Do you jack up your 5th wheel with the landing gear down?

[Duramax1]

I plan to jack up the 5th wheel in order to lubricate the wheel bearings while the RV is in storage. Normally the hitch is not installed in my truck while the RV is in storage. Is there any problem with jacking up the RV while the landing legs are down? I wonder about taking the weight off of only one of the landing legs and whether this will bend or stress the other leg.

[Cummins12V98]

texas_train wrote:
on our last (newest one has level up hydraulics) I unhooked ran front LG's all the way down extended rear lg's to ground then jacked front up till all 4 were almost off ground, total unit on all 4 legs, then just a bottle jack under each axle to get that tire off ground. Very stable/ safe! touch more work, but NO worries

I have 4 point leveling hydraulic jacks, I have wondered if that would be okay to do.

[texas_train]

on our last (newest one has level up hydraulics) I unhooked ran front LG's all the way down extended rear lg's to ground then jacked front up till all 4 were almost off ground, total unit on all 4 legs, then just a bottle jack under each axle to get that tire off ground. Very stable/ safe! touch more work, but NO worries

[Cummins12V98]

msjdbman wrote:
To each their own...but I`ve owned 3 different 5ers now and never worried about jacking one wheel at a time (under the axle) with the landing gear down. To me there are far more things to worry about than this issue.

I agree but he was talking about raising the whole side of his rv so both tires are off the ground.

And I am sure you meant as close to the tire as possible on the axle tube.

[msjdbman]

To each their own...but I`ve owned 3 different 5ers now and never worried about jacking one wheel at a time (under the axle) with the landing gear down. To me there are far more things to worry about than this issue.

[Cummins12V98]

RAS43 wrote:

Cummins12V98 wrote:
TrailerAid Plus, so simple and so safe. I guess no one wants to think outside the box!

True, but the OP is talking about jacking the trailer up without the tow vehicle hooked up. Can't use Trailer Aid for that. :@

To the OP: I have done what you are asking-jacked up one side of the trailer to do maintenance without the truck hooked to it. In order to get the tires off of the ground the trailer had to be raised up a lot. The landing leg on the raised side was off the ground and the trailer was tipped quite a bit toward the other side. The leg on the ground was angled some due to this. Yes, they are designed for more weight then what was probably on it but the angle put a lot of torque on the leg. I got it done but from then on I have hooked up the truck and raised the legs.

You are correct and yes the trailer needs to be raised quite high if raising by the frame. Personally If it were me I would use the TrailerAid with rv hooked to truck but 2nd choice would be a bottle jack or a floor jack and raise one tire at a time by lifting under the springs.

Then it is very safe. You can only work on one wheel at a time anyway!

[RAS43]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
TrailerAid Plus, so simple and so safe. I guess no one wants to think outside the box!

True, but the OP is talking about jacking the trailer up without the tow vehicle hooked up. Can't use Trailer Aid for that. :@

To the OP: I have done what you are asking-jacked up one side of the trailer to do maintenance without the truck hooked to it. In order to get the tires off of the ground the trailer had to be raised up a lot. The landing leg on the raised side was off the ground and the trailer was tipped quite a bit toward the other side. The leg on the ground was angled some due to this. Yes, they are designed for more weight then what was probably on it but the angle put a lot of torque on the leg. I got it done but from then on I have hooked up the truck and raised the legs.

[rhagfo]

When I flipped the axles on our last 5er I used the LG to help jack it up!

I dropped the LG as far as possible placed 2X4 cribbing behind the axles under the frame, then used the LG to lift onto the cribbing. I then placed more cribbing under the frame in front of the axles!

[57_Panhead]

You betcha! But then I cheat a bit. With the Reico Titan Ground Control leveling system I can lift right side, left side, front to back, back to front, or even lift the whole trailer off the ground. Each jack has a 5,000 lb capacity. I would imagine any of the other 4 or 6 point leveling systems could do the same thing.

Steve

[TubaPete]

gkerlin wrote:

TubaPete wrote:
"Do you jack up your 5th wheel with the landing gear down?" Yes. I know one side gets a lot more weight than the other, but these things do have a margin of error (safety factor) built in.

Just curious... what engineering documents and/or technical specifications for the OP's specific landing gear did you consult before you advised him that his landing gear had a built in safety factor?

I mean come on... We constantly hear about broken frames, blown tires, busted springs and axles etc. Seems to me that safety margin went the way of the dinosaurs.

Out of curiousity I looked at several landing gears. Ratings were between 6500 and 10,000 lbs., for the pair I assume. However taking just half of those numbers is still far greater than my 2.000 pin weight. I would say there is a safety factor in there somewhere.

As for blown tires, bent frames, etc. those are typically the result of dynamic factors, not static loads, two entirely different anumals.

And while I admittedly can't speak for the OP's rig, my response was what I do. Whether or not it applies to him would be his decision, not mine.

[wilber1]

Yes but my jacks have independent motors so I can raise one side without twisting the frame or putting all the weight on one leg.

[Puddles]

gkerlin wrote:

TubaPete wrote:
"Do you jack up your 5th wheel with the landing gear down?" Yes. I know one side gets a lot more weight than the other, but these things do have a margin of error (safety factor) built in.

Just curious... what engineering documents and/or technical specifications for the OP's specific landing gear did you consult before you advised him that his landing gear had a built in safety factor?

If none - then where did you get that knowledge to pass along as fact, that he was safe jacking the trailer while supported on his specific make of landing gear?

I mean come on... We constantly hear about broken frames, blown tires, busted springs and axles etc. Seems to me that safety margin went the way of the dinosaurs.

Responsible advice is to play it safe and hook up.

X2

[Cummins12V98]

TrailerAid Plus, so simple and so safe. I guess no one wants to think outside the box!

[gkerlin]

TubaPete wrote:
"Do you jack up your 5th wheel with the landing gear down?" Yes. I know one side gets a lot more weight than the other, but these things do have a margin of error (safety factor) built in.

Just curious... what engineering documents and/or technical specifications for the OP's specific landing gear did you consult before you advised him that his landing gear had a built in safety factor?

If none - then where did you get that knowledge to pass along as fact, that he was safe jacking the trailer while supported on his specific make of landing gear?

I mean come on... We constantly hear about broken frames, blown tires, busted springs and axles etc. Seems to me that safety margin went the way of the dinosaurs.

Responsible advice is to play it safe and hook up.

[redfire2002]

If you put the jack under the axle and jack up just enough to pull the tire, your putting the weight thats normaly on that tire to the jack. All your doing is compressing the springs alittle, its not like your jacking it to pull both tires off the same side at the same time. No need to hook up to TV and this way is safe