LEVELING BLOCKS 35' CLASS A MOTORHOME

[kingsransom]

NEW TO RVING AND I KEEP READING ABOUT PEOPLE TRAVELING AND HAVING TO USE MORE THAN JUST THEIR JACKS TO LEVEL THE RV AT A SITE. HOW MANY BLOCKS SHOULD I BUY?? I SEE CAMPING WORLD HAS A BAG OF 10 IN A SET AND THEY GOT GOOD REVIEWS. ARE TWO SETS ENOUGH? WOULD LOVE SOME FEEDBACK ON WHAT YOU USE, HOW MANY, HOW OFTEN, ETC...THANKS FOR THE INFO!!

[OhhWell]

obgraham wrote:
As The idea of a 30,000 pound rig perched on jacks sitting on 4 plastic blocks or chunks of firewood does not appeal to me.

Others see things differently.

I admit I didn't read each post in depth but did someone advise using firewood?????

[MiRV]

We chose to make our own leveling blocks from Horse Stall Mats! Cut them to 12x12….they work great.

[J-Rooster]

What really works for me is 2"x 10" Doug Fir. I buy them at Lowes, and Lowes cuts them for free into 2' lengths. I also have a 35' Coach and two of these planks side by side completely covers your rear dual wheels. The most important thing is to have your tire completely under the plank to avoid inside tire casing damage. The 2x10 cover your wheels with no effort!

[camperpaul]

I use 1 ft long 2X4s with a screw eye in the end under each jack.
I can easily hook them with the awning rod …
When the blocks freeze to the ground it just takes one blow with a 16 oz. hammer to break them free.

[obgraham]

As one of those castigated for suggesting "move", here's why: When I had a previous Class C, no jacks, I found the LegoBlox very fragile, and twice they disintegrated in front of me. Potentially dangerous.

So I think KLM has the only right idea -- build some proper support blocks, glued, screwed, and tattooed. The idea of a 30,000 pound rig perched on jacks sitting on 4 plastic blocks or chunks of firewood does not appeal to me.

Others see things differently.

[klm]

I made 4 12" x12" x 2" jack pads, from 1" - cross grained, glued, screwed together for extra strength. Used a drawer pull, easy grab with awning rod. We also carry 4 planks - wide/long enough for entire tire. Do we need them often? No, but very glad to have them when needed. We use jack pads for winter camping, so jacks don't freeze to the ground. We have also been to a few cg's that require jack pads. Now, for the tires - rarely have needed them, but if you're stuck with unlevel site, sure beats tires off the ground!!!

[FC]

I do not like to have the wheels off the ground when levelling, so we carry a few blocks, 4 pads for the jacks and 5 wood wedges so I can ensure that every wheel is on solid surface. Its over cautious but we stay in a lot of fair grounds with our group and they are usually not as level as camp ground sites.
Got lots of storage.
JM2CW

[OhhWell]

Wide wood planks under the levelers distribute the load. If you have to raise wheels off of the ground to get level, it is possible you are also extending your levelers themselves a bit too much, in that case, I put more wood under the jacks.

You will always hear that you should not let either of the rear drive tires leave the ground. That is because in most coaches, the parking break simply immobilizes the drive shaft. Since the rear differential is open, both tires need to be on the ground to keep the coach from moving.

Some people have stated that in a situation where they have to raise one of the rear tires off the ground, they will put wood planks under that tire to retain contact. I myself don't view a piece of wood as a very good surface to hold friction on soft ground if it should rain. For that reason, I carry a pair of HUGE wheel chocks. If I ever need to raise a rear wheel, I will chock the one that is still firmly on the ground with the chocks and the front wheel with 2x4s.

[reubenray]

I pack two of them (10 in a pack). They are good also for supporting the sewer hose.

[bsinmich]

I also will move if not level. If I get down low enough to place blocks I will be there until a couple od people or a tow truck come to pick me up. I hook up using a walker and don't get down that low unless absolutely necessary. As of today it looks like the MH will be for sale. DW was diagnosed with liver cancer from her breast cancer 14 years ago.

[jgallego]

The driveway at my house has a grade. When I try and level the motor home the front wheels will be off the ground. I have read from the manufacture that they should not be off the ground as the jacks can be bent. It does not make sense to me to have a system that cannot level without the tires being off the ground. I did not have this problem with my 5th wheel.

[CA_Traveler]

The only significant block leveling I've done in recent years was at the kids houses where the blocks were left for the next visit. I carry 8 blocks that can and will be used when necessary.

But I'm not going to the extent of digging holes etc to level.

And the blocks are painted yellow and mostly used to hold down items when it's windy.

[kingsransom]

willald wrote:

FIRE UP wrote:
It always cracks me up when folks say, "if it's too un level, we just move to another spot". Yeah sure. Try that in the California Sierras during the summer, or any place that's popular for that matter. There's all kinds of variables out there. And, camping at many campgrounds, RV parks, State, National Forest, Private and more, you're bound to run into "less than desirable" spots. When that happens, if, and I say "IF" with tongue in cheek, there IS a possible "OTHER" spot, and it's not reserved, and you can fit, then maybe you might be able to move.

I agree, this is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard said on here. Sounds like something that someone would say that lives in a fantasy world, not reality, haha!

Most places we camp, its like you described: IF there are other sites available to move to, it will not be as nice and you will end up wishing you had just made it work where you were.

Having camped many years with TTs and recently (2 years ago) moved to a MH, I've found that many MH owners can by very lazy and 'spoiled' when it comes to leveling. Automatic levelers are nice, don't get me wrong, but we should not get sooo dependant on them that we forget how to, refuse to, or get upset when we have to use leveling blocks as well.

I've found that the less you extend your jacks (and the more you use blocks to level), the more rock solid and stable the MH will be. Conversely, times when I've been lazy and made the jacks do all the leveling, and had jacks extended further, it was a little more 'wobbly' in the MH. Most times at a minimum, even on the most level sites, I'll use a minimum of 4 blocks - one under each jack.

I carry two sets (10 each) of the plastic 'lego' leveling blocks. In addition to that, I carry 6 12" pieces of 2x10, as well as 2 pieces of 2x10 that are about 24" long. Rarely do I use all of them, but I have on occasion.

Anyway, back to the original poster's specific question: I recommend at least 2 of the 10 packs of leveling blocks. Especially if you're not also bringing some wood pieces for leveling. There will be times you need more than 10.

Oh, one other suggestion: Also bring with you a small, portable shovel. On some occasions, instead of raising the low side higher, I'll lower the high side by digging a small trench for the wheels to sit in.

Thanks alot for all your great info!!

[kingsransom]

wallynm wrote:
All CAPS is considered shouting and more difficult to read. We carry several 4X4 blocks and use two of them under each jack.

kingsransom wrote:
NEW TO RVING AND I KEEP READING ABOUT PEOPLE TRAVELING AND HAVING TO USE MORE THAN JUST THEIR JACKS TO LEVEL THE RV AT A SITE. HOW MANY BLOCKS SHOULD I BUY?? I SEE CAMPING WORLD HAS A BAG OF 10 IN A SET AND THEY GOT GOOD REVIEWS. ARE TWO SETS ENOUGH? WOULD LOVE SOME FEEDBACK ON WHAT YOU USE, HOW MANY, HOW OFTEN, ETC...THANKS FOR THE INFO!!

Very sorry for the caps, bad habit I need to break, I use all caps at work, so always have it set that way. Thanks for your info!!