Where do you place your inside level?

We use our bathroom door. It it stays open in most any position, we're good.

Another method for leveling an RV is by using the old "eye ball" method. Being an armature carpenter (never been paid for my work, sure have done my share of it), I've learned how to eyeball two objects and get them perfectly straight.

Well, when backing or pulling into a camp site, I went through a phase where I'd look for a straight vertical (up and down) object in the distance and would "eye ball" the end or side of trailer until the object and the side of the trailer were perfectly parallel. This worked GREAT for side-to-side leveling.

Then that process was shot to pieces they time we decided to spend a few days on the in-laws farm. I parked the camper in the barn lot and I eye-balled it absolutely perfect parallel with the corner of the barn. I was so proud of myself. I lowered the stabilize jacks, got everything all set up and then entered the camper and OMG! I thought I was climbing Mt. Everest.

So, I went back outside and looked at my "eye ball" parallel perspective. Didn't make sense, perfectly parallel.

Then it hit me! OH Dang! The entire barn (as big as it was) was actually leaning one direction! That was when I quit relying on the using parallel upright objects exclusively method! DUH!

On a previous camper I tried leveling on the floor right inside the door. Every time I got it perfectly level and all the jacks down, as soon as I walked from one end of the trailer to the other, it always felt like I was walking up hill or down hill. No matter how hard I tried to level.

It took a little while, but finally figured it out that floor was actually, slightly arched front to back. So, no matter where the level went, just a few inches away from that spot and it was out of level. It was very frustrating.

Finally one day I stepped back and just looked at the trailer and that's when I realized 2 things. The sides of the trailer are always straight and square to the floor, and the door itself is always square and straight to the front and back.

I then started leveling the trailer based on the trailer door frame and then everything seemed to work out great! Refrigerator, stove top and even the beds felt level, and the water in the toilet bowl was even even all the way around.

But that floor, STILL felt like a roller coaster. I then tested my theory by using a ball and set it on different locations on the floor, and sure enough, there was a hump in the middle and everything rolled down hill from there, both directions.

Lesson learned ... the entry door frame is always straight and if it's level, side to side and front to back, everything else is good-to-go.... unless you have a trailer with an arched floor!

After finding the exact true "level spot", then I was able to put an RV bubble level on the front cap and side of the trailer for left-right and front-to-rear eye-sight leveling.

Thank you to everyone who responded! Many great suggestions on where to place our level and alternative ideas!

BobsYourUncle wrote:


It actually does matter. The longer the level, the better the accuracy. Here's why:

No surface, floor, wall, ceiling, whatever in an RV is perfect and true. This also applies to stick and brick construction.

If you use one of those little levels, such as a torpedo level, it can and will sit in an irregularity on the floor or wall, thus giving a false reading. If the floor has humps and bumps, which most do, a short level can have one end at the top of, and the other end at the bottom of a hump, throwing your reading way off. A four foot level on the other hand will bridge many humps and bumps and ride the top of them all, giving a much more accurate reading.

Now I will give you this about a 4 foot level, you sure as heck don't need one for leveling an RV. Its overkill. That fine of accuracy makes absolutely no difference. As long as its sorta close and the fridge works, all is well.

44 years in construction:
For building most stuff my 6 foot level is accurate enough. The 8 footer doesn't fit in my tool boxes or cab of the truck. My 4 footer is nearby for smaller jobs. My 2 footer and 18" are for short surfaces. Torpedo level is for 6 inch and under surfaces. If I'm building a 24 foot new floor sub base for a solarium and I want accuracy, I break out my laser level and shoot it every few feet. For that, I call an eighth of an inch in 24 feet close enough.

For my RV, my 12 inch level is fine.

But yeah, size does matter! :W :B

Oh, I am not saying it can't make a difference, but they do it every single time. There is definitely a time and place for them as you said, I just don't see it being needed more than once or twice in an rv. Like I said, I just laugh to myself. People being different is what keeps life interesting.

A large frying pan with 2 oz. of water. Its a 4 way level with no chance of being wrong. Put it wherever you want, be surprised or not at how it shows different parts of the rig as level.

dieseltruckdriver wrote:

I laugh to myself when friends use a four foot carpenters level because they thing they are more accurate. Once you are level, it doesn't matter how big the level is, as long it is correct.

It actually does matter. The longer the level, the better the accuracy. Here's why:

No surface, floor, wall, ceiling, whatever in an RV is perfect and true. This also applies to stick and brick construction.

If you use one of those little levels, such as a torpedo level, it can and will sit in an irregularity on the floor or wall, thus giving a false reading. If the floor has humps and bumps, which most do, a short level can have one end at the top of, and the other end at the bottom of a hump, throwing your reading way off. A four foot level on the other hand will bridge many humps and bumps and ride the top of them all, giving a much more accurate reading.

Now I will give you this about a 4 foot level, you sure as heck don't need one for leveling an RV. Its overkill. That fine of accuracy makes absolutely no difference. As long as its sorta close and the fridge works, all is well.

44 years in construction:
For building most stuff my 6 foot level is accurate enough. The 8 footer doesn't fit in my tool boxes or cab of the truck. My 4 footer is nearby for smaller jobs. My 2 footer and 18" are for short surfaces. Torpedo level is for 6 inch and under surfaces. If I'm building a 24 foot new floor sub base for a solarium and I want accuracy, I break out my laser level and shoot it every few feet. For that, I call an eighth of an inch in 24 feet close enough.

For my RV, my 12 inch level is fine.

But yeah, size does matter! :W :B

I use a small carpenters level on the entry door frame. If the frame is level and straight, the rest of the camper will be good.

Bulls eye level on the console.

You pull in and move around till you are level on the site and you are DONE, 'before' you even get out of the MH.

I rarely use leveler blocks anymore since I started using this method. Even if you can't get perfect level the bubble tells you which tire is going to need a leveler. Which eliminates going inside and out and inside and out to look at a level.

When done throw the little level in the ashtray for the next time.

I stick the level on the big open area of my floor just inside the door. I use a biggish carpenter's level not because I need or care about the precision, but simply because it's what I have. I did make up a little measuring stick ruler thingy to show how many 2x ramps I would need to get level (a basic application of similar triangles), with one scale for side to side and another for front to back, but I've gotten to the point where I don't need it anymore to get things level.

Harvard wrote:

x2, have not used a level in years. If it does not feel comfortable I relocate. I have never been in a CG where the sites were not close enough. JMO.

I take it you have not camped in too many public campgrounds in mountainous or hilly areas...or are more comfortable when out of kilter than I am.