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So lets say you need to bring one side up 3-4 inches

DinTulsa
Explorer
Explorer
Just picked up our first TT. We will mostly be rving on sites that are level concrete pads that won't require much more that a 1" block on the side with 3 slides to help level it out. But lets say we find ourselves in a spot that is significantly lower on one side. How do you bring the trailer up if you have a series of 1 foot blocks, or plastic pads, without causing the top blocks to kick out as you try to climb up them. I have considered carrying 1 ft. sections of 1x8, 2x8 and if I needed more than a couple of inches grab a set of Anderson levelers for up to 4 inches.
50 REPLIES 50

irishtom29
Explorer
Explorer
I just bought four 7000 pound scissor jacks I'm going to weld to the frame, on both sides just fore and aft of the wheels. Then I'll just crank up on the jacks to level, no screwing around with blocks.

I now use a pair of Bal wheel jacks, one for each wheel; they lift one side of the trailer fine but they are heavy, fiddly finger pinchers, I'll be glad to be rid of them.

alexleblanc
Explorer
Explorer
rbpru wrote:
I carry 5 foot 2x12 and 1x8 in the bed. If three inches is not enough we sit crooked or we will move.


This is what we've always done as well.
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Brain411
Explorer
Explorer
24fb freedom wrote:
If possible when I'm leveling my rig I dig a couple holes to drop either side of rig,works for us since we do a lot of boondocking in the desert


This is what I do out in the desert as well, lowers the step, helps with the rocking in the wind and easier for the dogs to get in and out

RVcircus
Explorer II
Explorer II
We use Andersen Levelers and they make life easy. I'm a huge fan of easy while camping.
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Huntindog
Explorer
Explorer
I am not a fan of raising the TT with blocks. Doing this makes it less stable in wind and can raise the steps to an unacceptable height.

I haven't used blocks for the last 15 years.
I dig holes for the high side wheels. All that is required is a shovel, which is a handy thing to have in camp for other things anyway.
The advantages of this method is that the TT CANNOT roll period. So long as gravity is present, the TTs wheels will remain stuck to the bottom of the holes. This makes for a much more stable TT in the wind, and you don't need wheel chocks. And the steps stay nice and low.

Of course there are places where digging holes may be frowned upon.... But those are usually places that are charging for sites, and SHOULD be providing reasonably level sites for those charges. If one is willing to pay for an unlevel site... I have no good solution. You would need to use the blocks of some sort. I see a lot of destroyed plastic blocks in my travels, so I won't suggest them. wood is plentiful, and often just laying around to be had for the taking.

I saw a friend at a trial who had his TT roll off of the blocks and damage his tounge jack. It was soft ground that simply gave way. The tounge ended up on the ground and some of the stabilizers were bent up. It was quite a project to fix... When I went over there to see what had happened, he asked me how I would have done it. I showed him my shovel/hole method... He is an engineer, and had never even considered lowering the highside vs raising the low side!

Huntindog
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LarryJM
Explorer II
Explorer II
LIKE2BUILD wrote:
Dcarner wrote:
But lets say we find ourselves in a spot that is significantly lower on one side. How do you bring the trailer up.....

I have 5 sets of Lynx Levelers (3 were given to me) and I love them for this very thing. The interlocking blocks fit snug together and make it easy to form a ramp to get the wheels up on them. I know they're a bit pricey, but I've had mine for over 10 years and they are still in good shape.

KJ


X2, I have 3 sets and like them since they store compactly and are light. I also use them to make ramps for my Van for changing oil, etc to give a little more clearance when crawling underneath.

Larry
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Sport45
Explorer II
Explorer II
RCMAN46 wrote:
When I need only 1/2 inch I use the Tri-Lynx 00019 LynxCap.

1/2 inch level block.


If I'm within a half-inch I quit worrying about it. The cooking oil runs to one side of the pans at home. Dealing with it on the road isn't a problem.
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mtofell1
Explorer
Explorer
Scraps of various size lumber. Cutting ends (or just finding scraps with angled ends) helps a lot. Also, just having some scraps of 3/4" plywood helps make nice small "stair steps". The 1.5" of dimensional lumber can be a bit much.

In most cases leveling side to side just takes a few minutes..... and I'm usually pretty motivated since once I'm done it's time to crack a beer. I've gotten to know each of my trailers and slides and how they respond when the slides are extended. I try to go about 1/2" high on the slide side and it comes out just about perfect.

