Homemade Leveling and Jack Pads

[stugpanzer]

I made my own leveling and jack pads and I would like to show you all.

I did a lot of searching and read a bunch of reviews and saw what a lot of people have done here and other sites. I have a few more things I want to do to supplement this setup, but I sure do like how these work!

First of all, I have four of THESE Tri-Leveler Ramps that I carry. I have never had to use all four at once but do use them on occasion. One place I use them is when I visit my parents where they have a slope drive and I only have to put this on the driver side front tire. Here's a pic with my old coach:


I also have a set of THESE Jack Pads for my jacks but I never really liked them as they are too small but using them upside down has worked fine for me.

I am going to use Barn Stall Mats or Horse Stall Mats. I bought a Rubber Horse Mat at my local farm supply store. The bad art in that link does not do this thing justice. It is a solid piece of recycled tires made into a rubber mat that is 3/4" thick and is 6'x4' and weighs 100 lbs. I got the idea from THIS BLOG.

Now, in that article the guy cut his 8" x 12". I decided I wanted mine to be 12" x 12" so I measured and marked the mat for cutting:


Then I positioned the mat in between my truck bed and truck tailgate and used a saber saw to cut. This thing is heavy and trying to hang it over the edge like plywood does not work!


I now have 24 of these mats:


Finally I used a 3/4" paddle bit and drilled a hole in the center of each piece. This hole will be used with a tool that I am making to allow me to push them under the coach and out from under so I won't have to crawl under....with the exception of when I may need to stack them for the jacks. Those with manual awnings already have the tool with your awning rod.

The pads can be stair-step stacked to drive up on or they can be stacked on top of each other for under a jack/leveler.

I don't have pictures of them in action but I think they will do a fine job!

Thanks for reading!

[TripleE]

The horse pads will compress if used under the jacks of a Class A. We tried them. They work fine if you just want something between the ground and the jack but if you need to stack a couple and really lift that portion of the rig they will compress.

[FIRE_UP]

Delete, double post.
Scott

[FIRE_UP]

David,
You could have posted my pics, it would have been no big deal to me. Not many gents out there would go through to get what they'll see in the pictures. Way too fancy for most guys. I just had some of this stuff laying around and, thought I'd knock this little project out. Yep, they're just some 4"x6"x 11" Doug fir, sitting side by side and, I just glued and screwed some 3/4" plywood to both the top and bottom. Then, a couple of coats of left over varnish.

Now, I can use these for just about anything. They're primarily for use under the jacks, if and when I determine they're needed. I have another set in which I just used a 2"x8"x20" and, again, sandwiched it between two pieces of 3/4" plywood. Same procedure, same coating. Those are when I may need just a couple of inches under the front etc.

For the rears, I carry (4), 4"x12"x20" that are beveled at one end. The big beast (our coach) is heavy so, I wanted good lumber under those tires, again, if and when I determine it's needed.
Scott

[stugpanzer]

willald wrote:
I've always used 2x12 treated wood I cut into several 12" and 24" lengths. I still also carry several of the plastic 'lego' type blocks.

Definitely see where this approach using 3/4" rubber has some merit, though. Less likely to split like wood, and better grip/traction, like already said.

However, the problem I have with using rubber material like described here, is this: What you use for pads under the stabilizer jacks needs to be something very solid, that does not compress or have any 'give' to it. If it does compress or 'give' (like I suspect this rubber will), inside the MH, you will get that 'bouncy' feel inside sometimes when walking around inside. Extending leveling jacks onto solid ground is intended to remove that 'bounce' that tires wll always have some of. If the jacks sit on rubber pads, it seems like you've almost defeated the purpose of the jacks.

Anyway, for that reason, you probably would not want to use these rubber pads under your stabilizer jacks. Tires, yes, jacks, no. I think I'll stick with the wood or plastic blocks for the jacks.

That being the case...Not sure its worth cutting up and storing a whole separate set of these pieces of rubber in addition to the wood and plastic pieces, just for use under the tires. I may just try it, anyway, though.

