Best Procedure to Raise Levelers and Inflate Airbags

[J Walker]

I usually raise my levelers and then inflate the airbags. Particularly when the rear tires were raised off the ground, there is one popping sound from each side when inflating the airbags. In a campground today a camper said that if I inflated the airbags before raising the levelers the popping would go away. Also, does anyone know the source of the popping sound?

[MisterT]

yes, he's right. Thor suggests that you at least start inflating bags BEFORE you 'raise' your stabilizers. This provides the ability for the bags to provide a 'shock absorber' effect, eliminating the sounds you are hearing. When you don't start inflating first, your coach is resting directly on the frame, where there is no ability to buffer the movement, jiggling, or bounce that naturally happens when the stabilizers raise.

setup:
-deflate bags
-lower legs to stabilize and level coach

when leaving:
-inflate bags
-raise legs

in effect, always use the LOWER(deflate bags) or AUTO(inflate) FIRST when either arriving or leaving.

[J Walker]

Thanks MisterT. I am glad to hear that Thor recommends the procedure you describe and others are using it. My popping noise is occurs when the airbags are inflated after the levelers are raised which is a little different than you describe. I don't know if I have an additional problem but I will see if the popping goes away when I use the procedure you describe.

[Peterrrr]

My procedure is the same as yours, always retract my levelers then inflate my air bags. I also sometimes hear the popping sound and I too am curious as to the source.

I will never level the coach if the rear tires are off the ground. Your parking brake(spring brake applied after removal of air) is only on the rear axle. Maybe it is just something in my head, but I like the stability which they give me.

[Don Voyage]

Arriving at campground:
Deflate air bags
Use levelers

Departing campground:
Double check coach is level and adjust if needed prior to retracting slides.
Inflate air bags
Raise levelers.

Popping is the rear air bags expanding outward. No damage can occur to them.

Don

[Peterrrr]

Thanks Mister T and Don. for your replies. New procedure for me to follow.

[MisterT]

Originally Posted by Peterrrr

I will never level the coach if the rear tires are off the ground. Your parking brake(spring brake applied after removal of air) is only on the rear axle. Maybe it is just something in my head, but I like the stability which they give me.

I used to have the same feelings when I first got my coach and had several unlevel park pads, or gravel sites, that caused any of the tires to come off the ground, especially the rear drive tires.
I now realize that the level system is perfectly capable of handling the load, meaning the WHOLE coach, even if NO tires touch the ground.
I believe our fear is that somehow the wheels add to the carrying load and/or stability and the airbrakes add to the safety when leveling. The fact is, though, when the legs carry the load, the tires, even if touching the ground, are NOT carrying any of the load. If a tire is touching the ground, it is actually because it's weight is keeping it there, not because it needs to be there for leveling.

You can try a test. It's best on flat level ground: park the coach, empty the bags, and don't use the legs for leveling(since it should already be close enough to level). Run out the slides(it's perfectly ok on when parked level). Spend the night. What you might find is that the coach has much more of a noticable movement when you walk around inside, sit down on the coach, or hop in bed.
This extra movement is due to the wheels carrying the load, instead of the leveling legs. The wheels, like on any other vehicle, are designed to move, not to be 'stable' as the legs are.

In essence, what I've realized is: these leveling systems are engineered and designed to carry the full load of the coach - and no matter your 'angle', as long as it's within reason. Matter of fact, the system will even alert you if the angle is too severe. In that case, you might should consider another place to park!

27k miles, 150+ parks, campgrounds, and parking lots - and no problems!

[BillSkeen]

Originally Posted by Don Voyage

Arriving at campground:
Deflate air bags
Use levelers

Departing campground:
Double check coach is level and adjust if needed prior to retracting slides.
Inflate air bags
Raise levelers.

Popping is the rear air bags expanding outward. No damage can occur to them.

Don

I always have to have my engine running to get the battery level up to run the leveling system. I read somewhere to run the generator before extending and retracting the slides, even if on shorepower. So my procedure is a little different.

Arriving at campground:
Leave engine running
Start generator
Deflate air bags
Extend levelers
Extend slide

Departing campground:
Start engine and generator
Re-level, if needed.
Retract slides
Inflate air bags
Raise levelers

[MisterT]

hmmmm....
in all our travels and probably 300+ slide runs in/out in the last 12 months, I've never had to be plugged in or run the genset in order to run in/out the slides. Never had an issue with any lack of internal power for the slide system from the batteries themselves.
I have in the past, especially at first, thought that I needed to be plugged in, in order to keep the slide power available, but I don't know of anything in the manual or instructions that require any additional power. It was just in my head. : )

this also goes for the levelers. I've, on several occasions, only turned the key to 'ON' and either AUTO leveled, or used the Manual mode, sometimes just to put the levelers down while in a flat parking lot, but not necessarily 'all the way down'.

[BillSkeen]

One of the places I read about running the generator:

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f281/list...ml#post2645943

It may be that I have some other battery/electrical/charging issue. When I first turn on the leveling system after the RV has been sitting for a few days, the low battery indicator light comes on. So, I have to start the engine to charge the batteries.

[jones47172]

Originally Posted by BillSkeen

...When I first turn on the leveling system after the RV has been sitting for a few days, the low battery indicator light comes on. So, I have to start the engine to charge the batteries.

It is not unusual to get a low voltage reading when turning on the leveling system. Somewhere in the manuals I believe there is a statement that the engine is be started to raise the voltage. It takes a few seconds for the coach voltage to climbing after starting the engine. My procedure is to operate the levelers with the engine running.

[Safetysteve5]

Freightliner told us at Camp Freightliner that you should avoid lifting the wheels off the ground period. They hang by the air bags & shocks only and that is a lot of weight which can cause damage. Not to say you will damage anything at any given time this happens, but it is possible. I never heard a popping sound from my rear air bags until I ended up with the left rear wheel off the ground at an un-level site. Made a loud bang when they were next inflated after I set it back on the ground. I think this is the bag seating itself between the upper & lower retainer disc. I always release air bags then level, then inflate air bags before retracting jacks. If I don't it in this order I get a severe jumping motion as the jacks retract without the air bags to buffer the motion.

[TK IV]

I agree with safetysteve5.