RCMAN46
Explorer
Explorer
When I need only 1/2 inch I use the Tri-Lynx 00019 LynxCap.

1/2 inch level block.

CavemanCharlie
Explorer II
Explorer II
I will use one or two more boards / lynx blocks under one wheel to get the best level .

I would not do that to the maximum amount of lift for the suspension

RedRocket204
Explorer
Explorer
SoundGuy wrote:
... in my case my ramp was 54" long and 7.5" high at the high end. When my KZ Spree was backed up on to the ramp for maximum lift there was a mere 1/2" clearance between the top of the rear tire and the wheel well while there was in excess of 3" of clearance with the front tire ... clearly the rear tire and it's suspension components were supporting far more load than was the front tire which at this point was supporting very little.


~1" or lower does not equate to 3" - 7.5". I am talking about maybe 1" or less off-level to where adding another lego block can get the trailer off-level in the opposite direction. Again, if a 1" height difference on the same side between front and rear tire/axle is a problem for your trailer... your trailer is hazardous and shouldn't be on the road. You are easily putting more stress on your axles in regards to a height delta every time your TT travels down the road versus having one tire 1" higher on the same side while camping.


oh yeah, :R
I love me some land yachting

SoundGuy
Explorer
Explorer
RedRocket204 wrote:
There is suspension for a reason and I seriously doubt there would be enough measurable increase in force on either axle to make a difference... yes, that is an assumption but your assessment is also an assumption.


Sorry to disappoint but there's been no "assumption" on my part. 😉 Back in 2010 a group of us on another forum investigated the vagaries involved in using a ramp to level the low side of a trailer ... in my case my ramp was 54" long and 7.5" high at the high end. When my KZ Spree was backed up on to the ramp for maximum lift there was a mere 1/2" clearance between the top of the rear tire and the wheel well while there was in excess of 3" of clearance with the front tire ... clearly the rear tire and it's suspension components were supporting far more load than was the front tire which at this point was supporting very little. Had the ramp slope been even greater the rear tire would have been forced right into the wheel well and the front tire would have elevated right off the ramp - why? ... because all the force was bearing down on the rear tire and it's related suspension components while there was zero force on the front tire. Clearly there's a mistaken impression that suspension equalizers are designed for the purpose of allowing considerably different force to consistently bear down on one tire (and it's suspension components) more than those of the adjacent tire ... in truth, it's purpose is to simply allow each tire to maintain contact with an uneven ground surface as the trailer traverses that surface. This is not rocket science but simply a matter of physics - if a total force of X normally supported by two tires (and their suspension components) is forced to be carried by just one tire then obviously that one tire (and it's suspension components) will be carrying twice the load. When leveling my own trailer side to side I simply prefer to avoid this situation whenever I can and would therefore not elevate just one tire in a set for the purpose of leveling the trailer. What you choose to do is obviously up to you but this is my choice which is far from being based on "assumption". :R
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RCMAN46
Explorer
Explorer
ralph day wrote:


Just don't drive up on them using 2 feet (brake and gas pedals). On sand I locked the trailer brakes and just buldozed with the Anderson's for a foot or so.

Ralph


With my prodigy P3 buldozing is not a problem as it is easy to disable the trailer brakes so I can two foot gas and brake on the TV for controlled backing.

dodge_guy
Explorer II
Explorer II
RedRocket204 wrote:
SoundGuy wrote:
RedRocket204 wrote:
If you are a bit OCD about getting the TT completely level, I've noticed at times adding a block to a side that is ~ 1" lower can then make it higher than the other side, throwing off level again. I've found you can offset the slightly off level by only raising 1 of the 2 axles to get a completely side to side level trailer.


Which is why my Wood / Lynx system includes a non-Lynx base I can use on the high side for fine tuning side-to-side level. OCD? ... maybe, but if I can do it this easily, why not? As for elevating just one tire on the low side that's not something I would do as it places much more force on the elevated axle vs the non-elevated axle, same as using a ramp ... IMO a poor idea.


There is suspension for a reason and I seriously doubt there would be enough measurable increase in force on either axle to make a difference... yes, that is an assumption but your assessment is also an assumption. If the axles were that weak, I think there would be much bigger issues.


Yes. That is what the equalizer is for! It distributes the load evenly between axles. Now rubber torsion axles are different. But still a little bit will not hurt, even if your staying out for a week.
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