How important are leveling jacks?

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kccougar

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Jan 26, 2008
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13
I'm looking at older motorhomes, many of which do not have leveling jacks. If I buy one without, will I wish I had them.  This motorhome would be for occasional vacation use.
 
kccougar said:
I'm looking at older motorhomes, many of which do not have leveling jacks. If I buy one without, will I wish I had them.  This motorhome would be for occasional vacation use.

I am sure you will miss them.  Having had one MH without leveling jacks I would not have another without.
 
I don't have them and never had, so I don't miss them.  It's easier to level with one person driving and another spotting/checking the level, though.
 
Something that should be mentioned is that leveling a MH is not just a comfort thing. Your fridge will not work properly unless the vehicle is reasonably level. On mine I have found that it can be off side to side, but not front to rear.
I have hydraulic leveling jacks but I have found that on some terrain I have to put several pieces of 2x12 under the jacks to get the coach level. The pads also keep the relatively small base of the jacks from sinking into soft ground too.

Woody
 
We don't have them. We've never had them. We use the orange leveling blocks you can buy at Wal-Mart and boards. It would be easier with leveling jacks but the motorhome didn't have them and we've never missed them enough to pay to have them installed.

Wendy
snowy Cortez
 
There are three ways to level a motor home

1: Boards, or other devices you drive up on to level... LOTS OF WORK

2: Jacks  Very easy

3: Air Leveling Systems (Even easier)

It is improtant the motor home be fairly level, if it's more than a couple of degrees off you will not be comfortable and neither will the fridge. Absorption cooling uints (RV-Fridge) need to be either moving down the road or close to level

On the other hand... Compressor units (Like you house) could care less

Your bed needs level too  YOU WILL CARE

Jacks are my choice due to the fact they are stable however there are advantages to air-leveling systems too.
 
In visiting approx. 80-100 commercial campgrounds over a few years, I have used my levelling blocks about 4 times.

  Now if you intend to boondock, that's another story.

carson FL
 
We have had no jacks, hydraulic jacks (Bigfoot), and air leveling.  For years we used leveling boards, but I will never forget our first night with the hydraulic jacks.  We pulled into a paved parking lot that was seriously angled and it was pouring rain.  We simply pushed a button and leveled.  We looked at one another and grinned.  That was so neat!  No going out in the rain, no hassling with blocks of wood (we had gotten it down pretty pat by then), and it was WONDERFUL!  Once you have any kind of automatic leveling you will never want to be without it.  Now we have air leveling and it's even better!  We've upgraded two Class Cs with the Bigfoot jacks because trying to level with boards can be a real hassle if you're in a place that is not only unlevel but also has one corner down more than the other three or if you're in someone's driveway that is slanted.  We are travelers (as opposed to those who go to one campground and stay a while) so we have found many campgrounds that do not have level sites.  You WILL want them!

And, in case you're wondering, we chose Bigfoot because they have a larger base that rests on the ground.  If it's muddy or sandy, the jacks with small "feet" can sink right into the ground.  Many of the RVing organizations require leveling boards under jacks at their rally sites to prevent damage for which they are responsible and have to pay to repair.  We've seen jacks with 8" x 8" leveling boards sink six inches into the soft ground.  The Bigfoots help alleviate this problem because the weight is spread over a larger area.  Also, I personally believe that four jacks are better than three although some people disagree with me.

ArdraF
 
Re 4 jacks or 3... There are a couple of different 4-jack systems

One system each jack has it's own control valve and controller

The other system the front (normally) jacks are connected with a "T" fitting so they work in tandem

The 3 jack system the front jack (normally) is centered.

My belief is that this system (3-jack) puts a lot of stress on the frame cross member, Posibility of disaster here.

The 4-independent jack system.. What happens if ONE valve fails?

The "T" fitting system (What I have on my coach) Love it

I think the 4-jacks do a much better job of supporting the frame, since they are bolted to the frame right near the wheels (Strongest point) and there is no stress on the cross member
 
kccougar said:
If I buy one without, will I wish I had them.

Yes. You will find leveling at times a real PITA. I have had 2 MH's, a TT, and a Fifth Wheel prior to my present coach. When I was looking at used MHs the two items I would not consider being w/o anymore were a slide and leveling jacks. A few trips out into the cold rain late at night on a surface that one wheel side to side must be raised more than the other will bring you back to this point of asking the question here.

I'm an RVer that has had to "work my way up" to the stuff that makes moving as a full timer easier - and for the most part, I have arrived at a point after about  10 years of full timing that keeps me wanting to travel down long lonesome highways vs. going back to a stick house. And I am into into Satellite TV, TiVo, auto slides, and leveling Jacks.

