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edgerelease's avatar
edgerelease
Explorer
Oct 24, 2023

Design ideas for a platform to lower camper onto...

I am going to build a simple platform for my camper to rest on to take stress off the jacks when I'm not using it for longer periods. Please share any ideas. I think I'm going with cinder blocks and qty2 @ 2x6 sandwiched for the frame. Spaced maybe every 6" or so. As I type this actually maybe it could be even more simple with a bunch of cinder blocks and thick plywood on top.

Please share if you've build one. I'd love to see pictures if you have them.

Cheers,
Tom
  • I use cinderblocks and two chunks of 4x4 and a bunch of 2x6 right now and I can tell you it's a pain in the butt.

    I want to build a sawhorse tryp set up that's the same high as the bed now so there is minimal jacking to get on and off. I can't leave mine on the jacks as they are hydraulic jacks, and it will blow the seals out eventually
  • I built a rolling cart 8ft long 4ft wide with good swivel wheel. rolls around my shop as needed. cart is made of steel.
  • Unless it’s an old rickety camper, don’t worry about it and leave it on the jacks.
    If you’re going to be using it, off the truck, and want more stability, lower it all the way down and it’ll be pretty darn stable. If that’s not quite enough, something easy to set it on like a half dozen pallets or similar is what I’d be thinkin.
  • Never did it under a camper, but do you remember the 2 plywood X we put under waterbeds? Sheet below, another on top to spread the load. And if you wanted you could flatten it on floor of bed, load camper on top if you think might want to unload away from home.
  • Having to stack and unstack a bunch of cinder blocks is excessively complicated and a colossal waste of time to me. Not to mention that cider blocks are structurally unsound unless used as designed and intended.

    There have been plenty of threads on camper stands on this forum.

    Early on I built a low platform with a dozen large pneumatic caster wheels so I could roll the camper around my gravel floor barn. The wheels immediately dug into the hard-packed gravel and made it just about impossible to move the camper. By next spring the tires were all flat and wouldn't hold air, and the camper was tucked into a corner of my building where I couldn't get to it with the truck. So that idea sucked.

    For a couple of years I set the camper on saw horses and 4x4s. That wasn't too bad, but eventually I got lazy and just left it standing on the jacks when it wasn't on the truck. The jacks haven't said a word in protest. In fact it's been standing on the jacks for the last two years because I haven't been able to use the camper. It's going to be lowered on the truck and moved out of the barn for the first time in two years this weekend.

    Oh, I did build a small flatbed wagon on an old farm wagon running gear, and set the camper on that one winter. That worked great, rolled around easy, but took up too much space in the barn because I couldn't back the truck under the camper in the winter.