Drop your camper at the campground?

Wow, that camper falling off is quite a story ... makes you wonder about the building and anchoring.

But, to the OP ... I've seen quite a few threads on RV.net and other forums that ask this - and am puzzled it even comes up.

No matter what the literature and advice that appears in the tech paper says, these campers sit on the jacks waiting for sale on the dealer lots as long as it takes to sell it - sometimes, more than a year.

So, if it's so 'dangerous' why do all the dealers do it - do they NOT know what the manufacturer says? Well, probably so, but a different issue.

If a dealer can set it up on jacks, the owner should as well ... I know, I know, kids jumping in and out 'wiggles it'... so what. If it's that weak that a kid wiggling it causes the jacks to fail, I wouldn't want to own it anyway.
We've been dropping off campers all the years we been camping, Fleetwood and a Lance, and never had an incident -

stuckinthesand wrote:
I remember reading somewhere (probably on this forum) about someone’s full tanks dropping thru the bottom of the unsupported floor of their camper. So as a rule I never unload mine with anything substantial (more than a few gallons) in the tanks, that precludes it from being dropped at the campground, not a problem as we pull a toad everywhere we go, Also the fear of having a jack failure always lurks in the back of my mind, I know that’s not a common occurrence but I did have a jack system failure one windy night when I went to lower the jacks for added support and got no power to the jacks, turned out to be a loose ground under the sink but you get my point.
Also I’m not as expert at loading the camper as I would like to be and the thought of entertaining the campground as I attempt to load the camper one morning is not really appealing.

You're correct, I remember some of those posts. If I remember correctly, some of the earlier AF models had trouble when owners would fill the fresh tank too quickly. The plastic tank would build pressure and bulge and break the strap that supported the tank from below. I think this issue has been addressed by AF on newer models. What year is your camper? As for your question, we almost never remove the camper, but the downside is that you have to break camp if you want to leave the site.

Truck Campers are designed and constructed differently by the various manufacturers. Some advise/require support under the TC floor if on the jacks alone for long periods even when dry. Some warn against walking inside especially with a filled liquid tank or tanks when on jacks with the bottom unsupported. It voids the warranty!

There have been many threads on the various forums of several different TC brands having the floor give way when unsupported. Not a pretty site and extremely difficult and expensive to repair and some are not even repairable as the lower walls, plumbing, electrical, etc are also compromised as seen in many of the forum's posted pics. So much depends on where the floor breaks away and what comes with it.

A couple manufacturers have designed and constructed their TC's to be used fully both on the truck or off the truck on jacks without underfloor supporting. This factor is one of the things we looked for when selecting a TC to purchase. It tells you something very important about the TC's design and construction and it''s viability down the road of ownership.

The OP has what he had purchased and will have to deal with what's needed or required for need of off truck floor support. I'd certainly contact the manufacturer for the manufacturer's specifics for prevention rather than experience the shock and horror of a fallen floor. Should it occur in a CG etc, the ruining of a trip not the mention the financial impact then and for the future.

Similiar to Kerry's pic, I use some screw jacks and 2" X 6"'s to add support when off the camper. The camper is structurally capable of being off the truck unsupported but I do it just to reduce wobble. The screw jacks and beam is capable of supporting a couple thousand pounds so I figure a couple of those with camper jacks means very little weight on any of them individually.

I don't ever take mine off while camping because I like having it with me and I like being able to move in a moments notice. But If I did like taking it off, I would use the plywood X Design that Sleepy, or Redog sometimes mention. Only I would have 2 sheets. Both would be 5/8 marine plywood, and one would be ripped up the center and slotted for the Big X brace, While the second sheet would lay on top the X like a table top. This is what I would lower my camper down on. It could also be used as a table or many other uses while camping, even make shift ramps. Or wind breaks for a fire, a lean-to, ect. And then they would all collapse and fit under the camper while loaded. If you have a short bed truck you can shorten them, or take a jigsaw and shape the full sheet to fit in the bed between the fender wells in the bed. Whoever first thought of this was brilliant. Plywood is always good to have on hand. Some drywall screws and a Dewalt and a jigsaw and you can do a lot. You can even lay on it while working under a truck, Use it under a tire if your stuck, or place it under a jack on soft ground. So many uses, and takes up so little space.

I would think for plywood to work properly the edge of the plywood should make full contact with the ground or whatever the surface is. I assume the only way to level it would be to dig out the area where the wood sits. Problem is Ive been on blacktop pads that arent even level, not to mention how some areas are so hard and packed down that digging out could be a real problem. Having a support system that can be adjusted with individual jacks or something similar seems to make a lot of sense.

shellbackcva59 wrote:
I have 2x6's under my camper for truck roof clearance, then I use 4 aluminum stack type screw jacks with the 2x6s on top to support the front and rear of the camper floor. I try to distribute the weight between the floor support and the jacks.

I needed extra height, so I did similar to this and others, I have two 4x6's 4 ft long that I carry with the 4 aluminum stands, and just split the load between the jacks and supports, and has worked really well the few times I have dropped the TC while on a trip. I don't do it alot, since I have manual jacks, and we like to travel, so we don't stay too long in one spot, but they are pretty light and worth carrying, even if I don't use them.

Garry in Kodiak, Alaska

PS, Might have to meet up one time, as we go through Kenai every trip to the mainland since the ferry lets us off in Homer.

garryk6 wrote:

shellbackcva59 wrote:
I have 2x6's under my camper for truck roof clearance, then I use 4 aluminum stack type screw jacks with the 2x6s on top to support the front and rear of the camper floor. I try to distribute the weight between the floor support and the jacks.

I needed extra height, so I did similar to this and others, I have two 4x6's 4 ft long that I carry with the 4 aluminum stands, and just split the load between the jacks and supports, and has worked really well the few times I have dropped the TC while on a trip. I don't do it alot, since I have manual jacks, and we like to travel, so we don't stay too long in one spot, but they are pretty light and worth carrying, even if I don't use them.

Garry in Kodiak, Alaska

PS, Might have to meet up one time, as we go through Kenai every trip to the mainland since the ferry lets us off in Homer.

We live in Funny River, so let me know when you're traveling North. I'll cook you a meal and re-stock your coffee thermos. If you need a place to overnight to cut the trip in half, that can be arranged as well. PM me and I'll pass my personal info along.

kerry4951 wrote:
I would think for plywood to work properly the edge of the plywood should make full contact with the ground or whatever the surface is. I assume the only way to level it would be to dig out the area where the wood sits. Problem is Ive been on blacktop pads that arent even level, not to mention how some areas are so hard and packed down that digging out could be a real problem. Having a support system that can be adjusted with individual jacks or something similar seems to make a lot of sense.

I love the plywood X idea. I will definitely make some of those up. I also think it has issues with leveling on uneven ground, so not the perfect solution for everywhere....but certainly an awesome and affordable one for many places.

kerry4951 wrote:
I have the sister to yours, the AF 1140. We off loaded at a state park where we hosted for almost 2 months. I made 3 portable floor supports that I can carry along. They store along the sides of the truck box. Each support breaks down for easy storage. The front one uses a stabilizer mount and the other two use aluminum jack stands. By using the jack stands and stabilizer I can adjust easily for uneven ground. These give me support across 3 sections of the TC(front, rear, and middle). Since we were at a spot with full hook ups, the tanks were never full. No fresh water and black and gray dumped every few days.

Awesome! That's a great idea, I think this is going to be part of our loadout. I'll be on the lookout for some of those jacks. Great solution.