When I land and get into my spot correctly, I relax in the drivers captain chair and push the leveling jack buttons. Then I push the slide out button. Then I go to my computer desk and push the button that raises my Internet Sat dish. While it is zeroing in on my bird, I grab a glass of White Reisling and sit down in the Euro Recliner I bought on sale to replace the dumb barrel chairs that came with my coach -- and push the button that finds my DirecTV Satellite -- and sip a bit of wine. By this time the Internet Dish is well honed on the correct bird so I move back to my computer desk and check my email.  :)

So my advice and opinion is don't even consider a used MH w/o jacks. They will make your RVing ventures much easier, they will make your coach more stable in the wind vs. a bunch of boards just raising the wheels, will cost much less than if you have them added, and will make your rig easier to sell when that time comes.
 
kccougar said:
I'm looking at older motorhomes, many of which do not have leveling jacks. If I buy one without, will I wish I had them.  This motorhome would be for occasional vacation use.

One thing to keep in mind is not only do the jacks level the coach with minimum frustration but they normally will stabilize the coach so there isn't as much rocking when people move about. Four jacks do a better job at this than the three jack system.

We have the three jack system on our current coach, which is now 8 years old, and have not seen any problems related to it.
 
I would have to agree with Jim there,  3 points define a plane,  so the 3-jack system, in theory, is as stable as the 4

My concern is the stress that single front jack puts on the cross member.  I have heard of cross member failures.

With my 4-point system with the front jacks "T"ed, I have, in essence, a 3 jack system, but there is no stress on that cross bar as the jacks are bolted to a nice, strong, FRAME rail, the strongest rails on the ride
 
We have had four jack system and the present coach has a three jack system.  IMHO it is just as stabil as the four jack system.  I prefer the three jack system over the four jack system.  I can guarentee you there is no problem with the single front jack stressing the cross member.
 
Ron said:
We have had four jack system and the present coach has a three jack system.  IMHO it is just as stabil as the four jack system.  I prefer the three jack system over the four jack system.  I can guarentee you there is no problem with the single front jack stressing the cross member.

HWH seems to disagree, Ron. THIS quote from their website:

QUOTE: The theory behind a 3-point system goes something like this: a single front jack levels the vehicle front to rear, while the two rear jacks level the vehicle side to side; thus, saving the cost of a fourth jack although sacrificing some front end stability. Although HWH produces both 4-point and 3-point systems, we strongly recommend 4-point systems with BI-AXIS control. In practice, 3-point systems perform adequately as long as the vehicle is parked on fairly level ground and the system is operated according to the instructions of the motorhome manufacturer. In our experience, however, a typical RVer will often find it very hard to level his rig with a 3-point system without twisting the structure in the process. UNQUOTE
 
We have the 4 point HWH jacks with Bi-Axis leveling.  If the ground is firm, it's impossible to twist the frame when leveling as the jacks only work in pairs.  There is no way to move just one jack.  The only reason I can see for a 3 point jack system is to save the cost of the fourth jack.  I suspect that system was designed by the motorhome manufacturers, not the jack manufacturers.
 
If the leveling instructions are followed the frame will not be twisted with 3 point jacks.  However, I did witness a case in which a rig with 4 jack system popped a windshield due to frame twisting after a rain when one of the rear jacks began to sink while the other three did not.  Like I said based on our experience we prefer the 3 jack system over the 4 jack system we had before.  Personal choices.
 
Our old C class rv didn't have jacks. Our A does.
My opinion is get a rig with jacks.
 
Bob, thanks for the HWH info.  That's exactly why we always ordered four jacks.  We've been in campgrounds where we've seen an RV back into a site with the front end on the downhill side.  We were appalled to see BOTH front tires entirely off the ground (you could see air between the tires and the ground) and with only one tiny jack holding up the entire front end.  In my opionion, that's just plain stupid.  The owners apparently never even considered the damage that could be done if that one jack gave away, especially if their emergency brake wasn't set and the darn thing started rolling downhill.  We've seen this numerous times, so it's not an uncommon occurrence.  I think if I were on the downhill side of someone like that, I'd ask to move to another site.  At least with two Bigfoot-style jacks on the front, there might be a better chance of reducing the damage.

ArdraF
 
Well, as I said, my Power Gear is a 4-jack, system but only 3 points, If one jack sinks then either the rig tilts to that side (if a rear jack) or toward the front) if it's a front jack) as the front jacks will self-level to match the rear

now, I have spoken with folks who had the cross member torqued by their single front jack, They insist they followed the instructions, though I assume it is possible they did not, but still the front cross member could not take the load.

Frankly I do not see how it could torque the frame, unless the cross member gave way

I'm very fond of the system I have as this discussion goes

There are other issues I'm not so fond of, but hey, each system has it's advantages (They are Power Gear v/s HWH issues  A couple things about HWH I like better than PG,  However when it comes to leveling the rig, I like PG's method of doing it)
 
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