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Post Info TOPIC: Do you regularly level a fifth wheel with wheels up?


RV-Dreams Family Member

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Do you regularly level a fifth wheel with wheels up?


Curious what others do. We have a Landmark fifth wheel. It seems at least half of the the time, once we are leveled, (hydraulic auto levelers) our wheels are off the ground on one side or the other.  Thus being supported by the jacks. 

Im uncomfortable with this. Does it matter over the long haul if the jacks support the fifth wheel, or should the wheels be on the ground?



-- Edited by fun2travel on Sunday 21st of October 2018 03:13:06 AM

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I don’t think it really matters. We have a Bigfoot system on our New Horizons which will auto leve...but I can do it faster manually.  In general, taking the weight off of the wheels with the jacks will result in a more stable rig...but you don’t have to get them off the ground to do that...once the suspension starts unloading as the rig rises the jacks are carrying the weight. If you’ve only got 4 jacks...the rig might bow down a bit in the middle depending on frame stiffness, not an issue with our heavy NH frame but it’s why a lot of rigs have 6 jacks instead of 4. 



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We do have 6 jacks

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I always prefer my wheels to be "grounded."  If necessary, I carry a number of sections of heavy rubber cut from a barn stall mat that I can place under the wheels.  As mentioned earlier, if one also has the wheels "grounded," then there is more stability.  Besides, the more of the hydraulic cylinder ram that is out of the "housing" the more unstable the RV will be, so there are always blocks under our leveling jacks.

As for stability, I think that putting one of those X-type chock things between the tires on each side also increases stability by preventing the wheels from trying to roll.

Terry



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We live full time in our Landmark Key West and when we set up at a campsite we use a block (wood) or two under each stabilizer.  Depending on the campsite, we generally use two blocks under the front stabilizers and one block on each of the remaining stabilizers.  We have never had our tires lift completely off the ground.  

Frank



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Maybe we are putting too many orange squares under the jacks. We usually put 4-5 under each jack so the jacks don’t have to extend so far.

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We didn't have auto levelers with our fifth wheel, but we do on our Class C motorhome.

Though many people do it, I don't like seeing wheels off the ground on any type of unit and we wouldn't do it. I have no scientific basis, but having wheels hanging from the suspension can't be good on the suspension over the long haul. The suspension is not made to "hang".

When we level the motorhome, if the front wheels come off the ground, they hang pigeon-toed. So we put the rig back down and block the tires enough so that they are resting on a solid surface.

That's just us. 



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We have had this happen a few times with no issues. We have begun using the Andersen jack blocks (which look like upside-down red paint buckets), and offer about 8" of height. This causes our jack legs to extend less and reduces movement in the rig. While having your wheels off the ground is less than ideal, I have never worried about it, but this is just MO.



-- Edited by RonC on Monday 22nd of October 2018 07:41:14 AM

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We have a motor home, now in our second year of full timing. A year ago we were on a sloped site and our front end was off the ground, it worked. But now we try to have the wheels touch the ground. To us it feels more stable, less shaky. Personally I'm happy to learn that adding multiple blocks is a good thing, as I have begun to do that. Might consider getting some barn mats, like that too.

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Cookie Dough wrote:

We have a motor home, now in our second year of full timing. A year ago we were on a sloped site and our front end was off the ground, it worked. But now we try to have the wheels touch the ground. To us it feels more stable, less shaky. Personally I'm happy to learn that adding multiple blocks is a good thing, as I have begun to do that. Might consider getting some barn mats, like that too.


 

With regards to the barn stall mats, below is a picture of my smaller pieces.  The mat itself is 3/4" think, and I cut the smaller pieces to be 8" wide by 1 foot long.  That is what you will see in the picture below.  While it isn't very apparent in the picture, one side of the mat is smooth while the other side is rough.  Since we have a fifth wheel, I also cut 3 pieces to be long enough for each one to be able to be under both wheels on one side.  I don't remember the length on those, and they are too much out of the way to dig out to measure.  Since you have a mobile home, you may not have dual axles, unless you have a good sized Class A.

