Best thing to use under jacks while unloading on grass

[HUNTERJEFF]

I was wondering what the best thing to put under the jacks while storing my camper on grass.
Thanks
Jeff

[Grit_dog]

On grass long term? Patio blocks.
Short term? Whatever scrap lumber you have laying around.

[Kayteg1]

You are in TX, but plywood sitting on wet dirt will rot, or delaminate within 1 winter in wet climates.
I mention it before, but now is good time to remind.
On my Fleetwood, who had some water damage, I measure that front walls overhangs sag pretty much over the years.
That could be due camper big weight, where main beam supporting the overhangs was 3/4 x 1.5" (how is that for holding 4000 lb ?) or maybe PO over-stressing front ties.
Either way, when you drop the camper on floor support, good idea to grab the level and check how the sides compare to floor level.
Playing with jacks you can re-level it for long storage, so the sag does not accumulate over the years.

[TxGearhead]

Normally I would agree. But look at that site I referenced. They are far from the typical sawhorse kit.
Bigfoot has a diagram in their owners manual of how they want theirs to be stored. Concrete blocks with a 4X4 across side to side at the front, just in front of the "skirt" area, and another as far back as possible. Then a sheet of plywood on top of the 4X4's. I used the concrete blocks for a while but moving them around everytime I loaded and unloaded was a true pain in the back, so I substituted 6X6 treated pine blocks, 16" long, sitting on 24X24 plywood. I put my jacks on 2" concrete pads at the back, and the front is on a small piece of scrap 1x6 sitting on a 24x24 plywood pad. I put my jacks down to just a little past contact when storing.
When loading I back over the plywood and it doesn't upset the truck too much.

[Kayteg1]

I estimate front jacks on my camper carry about 4000 lb when loaded.
Don't trust sawhorses at this weight.
Also supporting the floor in midllelenght is bad idea. Not much frame there.
Put support under front wall.
Being in construction, I found a 2x3 aluminium tubing and cut it to length to support front of the camper.
For jacks support I do have lot of scrap wood.

[TxGearhead]

I misspoke. The ones I saw don't support 2,000 pounds, it's 4,000 pounds each.
Look at sawhorsebrackets.com

[lakeside013104]

TxGearhead wrote:

But Home Depot has metal frames to build sawhorses, about $55 per pair, plus lumber. Supposed to support 2000 pounds per set. I might do that.

Might work, but these are designed specifically for truck campers by Torklift:






Works for me. Opps, sorry about the tent picture,,,,,,

Lakeside

[TxGearhead]

I had an old sheet of plywood and cut 24" X 24" squares out of it. Then stack 6 x 6 on top of that, then a 4x4 then a sheet of 3/8 plywood. Front middle and back.
But Home Depot has metal frames to build sawhorses, about $55 per pair, plus lumber. Supposed to support 2000 pounds per set. I might do that.

[mellow]

Btw, I got the Camco ones after getting tired of hauling the wood blocks around, plus the wood blocks get warped over time. The Camco ones lock in to each other and fit in a small place for storage, that was a huge plus for me.

[ICamel]

SidecarFlip wrote:
I use pressure treated boards cut to 12" lengths. Lower the camper as close to the ground as possible too.

Pretty much the same for me, but substitute Trex decking for wood.

[mellow]

Camco RV Stabilizing Jack Pads, Helps Prevent Jacks From Sinking, 6.5 Inch x 9 Inch Pad - 4 pack (44595)

Works great for me, search amazon.

[Eric_Lisa]

When & where? I have no problems unloading my camper on grass on level ground in the middle of summer. Ask me the same question in the middle of winter when the ground is soft an mushy, and you will get a different answer.

Take 'grass' out of the question and insert sand, dirt, gravel, etc. The same thing applies. How stable is the surface? Is it likely to significantly compact over time? If so, then disperse the load by adding blocks under the jacks.

And since you are 'storing'.... Yeah, put some sort of platform underneath to hold the load. Also probably put down some tarps to block stuff from growing up under the camper - you don't want to come back to your camper in a weed patch in a month.

HTH,
-Eric

[JimK-NY]

In addition to the boards supporting the jacks, you might want to add a stack of pallets or other supports for the body of the camper so that the jacks do not have to carry the full weight. I do that even when storing on a hard surface.

[SidecarFlip]

I use pressure treated boards cut to 12" lengths. Lower the camper as close to the ground as possible too.