Forum Discussion

rcosta's avatar
rcosta
Explorer
Jun 16, 2013

Wheel chocks

We feel a lot of movement and bouncing when walking in our TT. Do wheel chocks eliminate this and if so, do I need one for each set of wheels?
Thank you.

8 Replies

  • But chocks only restrain movement in a horizontal direction and I haven't seen many camping without some type of them. With chocks (decent ones between the wheels) in place, most of the movement that is felt is vertical so assuming one has jacks at 4 corners, the next best thing is additional jacks at the wheels. Without these additional jacks, the longer your trailer is, the more you will feel bounce. After that, it's a case of restraining movement of the jacks by adding bracing like the BAL stabilizers to reduce side to side and fore/aft movement.
  • I use the cheaper camco between the wheel chocks and they made a good deal of difference reducing the rocking motion when parked. I would use two. $40 total.
  • An extra pair of jacks near wheels will make a big difference. If you want to go a step farther, you could use the BAL locking arms. One end attaches to the bottom of the rear jack and the other end attaches to the frame. There are at least a couple of other manufacturers that make a similar product. I don't know much about them but am considering them for our TT. I think you only near a pair at the rear but I would think that a side to side one would be needed as well? Another tip is to use some tall blocks under your jacks so they don't actually extend that much.

    Anyone know if an electric jack will fit between or near the wheels? We have elec. front and rears and it seems like a step backward to put something manual in there....

    Bal locking arms
  • Barney has the solution and Roto chocks, although expensive, are the probably the best.
  • You should be using wheel chocks on both sides of the trailer regardless of whether it is bouncing or not. The chocks are to keep the trailer from moving forward or backward or twisting when you unhook from the tow vehicle. They should always be the first thing on and the last thing off.

    Good chocks will also help with slight forward/backward movement but you need to keep in mind that your trailer is sitting on rubber tires and springs so it is going to move a bit no matter what you do other than putting it up on concrete blocks. There have been a couple of good suggestions above to help with the slight movement but don't expect to get rid of all of it.

    When we stay for an extended time, like when we are in Florida for the winter, I put aluminum jack stands under the frame right in front of the wheels near the middle of the trailer. I also use good Rotochoks between the wheels.
    Barney


  • I removed the bounce on my 30 ft. TT with 2 mods:

    1. Fastway wheel chocks (to stop wheels from rolling in either direction. Put these down between your tires before you unhitch to prevent trailer from rolling away. Adjust once and just place and step to lock the wheels from rolling in either direction.



    2. Extra pair of scissor jacks in middle (front of axles) to stop middle section bouncing. So now I have 3 Scissors jacks on each side of the trailer. No more bounce.



    Ed
  • The only thing that will eliminate it completely is to put your TT up on blocks with the suspension off the ground.
    However, wheel chocks, properly used will significantly reduce rocking. 'X' chocks are very good, but simply placing a chock in front of the wheels, pulling up on it a bit, then placing a chock on the back of the wheel or back of the tandem wheel, then letting the TT settle in the middle works well too. Yes, you need to chock both sides for maximum effectiveness.
    Additionally, placing another set of stabilizers near the axels will help a lot too.