Hello, my camper, which is actually a toy hauler ( if that makes a difference) has been sitting in the same spot for about 2 years now.Its starting to lean to one side.. Can I jack up one side, by the frame, just enough to slide a 4ft 12x2 board under the tires ? to level it out.How much risk, is there of bending the frame ?

Happy.Camper wrote:Hello, my camper, which is actually a toy hauler ( if that makes a difference) has been sitting in the same spot for about 2 years now.Its starting to lean to one side.. Can I jack up one side, by the frame, just enough to slide a 4ft 12x2 board under the tires ? to level it out.How much risk, is there of bending the frame ? Is there a reason not to just hook up your trailer move it 5' forward to backward and then put you 12x2 boards down and then just pull the trailer up on the the 2x12. Job done:):) Looking at your picture, I might have some concern about the ground under your trailer, dosent look too hard or level as far as trying to jacking up trailer by frame.

I guess I can, but would prefer to jack it up. By the way, I haven't moved it in two years, are the tires still good ? or do they need to be replaced before I take it on the road ? I was hoping to take it to a few campgrounds this year. Do I just check for cracks, and if I don't have any, I"m good ?

How old are the tires? Were they 5 years old before you parked it or brand new?EDIT The tires should be stamped with a manufacture datecode.

I have always jacked up my RV by placing a bottle jack under the spring mount on the axle. However some axles are not as strong as others, and trailer frames can be particularly weak due to manufactures who spec really thin metal to keep the weight (well cost) down to a minimum. I have heard of frame damage on some frames. You have to be careful not to put to much weight on a single point of the frame while lifting it. That said, I would consider it safer to have more than lifting point. So you might jack up the unit by the frame a bit, and support that with jack stands or perhaps a stack of 4X4.While supporting the frame, then jack up a axles one at a time, and then put the tires on blocks, then put the boards in that you wanted to. I was also camped on sand, and that area was subject to flooding (it was like a creek running under my RV at times) and my tires sunk into the sand, as well as the 6" diameter bigfoot jacks. I had to raise the jacks, then put more dirt under the jacks and 30" long 2X10"s. Then I could lift the whole RV (with the jacks) and then put more dirt under the tires. I was lucky that my Ford frame is strong enough to not bend at all! Good luck,Fred.

Water-Bug wrote:How old are the tires? Were they 5 years old before you parked it or brand new?EDIT The tires should be stamped with a manufacture datecode.There are 4 numbers on the side of the trailer. The first 2 numbers are the week the tire was mfg. and the last 2 numbers represent the year the tire was mfg. Any tire over 5 yrs. old, I throw away regardless of how the tire looks.

Can I lift my Camper with a jack ? (pictures inside)

Happy_Camper3
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
Ivylog wrote:
I would raise the two jacks on the high side 1" and lower the two on the low side 1".

Last time I used the leveling jacks to try to raise and lower my camper, the front left completly busted off !

I then learned those are not for raising the camper, only stabilizing.

I may just pull forward, or jack under the axle, as long as the jack doesn't block where the wood would go..

As far as moving to level ground, that WAS the level ground, I'm in a tight spot, on my own property, I don't even have room to turn around, and moving to another spot would only be more muddy and worse.

this spot I am at now was prepped with class5 two years ago, and leveled the best I could before I put it there.
Water-Bug
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
djgarcia wrote:
Water-Bug wrote:
How old are the tires? Were they 5 years old before you parked it or brand new?

EDIT The tires should be stamped with a manufacture datecode.

There are 4 numbers on the side of the trailer. The first 2 numbers are the week the tire was mfg. and the last 2 numbers represent the year the tire was mfg. Any tire over 5 yrs. old, I throw away regardless of how the tire looks.

Those 4 numbers are on the TIRE, not the TRAILER.
ScottG
Nomad
Apr 22, 2015
You wont hurt a trailer that size by lifting it on one side by the frame.
Winnebago_Bob
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
dee74 wrote:
I would just hook it up and pull it forward.

^This..

Then do some research and figure out the age of your tires..

Are there visible cracks anywhere on the sidewall?

If it's been sitting two years without moving, how often did you check, service the tires?

Is one side of the trailer more exposed to the sun than the other? Those tires likely took more wear.

Not enough info to give reasonable advice on the tires, and I would definitely pull it forward to level it rather than jack it up unnecessarily. It would take all of five minutes with zero risk.

Press the easy button.
cyntdon2010
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
dee74 wrote:
I would just hook it up and pull it forward.

X2 this make good sense.
Ivylog
Explorer III
Apr 22, 2015
I would raise the two jacks on the high side 1" and lower the two on the low side 1".
tegu69
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
dee74 wrote:
I would just hook it up and pull it forward.

or move it to level ground.
dee74
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
I would just hook it up and pull it forward.
K_Charles
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
If you jack where the spring hooks to the axle what can it hurt? that's where the weight is when your driving down the road and where it's been for the last 2 years
MarkTwain
Explorer
Apr 22, 2015
Water-Bug wrote:
How old are the tires? Were they 5 years old before you parked it or brand new?

EDIT The tires should be stamped with a manufacture datecode.

There are 4 numbers on the side of the trailer. The first 2 numbers are the week the tire was mfg. and the last 2 numbers represent the year the tire was mfg. Any tire over 5 yrs. old, I throw away regardless of how the tire looks.