Was down at the van yesterday and decided to check the blown air heating worked OK on gas as we have never used it because we have always been on EHU.
Turned on the gas at the bottle,then switched on the gas heating,nothing.
Played about trying to eliminate gas lock-outs as per the instructions,still nothing.
Fan up,fan down,switch up,switch down,still no heat just cold air via the fan.
It was then I noticed there are four gas taps under the oven,one for the hob,one for the fridge,one for the oven and another one with an odd logo on it that doesn't really look like anything.
I turned this fourth tap on and voilà the heating worked.
Now there will be some of you reading this who are no doubt thinking that this is obvious and that I am as slack as a bottle of crisps,but it wasn't obvious to me as the tap concerned is on the other side of the van to the heating controls,the water heater for instance has its own gas tap by the side of it and the handbook is rather ( read very vague ) on the subject.
So if you are freezing your nuts off and want to run the heating on gas,under the oven is where you will find the gas tap.
Ian
There seems to be a trend, not just with caravan builders, to use indecipherable diagrams that mean nothing to normal humans. I think the problem is down to the fact that the designer knows what the picture represents in his mind and if he asks colleagues they'll know what he's illustrating and can make the connection. However poor Joe Soap the customer comes at it from a completely different direction and often can't work it out. The very worst products are light bulb packaging on these new fangled expensive Eurobulbs.
ReplyDeleteOn our Eriba the gas taps are in a cupboard under the sink and you have to get on your hands and knees to see the diagrams. Invariably it's night when you need to look and the van lights aren't bright enough to lighten the gloom in the cupboard, so you then have to get a torch. Doh!
Anyway what on earth is wrong with a label with actual words on, after all what percentage of Orions are sold in non English speaking countries for goodness sake.
Andy,
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with you although doubtless Bailey ( and other companies ) would say that it helps people "for whom English isn't their first language ".
I very much like Isabella products,but their graphic instructions are dire.
Having said that I asked the Isabella service manager at the Manchester Show the other day how one of their tables folded up - didn't have a clue.
Ian
OK how many Orions are sold to people whose first language isn't English. You can probably count them on the finger of one finger and would having English labels put that customer off buying the van. I doubt it very much.
ReplyDeleteAfter all English has lots of Continental language roots which means most words can be recognised as they are remarkably similar. Indeed if our Eriba had French labels (of course they're now made in Germany)I'd be quite happy as I recognise most French and the majority of German terms for fridge, heater, boiler etc.
Maybe someone should try and reverse the trend and start a 'Words are better than diagrams' campaign.