DIY Leveling pads?

[FatChance]

Yes, always fully support all four tires on a dually axel.

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

Thanks for answering my questions. I have one more. When using the ramps under the rear duellies, do you use 2 so that it supports both wheels?
BTW. My other hobby is woodworking, so I am very familiar with the terminology.

Larry,
Yes, I ALWAYS use two, if I use any at all. I have seen folks use a single ramp on a set of duallies and, the un-supported tires hangs considerably lower than than the supported tire. To me, that's just plain ignorant of proper loading and support. Not to mention you're not achieving the height you desire 'cause, the unsupported tire is not doing any of the lifting, so, you've only accomplished 1/2 of what you were trying to do. Anyway, it was fun making those ramps.

While I don't continuously look for ramps for this purpose, I have not seen ANY that will support the weight of just about any diesel coach. Trying to achieve or construct a "light weight" set of ramps that will endure the constant torcher of the weight of a diesel coach, without the use of some NASA hidden super secret composite, ain't gonna happen. Along with lots of wood working under my belt, I've been a welder for decades too.

Making ramps from ANY metal, especially a set of 4 that won't take you down to 2 miles per gallon, hauling them around the country because of the weight, is pretty much a no-go. So, the only real, and somewhat cheap alternative is WOOD. Now, just what kind of wood, and how much effort one wants to put into a project like this is, well, up to each individual.

I too have made blocks, older ramps etc. from junk wood I had laying around. Well, most of those gave me so many splinters from use, it was time to get serious. So, you see what I've shown in the pictures. They've got about 5 years on them now and not ONE splinter or break. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
Scott

[A Traveler]

Some of you are vastly over complicating this. All I have ever used for jack pads are 2-foot lengths of 2 x 12s. I screwed an eye into the end of each pad, tied a 3-foot length of nylon rope to the eye to use for pulling them out from under the coach and done. I’ve been using the same set of 2 x 12 pads for years with no problems. I carry 8 of these.
Attachment 217736

Now, I don’t want to hear all the old wives tales about having wheels off the ground. I’ve parked this coach in my office parking lot like this for years. Obviously my lot is not level! No problem whatsoever.

[JFXG]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

I am looking for ideas for homemade leveling jack pads and wheel ramps......,

Simple enough for any DIYer. No need to spend any serious money.
Just some 2 x dimension stock in a 3/4 ply sandwich. 3 inches thick. You can often pick up framing cutoffs at HD or other such places. If you just use wide 2x lumber by itself, sooner or later it will split on you. Make it large enough to at least double the foot print area of your jack foot. Put a good sized screw eye in the end (or drill a hole) for pulling it. Cut a bevel in each end on the bottom so it will slide more easily.
In six years fulltime I’ve never needed ramps to drive up on. If I can’t level with jacks and pads I get a different site.

[Bob Hyatt]

The stall mat works well. Or go to a home depot / lowes and buy a couple of pieces of pressure treated 2x12. Cut into squares. I like these as they are very strong, yet a 12x12 piece doesn't weigh a ton. I cross-grain them when I put them on the ground (with a piece of stall mat on the bottom which can be cleaned easily if it gets muddy/etc.) Putting them all down with the grain going the same way invites splitting. Alternating layers grain-wise and I have had zero problems. I made 14 of the pieces. I have, on occasion, had to use all of 'em. But in general I put the rubber pad down, with two layers of 2x12 and the jacks don't have to come out very far at all to level things. I have seen two bent jacks (not mine) this year. Bother on same MH at a small CG that was a nice place to stay, but not very level. Guy had backed in, leveled, failed with excessive slope, so he found some pieces of 2x6 and put 'em under the back jacks (rear end of coach was low). Leveled it, and while he was hooking up power and such, heard this loud noise. Rear wheels were off the ground, the coach moved backward and those hyper-extended rear jacks bent. Would not go back up very far and you could see the bend in them.

Guy said he thought about pulling in forward but didn't think he had enough sewer/water hose and electrical cord to reach to the pedestal stuff that would now be on the passenger front corner rather than the driver rear corner.

Personally I put as much stuff under my jacks as will fit so that they extend the minimum distance possible. Gives the cylinder/ram a LOT of overlap to avoid bending anything... These things are strong as the devil when lifting straight up. Not so strong when side loads are imposed.

I have stayed in one camp site where we could not level. Chose to just sleep with slides in rather than jacking rear wheels off the ground. Slope was significantly excessive and no alternative sites available. Rear wheels up seems bad. Even with fronts chocked there is potential movement possible.

[LarryJB]

Fireup,
I have made some ramps using your design. I will post pics after I get the final coat of finish on them. After building them I am somewhat worried about driving off the end of the top level. It seems to me that I will need to give it some gas to get up the step and then quickly apply the brake. If I am not quick enough applying the brake I could drive right off the end of the ramp. Have you found this to be a problem for you?
I am thinking about adding some sort of "stop" to the end of the ramp, but I wanted to make sure it would be helpful before adding it.

