Why side jacks first then front or back?

Paul T · 11-02-2009, 05:43 AM

Why does my owner’s manual say to always lower the side pairs of jacks before the front and back. And as a follow up, what have I harmed doing the procedure backwards now for a couple years, i.e. front jacks down, back jacks down then level side to side, then level front to back? You know what they say about "Senior Moments"!

Hikerdogs · 11-02-2009, 07:20 AM

Lowering the same side jacks first minimizes the amount of torque on the frame rails thus minimizing the likelyhood of twisting the frame. I doubt you've done any damage unless the site was so uneven that one of the front wheels was lifted off the ground. Even then the frame members are pretty tough. It's more a matter of repitition eventually stressing a frame member to the point that it either twists or cracks.

**Petro** · 11-02-2009, 07:45 AM

Paul;

Hikerdogs has answered your question correctly. I have been forced to park in some areas not very level. I have been advised many times to not raise the rear wheels off the ground do to loss of braking. I have several times raised the front wheels off the ground after leveling side to side with out any problems.

Don

Clay L · 11-02-2009, 09:13 AM

The manual for my Kwickee levelers says to level the front to back first and then side to side. Go figure!

RCtime · 11-02-2009, 09:17 AM

Paul T

I do it the same as you, however I lower the front till I just feel them touch, then the rear till I feel them touch. Level side to side, then front and rear.

wa8yxm · 11-02-2009, 09:40 AM

Differenet "Strokes" for different leveling systems.. now I've never seen a system with "Side" and Front/back.. Always front and back.. But that means nothing

The Power Gear jacks I use, I drop the front, then the rear (The demo guy did it the other way around) as the front jacks work together like a teeter totter and this elminates stress on the frame

Then we do the side/side job

Jerry J · 11-02-2009, 09:43 AM

I just hit the Auto Level button. That seems to work best. I believe the instructions say side level and then ends. Do not take the rear off the ground because of braking. I try to park with the low end in the front. I have had the front off the ground 3 or 4 times.
Last weekend I had the outside duals deflated so the valve stems could be rotated for air and temp. sensors. They asked if I could use my jacks so I did lift one side and then the other, I'm not sure I recommend it. Puts a lot of load on the other side but I suppose any kind of jack would do that anyway for a short time.

Batman_777 · 11-02-2009, 09:55 AM

Sounds like leveling, retracting and leveling again and again over time does put some stress on the frame. I use auto and hope the jack manufacture figured out the best way.

Paul T · 11-02-2009, 10:06 AM

Thank you all. The primary reason for my question was to determine if there was a hydralic plumbing reason for the recommedation. I'ver never pushed the system until all four feet were down anyway so never imagined someone might torque the frame so to speak.

Jerry J · 11-02-2009, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Batman_777

Sounds like leveling, retracting and leveling again and again over time does put some stress on the frame. I use auto and hope the jack manufacture figured out the best way.

I'm guessing less stress than the shaking that the cabinets and everything else go through from the drive down the road. Also probably driving out of a parking lot or driveway onto the street may put more of a twist on the frame than the jacks do. I'm getting kind of stressed just thinking about it.

phays · 11-02-2009, 06:08 PM

My HWH automatic leveling jacks raise the position that is most out of level. Either a side, front, or back. I don't understand any other reason for doing it differently. If you want the minimum extension when finally leveled it seems to me that the procedure my jacks use is the best way to achieve that.

Tim&Paula · 11-02-2009, 07:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Petro

Paul;

Hikerdogs has answered your question correctly. I have been forced to park in some areas not very level. I have been advised many times to not raise the rear wheels off the ground do to loss of braking. I have several times raised the front wheels off the ground after leveling side to side with out any problems.

Don

What happens if you are in manual and you forget to dump the air on the air bags and you extend the jacks. I did it the other day and have since been concerned I might have caused possible damage. Everything still works well.

wagonmaster2 · 11-02-2009, 10:35 PM

As I understand it, dumping the air bags before lowering the jacks just keeps the jacks from having to extend any further than necessary. And sometimes there isn't enough jack extension to level if the bags aren't dumped first. Quite a few times when the campsite is very level and all I need is to stabelize the coach for just one night I don't dump the air bags. I try to do the side by side level first before front to back but when the side is level and it just needs raising in front or back it kind of doesn't make much sense.

Wagonmaster2

DAN L · 11-02-2009, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul T

Why does my owner’s manual say to always lower the side pairs of jacks before the front and back. And as a follow up, what have I harmed doing the procedure backwards now for a couple years, i.e. front jacks down, back jacks down then level side to side, then level front to back? You know what they say about "Senior Moments"!

i understand that it is possible to twist the front of the frame enough to pop the windshields out.

leveling side to side, then front to rear is supposed to minimize this possibility.

how is your windshield?