Taking the camper off the truck

adamis wrote:
All great suggestions but I'd like to emphasize the importance of loading and unloading in a flat location. I bring that up because sadly, I don't have the benefit of such a situation and I can't emphasize enough how camper loading and unloading in an uneven location will complicate things.

In my situation, my camper is stored at an indoor RV storage facility. On the few occasions where I needed to take the camper off the truck, I'm allowed to do it in a parking location next to the building but there is a slope in that area for water runoff. Backing up against the building, the front legs have to be extended about 4" more than the rear legs to kee the camper level. Ideally one would just place some blocks under the front legs but the complication is that because the truck is sloped as well, as the camper is raised it will come off the front of the bed sooner than the back. Additionally, unless you really make certain the camper is level, once you start to pull the truck forward, the camper legs will flex as the front of the camper no longer has the front of the truck-bed to rest against and that slight unlevelness you thought was okay will then cause the camper to want to shift forward.

The first reaction to this situation is usually to try to raise the camper up even with the bed (that is allow the camper a slight tilt to match the slope the truck is sitting on). However, this may not be the best idea because as the rear of the camper slopes higher than the front, the center of gravity begins to shift forward causing a bind on the legs as they now have to not just support the camper vertically, but also fight off the forward forces being exerted on it. Pulling the truck forward in this situation is really bad because the camper may be significantly off balance already but it is prevented from shifting even more by the front of the truck-bed. As you pull the truck forward, the camper will shift and the legs will bind even more.

As I said, if at all possible, start with a flat location, it will save you a lot of headaches...

Oh, and one last thought, loading and unloading on a Dually I think may be easier. Even though the clearances are tighter, I find it simple enough to guide between the camper legs and the dually fender by looking in the side mirrors. I have about 1" or 2" of clearance so I end up knowing right away if I'm not ligned up correctly.

I've off loaded on an icline before, actually a place sloped in 2 planes. I always carry a Torpedo Level in the camper and use that to get the camper level. Handiest tool I have. Works for setting thee fridge too.