leveling a fifthwheel with a bumpout

[Eddielee]

I just bought my first RV with a bumpout. It's a '96 Jayco 36ft with rear kitchen and a long living room bumpout. My question - The RV came with two tall supports, which I assume are for supporting the extended bumpout. Does the bumpout need such additional support? And, could the use of them (if too much lift) cause the rain to pool against and leak into the main trailer? What is the best way to level and suport a fifthwheel (and bumpout) for extended stay (approx. 1 year)? Thanks for any info you can supply on the proper use of bumpout supports..........eddielee

[Eddielee]

I just bought my first RV with a bumpout. It's a '96 Jayco 36ft with rear kitchen and a long living room bumpout. My question - The RV came with two tall supports, which I assume are for supporting the extended bumpout. Does the bumpout need such additional support? And, could the use of them (if too much lift) cause the rain to pool against and leak into the main trailer? What is the best way to level and suport a fifthwheel (and bumpout) for extended stay (approx. 1 year)? Thanks for any info you can supply on the proper use of bumpout supports..........eddielee

[TXiceman]

All of the RV manuals I have seen specifically state to NOT support the slide outs. The problem arises if the front supports or axles settle a bit and the slide is support does not, it can and will put the slide in a bind and damage the mechanics.

To slide is designed to be self supporting. Only brace the main frame to support the rig.

We were in ours for a year and I leveled side to side with boards under the tires, run the nose up to level and them drop it about 2". Now run down the rear scissor jacks (on larger pads) and now run the nose back up to level. If you have a pin support, now install it and snug it up tight. DO NOT put supports under the slide outs.

Ken

[Hitchhiker]

The weight of an extended slide creates the pressure to keep the seals tight, keeping out rain, bugs, dust, etc. Could the two devices you're referring to be the lock bars intended for use inside with the slides retracted?

[K-Star]

I had a 98 Wilderness that had two long bars. As Richard eluded to, they were to keep the slide tight when in. The slideout is retracted and the bars are wedged between the top of the slide and the wall of the trailer.

[Madame Boomer]

The bars are slideout transit locks. They fit on top of the slideout between the inside wall and the inner lip of the slideout. Jayco used these up through our last Designer XL, a 2000 3610RLTS. They probably really aren't necessary, but Jayco is an extremely conservative manufacturer.

Rusty (posting under Sandy's log-in)

[xc-mark]

If you do use those stands make sure they are the last things you do during set up and the VERY first thing you do when breaking down camp ! there is a good chance you may leave then under the slide and take the weight off the leveling jacks and put some load on your slide out jack stands..... I dont see any need of useing them on my holiday rambler slide .

[Eddielee]

Thanks all for your replys. I have different bumpout locks that were in place when we pulled the rig into the park. The supports of which I write are over two ft high and are a taller version of the old fashion trailer supports that I used to use to support my travel trailers (I still have a box of about 10 of those in the shop). The only thing far enough off the ground that these will fit is the bumpout, so, I assumed that that was what they were for. The bumpout extends out about 24" and it just doesn't look right without some form of support out there. However, I can see your point - to be truthfull, the trailer did settle a bit on that side and I could see that there was upward pressure on the end of the bumpout. I figure that was what was causing water to drip inside along the top edge of the bumpout. I left the supports in place - however, I did lower them about 3/4" below the bumpout frame, to act to "catch" the weight if my 320# daughter and her two 200+lb(each)sons all stand in the bumpout at the same time (a good chance since that is where both the couch and dinett are located. I guess I'll just have to see what transpires. Thanks again for your comments..........eddielee
p.s. I had raised the trailer off the axle springs and supported it on stands so that the compression wouldn't cause the rig to squat with all the "weight" in it. Even so, it had sag'd down about 1/2" on the bumpout side. It's now back to level with the bumpout unsupported (except for the "catch stands").

[RustyJC]

If the trailer settles and the slideout is supported by these stands, it will indeed tip the top of the slideout inward and break the seal, so water leakage would be expected.

As I said, I've owned 3 Jaycos, 2 of which had slideouts (a Designer 3030RKSS and a Designer XL 3610RLTS). I never used or needed slideout supports, and Jayco (like most, if not all, manufacturers) does not recommend their use. The trailer frame, not the slideout, is designed to carry the slideout weight and loading.

(By the way, "bumpouts" or "tiltouts" are generally understood to be tilt-out space expanders as used on park models. Your trailer has a slideout.)

Rusty

[Eddielee]

Sorry RustyJC, I get in the habit of refering to things by the way I learned. I still refer to my motorhome as a "trailer" because I pulled travel trailers for almost 35 years. It is my first MH. The subject of this discussion is my first (and last) fifthwheel trailer. Bumpout is what I have called them ever since my good friend built one into his MH in the late 70's. Being a manual operation to extend it, he always refered to it as a "bumpout". I just picked that terminology. Thanks again, to all of you for your help.........eddielee

[JimmyDee]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">The bars are slide out transit locks. They fit on top of the slide out between the inside wall and the inner lip of the slide out. Jayco used these up through our last Designer XL, a 2000 3610RLTS. They probably really aren't necessary, but Jayco is an extremely conservative manufacturer. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I got these on my Sportsman also. It is correct they are locking pins to assure that the slide out doesn't come out during transit.
Jim