One other thing is that because they are rubber, they do give some when driven up onto, plus, they might tend to twist a bit when driving up on it.  In my case, I usually use my Level-Up jacks to raise the wheels off the ground and then slip the mat(s) under the wheels and let them down.

Terry



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RV-Dreams Family Member

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We are on our second fifth wheel with the Lippert level Up system. The first was a four hydraulic jack system and the second is a six jack system. Both have occasionally lifted one side or the other off the ground. Neither has presented a problem with stability or with the suspension.

I remember several years ago when Bob Tiedge, the original designer of the system introduced it at various shows. He consistently lifted a heavy Mobile Suites trailer off the ground by several inches to demonstrate the strength of the jacks and the system in general. There were always many people visiting inside the trailer and did not complain of rocking or instability.

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Neil and Connie wrote:

I don’t think it really matters. We have a Bigfoot system on our New Horizons which will auto leve...but I can do it faster manually.  In general, taking the weight off of the wheels with the jacks will result in a more stable rig...but you don’t have to get them off the ground to do that...once the suspension starts unloading as the rig rises the jacks are carrying the weight. If you’ve only got 4 jacks...the rig might bow down a bit in the middle depending on frame stiffness, not an issue with our heavy NH frame but it’s why a lot of rigs have 6 jacks instead of 4. 


 X2  We have 4 jacks as the frame doesn't require 6. But we have wheels off the ground all the time.  Just not an issue.   We travel a great deal and it is just not unusual for one side to be much lower then the other an so have all wheels on one side off the ground.

We just have zero concern about having all wheels on one side off the ground.  The rig is sable with one side totally off the ground.  But some of this has to do with the frame and strength of the jacks.

FWIW, with the Big Foots we've changed all 6 tires at the same time without concern.  All within the ratings of the jacks and rig.

That's our report.

Bill



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I have 6 jacks.

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Lippert does NOT recommend (or warranty) their leveling system used to hold the trailer in the air or used in order to change a flat tire.
I just came from a 3 day training class up in Indiana, that was one of the things they taught. Tires are to be grounded.
1st thing I do when setting up in a site after I back in. Go to back of 5th.wh. put a level across to see left- right. If I staying long term I carry 2 2x12x5' boards that I'll put under the tires. Short term an depending how out of level, I carry same size 3/4' plywood to place under (more blocking if needed) low side. Once left-right is level, drop the Trl. an level frt-bck. Stay safe out there.

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Lippert’s disclaimer is a lawyer thing ... common sense says you should NEVER work under something that is suspended by a hydraulic jack of any kind. The correct way is to raise the side to get the tires off the ground, put jack stands under the frame, lower the unit down so that the weight of the unit is on the jack stands (not the hydraulic jacks) ... then remove the tire. Reverse the procedure to take it down.

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RonC wrote:

Lippert’s disclaimer is a lawyer thing ... common sense says you should NEVER work under something that is suspended by a hydraulic jack of any kind. The correct way is to raise the side to get the tires off the ground, put jack stands under the frame, lower the unit down so that the weight of the unit is on the jack stands (not the hydraulic jacks) ... then remove the tire. Reverse the procedure to take it down.


 Very true, Ron.  But the same should apply to parking in an RV site where the ground is not level and one has to have the wheels up.

In addition to Lippert's comments, I was visiting with an RV repair service guy in Oklahoma City the other day and he basically stated the same as Lippert's comment on their jacks.  Now, I don't know what is said by the other manufacturers of leveling jacks, but I'd guess that they are going to be very similar.

As I have stated in the past, the only time my wheels get off the ground is if I need to raise them with the leveling jacks to slip boards or mats under the wheels to get level side to side.  The wife and I spent a fair amount of money to purchase as nice of an RV that we could.  I certainly don't want to damage it or get someone injured.

Terry



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