Community Forums

Huck.hickson · 09-13-2012, 02:36 PM

He height stated in the owners manual is 11' 11". Does the include all the peripheral equipment on top of the coach (ac, vents, antenna,etc.)?

Second question. How do you use leveling blocks with the automatic jacks? Do the blocks go under the tires or the jacks...I am so confused?

awwall · 09-13-2012, 02:59 PM

Huck, that height should be highest point, including the A/C. With leveling jacks, you need nothing under the tires. If you are not leveling on concrete, you may want to cut yourself some 12x12x2 blocks to go under the jack feet when leveling the coach on dirt, rocks, and asphalt.

Moonshine94 · 09-13-2012, 03:18 PM

The 11'11" is the driving clearance, so the highest point on the roof with the TV antenna down. Raised, the TV antenna becomes the high point, and it's something over 13'.

wildtoad · 09-13-2012, 03:21 PM

The 12x12x2 blocks will come in handy on hot asphalt or dirt/gravel sites to give your jacks a stable platform. The jacks may dig into hot asphalt. You may also run into situatons where you just can't get the mh level with the jacks alone and will want/need one or more of the blocks under the jacks to get things right.

You may already know it is a really bad idea to raise the rear wheels off the ground.

Huck.hickson · 09-13-2012, 05:53 PM

Thanks all. I bought a bag of the plastic leveling blocks but l do like the 12x12x2 idea. Is pressure treated the way to go or will the normal unprotected lumber ok?

bdickson · 09-13-2012, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wildtoad

You may already know it is a really bad idea to raise the rear wheels off the ground.

Dumb question: Why? We've had one occasion where the site sloped to the back to the extent that the auto level lifted the back wheels off the ground.

Huck.hickson · 09-14-2012, 04:34 AM

In a case where the autolevelers raise a tire or tires off the ground, which I would assume puts a lot of additional pressure on the hydraulics, would it be best to manually level and use the blocks on the front?

Moonshine94 · 09-14-2012, 05:32 AM

The parking brake works on the rear wheels and the F53 has an open rear differential, so if one or both sides of the rear duals are off the ground you have no parking brake.

When I've been at a site where I couldn't level without getting rears off the ground I've placed my plastic leveling blocks such that I could drive the rears up on top of them, then level manually. That has allowed me to keep the rears in contact with the ground. I don't use wood because of the weight, but I use the stackable plastic ones that can be driven on or placed under the jack pads.

bdickson · 09-14-2012, 05:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moonshine94

The parking brake works on the rear wheels and the F53 has an open rear differential, so if one or both sides of the rear duals are off the ground you have no parking brake.

When I've been at a site where I couldn't level without getting rears off the ground I've placed my plastic leveling blocks such that I could drive the rears up on top of them, then level manually. That has allowed me to keep the rears in contact with the ground. I don't use wood because of the weight, but I use the stackable plastic ones that can be driven on or placed under the jack pads.

Thanks for the explanation, I hadn't thought of that. However, I do use wheel chocks any time a wheel is off the ground. I have some of the Lego blocks, I'll use them in future. Of course, moving to a level campsite is probably safer!

Huck.hickson · 09-14-2012, 07:23 AM

Is there a max stacking height on the Lego blocks? I assume the scenario where the rears would be off the ground would be where the rears would be lower than the front before leveling. Would the campsite owners normally allow you to reverse the parking situation for safety reasons. I realize it would be inconvenient for hookups, but for a one night stay on the way to a destination it may be a prudent thing to do to prevent an unsafe situation.

FredKate · 09-14-2012, 01:10 PM

Hello,

We just bought our 29.2 last week and drove it home to NJ from Tampa, staying two nights in NPS and State park sites. This is our very first RV experience and I was wondering about this topic, since we just used the jacks with nothing underneath. For those RVers that use them, do they use them much more often than not? Are they indispensable?

Thanks,

Moonshine94 · 09-14-2012, 01:19 PM

I've never asked to park backwards in a site. Before doing so I'd ask to switch to a different site.

I always use chocks when I park, no matter how level the site is or how many tires are on the ground.

I use my plastic blocks less than 1/4 of the time. Maybe 1 in 10 places I'll need them under a tire because a site isn't level. As for placing them under the jack pads I only do so if I'm on really soft/sticky asphalt. No need on concrete, and I haven't stayed anywhere with gravel sites.

Towertime · 09-14-2012, 06:44 PM

I don"t worry about it. I use the jack to stabilize the RV when parked and they do an excellent job for me. I have some 10 x 10 1" plywood wood pieces to use if on soft ground but I don't usually need it. I don't think it is a problem for 1 or 2 wheels off the ground as there are 4 jack pads supporting the weight of the RV. Per the Lippert jacks manual, the RV should not be completely off the ground. I don't usually use the chocks, but might if it were a pretty step site.