Good point and when I test them I will report back. DW is the one that is sensitive to movements such as what you are stating so if she doesn't feel any difference then they pass muster! I don't think they are going to be very bouncy as they are very dense rubber.

With that said, I am planning on making some wood blocks to compliment these rubber pads. Forum member 'FIRE UP' sent me photos of a 'hybrid' block he made with two 4x6's side-by-side with a piece of plywood laminated (screwed and glued). I don't have permission to post his photos but I will ping him and see if he can chime in and show his creation. His blocks are what I would like to make but adding one of these rubber mats to the top or bottom or both.

[J-Rooster]

stugpanzer wrote:

J-Rooster wrote:
Thanks for the clicky of the pads! Make sure when you drive up onto the pads that your complete tire tread is on the pad. If not inner sidewall damage could occur.

That is one of the reasons I wanted to make mine 12"x12" instead of 8"x12"!

Very good choice IMHO!

[willald]

I've always used 2x12 treated wood I cut into several 12" and 24" lengths. I still also carry several of the plastic 'lego' type blocks.

Definitely see where this approach using 3/4" rubber has some merit, though. Less likely to split like wood, and better grip/traction, like already said.

However, the problem I have with using rubber material like described here, is this: What you use for pads under the stabilizer jacks needs to be something very solid, that does not compress or have any 'give' to it. If it does compress or 'give' (like I suspect this rubber will), inside the MH, you will get that 'bouncy' feel inside sometimes when walking around inside. Extending leveling jacks onto solid ground is intended to remove that 'bounce' that tires wll always have some of. If the jacks sit on rubber pads, it seems like you've almost defeated the purpose of the jacks.

Anyway, for that reason, you probably would not want to use these rubber pads under your stabilizer jacks. Tires, yes, jacks, no. I think I'll stick with the wood or plastic blocks for the jacks.

That being the case...Not sure its worth cutting up and storing a whole separate set of these pieces of rubber in addition to the wood and plastic pieces, just for use under the tires. I may just try it, anyway, though.

[mfinnerty]

I used the 4x6 stall mat idea, but cut mine into 16 9"x12" pieces. Primarily use them for under the tires when needed to avoid lifting the tires off the ground. Also used under cedar wood blocks when parked on gravel sites to keep the blocks from being split by large chunks of gravel. Instead of a sabre saw, I used a box knife with the section being cut off hanging off a table.

[gbopp]

Great idea. Thanks for sharing.

[stugpanzer]

Executive wrote:
Very nice! And since they're rubber, they'll be easier on the tires as well.

When stacked, do they hold together or do they slip? I'm thinking if they're stacked, you might have to drill a couple holes in them and slip a dowel pin through to hold them in place. Once the rigs on em I would guess they wouldn't move, but driving up on them might.

How much weight can they hold? I know I drove my diesel up on those plastic ones and they simply collapsed. These look like they would not.....Dennis

They are very dense rubber and don't compress very much at all. When stacked they don't slip. The rubber against rubber tends to hold together well so not slippage. I think even your diesel would be fine on these.

[happy-2]

Camping world sell 12x12black rubber pads 4 for $ 45;00.I went to tractor supply and bought a 4x6 stall mate for $36:00 and have 16 12x12 pads for ramps or jack pads,plus i park my mh on them when in storage. plus its easier to store the pads.

[Executive45]

Very nice! And since they're rubber, they'll be easier on the tires as well.

When stacked, do they hold together or do they slip? I'm thinking if they're stacked, you might have to drill a couple holes in them and slip a dowel pin through to hold them in place. Once the rigs on em I would guess they wouldn't move, but driving up on them might.

How much weight can they hold? I know I drove my diesel up on those plastic ones and they simply collapsed. These look like they would not.....Dennis

[stugpanzer]

J-Rooster wrote:
Thanks for the clicky of the pads! Make sure when you drive up onto the pads that your complete tire tread is on the pad. If not inner sidewall damage could occur.

That is one of the reasons I wanted to make mine 12"x12" instead of 8"x12"!

[J-Rooster]

Thanks for the clicky of the pads! Make sure when you drive up onto the pads that your complete tire tread is on the pad. If not inner sidewall damage could occur.