Unblocking/Blocking Travel Trailer

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
See posts with no answers
bmwcody

bmwcody

Member
Joined
Oct 11, 2017
Posts
7
Location
West Fargo, ND
Hello.

This past Spring I purchased a 2016 Keystone 38 FKTS Travel Trailer that is already leveled/blocked on cinder blocks (4 locations per side). Wood shims are between the blocks and the frame. Well the campground I'm on is switching to a member-owned campground and I've decided to move 30 miles to a new campground this Friday. Can anyone please give me some pointers on how to properly raise it to unblock (don't want to bend the frame) then also any pointers to block it at the new location? I'm new to the RV world so hope it goes as smooth as possible. Thanks in advance any assistance. 
 
Welcome to the forum.
The ideal way would be two bottle jacks. With a jack on each side right behind the rear axle, raise it enough to remove the blocks. Leave the front one's there. Then lower the trailer so the tires are on the ground. Then using the front jack by the hitch, jack the front up high enough to remove the front blocks. Depending on how many blocks are stacked, you may have to do it a couple of times to get it down completely off the blocks. It will really help if you have a helper.
 
Rene-- There are 8 blocking points; 1 set (left and right) near the front of the TT, one set forward of the axles, one set behind the axles and finally one set near the rear of the TT. So would I use the 2 bottle jacks to slightly raise the set behind the rear axles, then the axles forward of the axles to get the blocks removed and the tires firmly on the ground? Then raise the very back of the TT with the bottle jacks to remove those blocks then finally use the tongue jack to raise the front and remove that last set up front? Thanks for the quick response and hope I'm not asking silly questions.  :-[
 
These are not silly questions. I would put the jacks just behind the rear axle under the frame and jack the trailer high enough to get 6 of the columns out. Then like you said, set it on the ground then use the front jack to get the front blocks out.
 
Rene is right.  What you want to avoid is forming a bridge from the tongue jack to the rear blocks by raising the tongue while the rear blocks are in place.
 
If the concrete blocks are not cemented together you can do it the way I just did mine.

Take a sledge hammer and hit one of the blocks of one stack. Believe it or not they break easily with just a small hit. That will take the pressure off that stack. Then go to the other side and do it to one stack there. Repeat doing alternate ones on alternate sides until the trailer  just has it 's weight on the wheels.

When you do it at the next site, what I did was get the trailer level and the stabilizers down. Then stack your blocks trying to keep about a 1-3/4" space between the frame and the top block. (You might have to dig down a inch or so). This allows for a piece of treated 2"x 8" and shims on the top..
For shims the best bet is wood  cedar shingles. I got a broken bundle at Lowes for a couple of bucks.

Place one on the top of the2 x8, and them pound another one in from the opposite direction.

It worked like a charm for me !

jack L
 
JackL said:
When you do it at the next site, what I did was get the trailer level and the stabilizers down. Then stack your blocks trying to keep about a 1-3/4" space between the frame and the top block. (You might have to dig down a inch or so). This allows for a piece of treated 2"x 8" and shims on the top..
Click to expand...

You also need to put a board under the block so it doesn't settle into the ground.  Also, the 3 holes in the blocks have to be vertical so to get the most strength out of the block. 
 
Mine was on pea stone, so I didn't need anything.

Several choices: a piece of treated 2" x 8, a 2" thick patio block, or a piece of plywood like you mentioned.
If you are on soft ground, no matter what you put under the blocks they are going to settle unless you pour a concrete footing first, which would be overkill. You just need to check the piers every so often and add shims as required.

Jack L
 
bmwcody said:
Would a piece of plywood work under the cinder blocks or something more robust?
Click to expand...

Plywood would work but I would use pressure treated. You can use plywood for the top also.
 
Rene T said:
Also, the 3 holes in the blocks have to be vertical so to get the most strength out of the block.
Click to expand...


A friend of mine uses half a block with the hole horizontal under his landing gear. I can't seen to convince him this is a disaster waiting to happen! He's gotten away with it for 2 years though.
 
Joezeppy said:
A friend of mine uses half a block with the hole horizontal under his landing gear. I can't seen to convince him this is a disaster waiting to happen! He's gotten away with it for 2 years though.
Click to expand...

Crazy. He must have a fairly wide footprint on his landing gear. He may get a rude awakening someday and that could create a lot of structural damage to his frame. Common sense says to use with the holes vertical. Just look at house foundations using blocks.
 
Rene T said:
Plywood would work but I would use pressure treated. You can use plywood for the top also.
Click to expand...

Shims are the only way to go on the top. He needs two each going in the opposite direction or he will never get it tight.  Plywood will never work unless the frame is jacked up and then let down on top of it in which case he could harm the frame

From experience !

Jack L
 
JackL said:
Shims are the only way to go on the top. He needs two each going in the opposite direction or he will never get it tight.  Plywood will never work unless the frame is jacked up and then let down on top of it in which case he could harm the frame

From experience !

Jack L
Click to expand...

When I said plywood Jack, I meant to use it on top of the blocks THEN use shims. It would be virtually impossible to set all the blocks perfectly on a level plane without using shims. Unless you were on a slab.
 
Rene T said:
When I said plywood Jack, I meant to use it on top of the blocks THEN use shims. It would be virtually impossible to set all the blocks perfectly on a level plane without using shims. Unless you were on a slab
Click to expand...

Oops, Sorry I misunderstood you and thought you meant instead of shims

Jack L
 
Thanks to all of you for your words of wisdom. Got the TT blocked up, though the right side was a bugger to get level so I'll need to address that in the spring.
 
bmwcody said:
Thanks to all of you for your words of wisdom. Got the TT blocked up, though the right side was a bugger to get level so I'll need to address that in the spring.
Click to expand...

You should have leveled it side to side using Lynx  lock blocks under the wheels before stabilizing it
Jack L
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Members online

Total: 1,098 (members: 22, guests: 1,076)

Forum statistics

Threads
131,926
Posts
1,387,635
Members
137,675
Latest member
ozgal
Back
Top Bottom