??? about TC on truck 24/7

[mdw60]

Not sure if this is ok or not. I have a crew cab dully truck, and the tc is 4500lbs. If I leave it on the truck sitting all year with jacks down, I lift the tc up half way to lighten it a bit. will it still hurt the springs? or wear it out? I take the truck and camper to work once a week or once every two weeks, just to run it.
some guys here on this tc forum has their camper on all year but uses it.
like to have the tc on the truck ready to go when I decide to use it at the last min.
any thoughts?

[rkortes]

I always released my Fast Guns and lifted the weight off of the tires and suspension. Took about 5 min.

[Desert1667]

I personally don't worry about my spring pack being effected by my 2900 lb Lance,
My Camper lives on my truck.



Desert

[mdw60]

great replys, I might add, I will take the tie downs off while sitting. the tc jacks might hold about 40% of its weight.

[Americamper]

I've had mine on for about 2 years now. I have not noticed anything that has changed on the truck or camper.

[SugarHillCTD]

camperpaul wrote:
Leaving the TC on the truck 24/7 is fine, just don't use the jacks unless you release the tie-downs.

Not necessary.

Measure the truck unloaded. Then when you lower the jacks, don't raise the truck any higher than what you measured.

-or if you are worried about the sky falling as others have predicted, raise it halfway to the unloaded height.

[AITG]

Gun people ask a similar question regarding leaving magazines loaded for long periods of time. The answer from people who design springs is that the spring wears through movement and not load.

If I wanted to leave my camper on the truck it wouldn't concern me a bit. The only reason I don't leave them attached 24/7/365 is that I have heated storage for the truck but the overhead clearance is only 7 feet.

[silversand]

...our camper (varies from ~1140 LBS to 1390 LBS depending on what is stored in it) has been on our truck (2500HD Silverado gasser ext.cab, 2004.5) since May of 2005; that's 8 years this past May (minus a 4 month storage stint over this entire time) !

I measured the distance from top of axle to bottom of bed on both sides when the truck was new, before loading camper (for various reasons), and after deciding to remove the camper at home, foregoing paid storage for the 1st time this October, the axle-to-bed distance is virtually the same on the unloaded Chevy (only varies by about 1/8th of an inch left to right).

The rear springs are as rock-solid unloaded today as they were when the truck came out of the showroom in 2004.

I suppose if your camper were perhaps 2000~4000 LBS sitting on your truck for 8 years, there could(?) be a noticeable change in your rear suspension...

*we have no suspension aids on the truck whatsoever since new; we don't and haven't run the jacks down to relieve weight over the past 8 years (with the exception of the 4 month stint as noted above). Your mileage may vary

[mkirsch]

The springs might start to fatigue slightly after several years, but other than that, there is no "wear" because just sitting there, there is no movement. Wear requires movement.

[bobndot]

I leave mine on 24/7. It's fine, does no damage to anything if you just leave it alone. Its a 2004.

[camperpaul]

12V Cummins wrote:
It doesn't hurt the truck nor camper. Best comparison is guys with utility beds on their truck with 1500lbs of tools in it. Those beds aint light and stay on the truck for the majority of its life

NOT a valid comparison.

The utility beds are NOT equipped with jacks.

Leaving the TC on the truck 24/7 is fine, just don't use the jacks unless you release the tie-downs.

[12V_Cummins]

It doesn't hurt the truck nor camper. Best comparison is guys with utility beds on their truck with 1500lbs of tools in it. Those beds aint light and stay on the truck for the majority of its life

[camperpaul]

Don't do it ...

It can easily damage the TC.

[Rockrash]

If I were going to leave my camper on 24/7 I think I would also jack it up to keep weight off of the tires/suspension. Bit, if you drive it once a week, I wouldn't worry about it. That's my .02