrees between its minimum and maximum settings.

If you can, angle or tilt the caravan so its drain points sit at the lowest spot, then cut power to the pumps from the control panel. Turn every tap and mixer to roughly the halfway position, not forgetting an external shower point if your caravan has one, then pull off the shower handset to empty out any trapped water.

Next, let the water heater empty through its own drain valve, and do the same for the on-board tank's valve where fitted, leaving both open afterwards. If your caravan has grey waste tanks, pull the plugs from the sinks and open their own drain tap too, plus any other drainage points around the vehicle. Empty the external pump or aqua-source last and bring it inside for storage over winter.

Bear in mind the shower tray tends to hold onto a little water regardless - you'll likely need to mop up the last bit by hand. And double-check any ceramic-disc mixer tap handles are pushed all the way up to central, otherwise one side won't drain fully and you risk frost damage that your warranty won't cover.