Community Forums

Trynforpar · 10-29-2015, 04:50 AM

I own a 40ft diesel pusher and about to do my first oil change. The rig is extremely low to the ground and close to impossible to crawl under the place a pan and removal drain plug. Can I raise the rear jacks to lift the vehicle and give me the height.

Sky_Boss · 10-29-2015, 05:13 AM

It's early, I'm awake so I'll be the first to say...

Yes you can..BUT...DON'T DO IT!

OK...got that out of my system. LOL

I also think many will say that working under the coach when it is on the airbags has potential safety concerns. I'll let other's more experienced with heavy rigs chime in but I bet the general opinion will be that if you must raise it, make sure you have the appropriate jack stands to support the weight.

Remember, if you do happen to lift the rear wheels off the ground that you no longer have any brakes holding the coach in place. Consider that factor too.

Spk64 · 10-29-2015, 05:22 AM

I agree. Do not do it unless you have jack stands rates for the weight of the RV.

I made a heavy set of ramps that I sometimes use for extra clearance. But also use the jack stands for extra measure of safety.

Steve

HD4Mark · 10-29-2015, 05:33 AM

I can just barely get under our coach to change the oil with the air bags up. I would not trust the jacks though. If left up the air bags take days, maybe weeks to go down if it is not started.

You could also drive up onto some boards to gain a couple of inches.

Robby W. · 10-29-2015, 05:54 AM

He's what I do:
1. drive back wheels onto a 2.5" wood board
2. lower coach, mostly to get the font end down.
3. chalk front tires
4 . raise rear end with jacks but not so high as the wheels come off the ground
5. and the big one 2 x 10ton jack stands perfectly adjusted at the very end of each frame rail.
6. double check every thing and take the keys out of the ignition.

I finished the job a few weeks back but forgot to take the jack the jack stands out, I now know for sure they'll hold the MH up.

Robby

Steve Ownby · 10-29-2015, 06:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trynforpar

I own a 40ft diesel pusher and about to do my first oil change. The rig is extremely low to the ground and close to impossible to crawl under the place a pan and removal drain plug. Can I raise the rear jacks to lift the vehicle and give me the height.

During your first change, consider installing an ez drain valve. Here s one but there are others:

http://www.ezoildrainvalve.com/

Will make your next change easier. After 7 years of DIY changes, I'm fairly trusting of my suspension. I would just drive up on some dimensional blocking to give a few inches of extra clearance. You could also raise the rear with your jacks & use a safety stand on the side you are working on.

Consider doing the fuel filters and coolant filter at the same time. Have you thought about transmission fluid & filters?

Steve Ownby
Full time since '07

Sweetbriar · 10-29-2015, 07:01 AM

Treat the coach jacks in the same manner as any other jack you would use to raise a vehicle, don't bet your life that nothing will go wrong. Always use additional support to hold the vehicle up when you're under it. High capacity jacks stands are available (Harbor Freight, Northern Tool and such) but understand that the capacity advertised usually isn't one jack stand but the capacity of both together. Best to size based on the coach maximum rear axle capacity. As long as you're not grossly over the axle capacity you will have stands that can safely support the coach. I have a set of 12 ton stands while my gas coach GVWR is 9 ton so I have a large margin for safety.