[Cyanne]

Well this is all so new to me but one thing I did notice about my 40'...I went and stayed in it for a few days..when I got ready to leave I noticed I guess the weight of the RV had literally pushed the leveling jack into..it wasn't concrete..but it was soft enough that my jack left an indentation. So can I DIY something to prevent this from happening again? Plus I don't want to put any more stress/strain on the jacks as can be helped

[LarryJB]

Originally Posted by Cyanne

Well this is all so new to me but one thing I did notice about my 40'...I went and stayed in it for a few days..when I got ready to leave I noticed I guess the weight of the RV had literally pushed the leveling jack into..it wasn't concrete..but it was soft enough that my jack left an indentation. So can I DIY something to prevent this from happening again? Plus I don't want to put any more stress/strain on the jacks as can be helped

Yes, there are many commercial products out there, but I was interested in DIY solutions. This thread has several DIY ideas which I have pretty much stolen. I am planning on posting pictures of what I stole once I have them all finished.

[Cyanne]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

Yes, there are many commercial products out there, but I was interested in DIY solutions. This thread has several DIY ideas which I have pretty much stolen. I am planning on posting pictures of what I stole once I have them all finished.

Looking forward to seeing your DIY. I may have to "borrow" your ideas. [emoji3]

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by LarryJB

Fireup,
I have made some ramps using your design. I will post pics after I get the final coat of finish on them. After building them I am somewhat worried about driving off the end of the top level. It seems to me that I will need to give it some gas to get up the step and then quickly apply the brake. If I am not quick enough applying the brake I could drive right off the end of the ramp. Have you found this to be a problem for you?
I am thinking about adding some sort of "stop" to the end of the ramp, but I wanted to make sure it would be helpful before adding it.

Larry,
You'll get used to backing or, even driving forward onto those newly made ramps. You'll know just how much throttle to give your coach so it inches up the second tier. I've had the CEO out there, on either side as a warning guide too. But, once you've done it a couple of times, you'll know. As for some sort of STOP added to the ramps, well, there's a couple of problems with this theory. One, the stop would have to be pretty stout and tall, in order be able to handle not only any form of gravity but, any potential misguided throttle.

Two, a stop of any magnitude, would prevent a more organized interlocking, stackable situation in a compartment. It's a good thought though.

I have thought too of a stop but, like I stated, you get used to what's needed to creep up on those ramps, in any given situation.

Now, as for the handles. I may have already commented on this but, to use any form of a steel or cabinet drawer or, cabinet door handle, also prevents organized stacking and storing. So, I use some "Mule tape" which is nothing other than 5/8" wide Nylon webbing. I cut the needed length with a hot knife that seals the cuts. Then, I punch a hole in each end and, using an 1 1/2" Stainless steel wood screw and a stainless body washer, fasten the very flexible handles, TWO of them, one on each side of each ramp. That way, no matter how they're stacked in the compartment or, how their placed or carried, a handle on each side will work.

I have a T-handled grab bar with a hook on the end that is used to retrieve those ramps and any of my blocks I've made too, from under the coach. Works slick.

Originally Posted by Cyanne

Well this is all so new to me but one thing I did notice about my 40'...I went and stayed in it for a few days..when I got ready to leave I noticed I guess the weight of the RV had literally pushed the leveling jack into..it wasn't concrete..but it was soft enough that my jack left an indentation. So can I DIY something to prevent this from happening again? Plus I don't want to put any more stress/strain on the jacks as can be helped

Cyanne,
Yes, as Larry's stated, there's plenty explanations, pics, and ideas on what you may want to use for your situation. Here's the deal. Your basic jack foot has only so much square inches to displace any and all the weight that asked of it when making it raise its part of the coach. Sometimes, as you've seen, the dirt/mud/soft pavement etc. is not stout enough to support the small amount of square inches of a jack foot.

So, the object of desire here is, to not only increase the square inches of the FOOT PRINT but, also to maybe DECREASE the length of travel each jack has to travel, before it starts to raise the coach. Some one on this thread recently stated that the jacks have great strength up an down, but, not all that much from side to side. So, the longer each jack extends, the more lateral weakness is also acquires. The shorter it travels to get the job done, the more lateral strength it retains.

Now, some don't really care about all this and, well, that's fine. It's their coach, they can do as they please. But, I myself, prefer NOT to create any situation where things might go south, because I WAS LAZY! In all my leveling, I support the coach with all 6 tires and wheels and, all four jacks. My choice.

Now, for your jack pads, well, take any of the methods that have been presented in this thread, and procure what's needed and build a set that you'll be happy with. Keep in mind, weight, type of material, treatment, type of finish on the end product etc. I myself am not a fan of the solid rubber type mat that some have used from places like Tractor supply. While each pad MAY spread the load out, rubber BENDS. And therefore, you still have the possibility to sink a jack, if the pavement/dirt/road/campsite is not or does not have good stability.

It's a choice thing here. Build or buy, what you'd be happy with.
Scott

[LarryJB]

Scott,
Thanks for the reply. This is why I asked! I didn't want to do something I would later regret. I can't seem to find any mule tape in quanties less than a 1000 ft. I think I have some old dog leash material laying around somewhere that I can use.
I will post some pics hopefully tomorrow of the ramps and also the jack pads I made.

[rgvtexan]

For the Mule Tape, ask an electrical contractor for a few scraps. You can also use nylon webbing found at most fabric stores. Or cut up a cheap strap from Harbor Freight.

https://www.harborfreight.com/500-lb...own-62762.html

[Jbird_in_SC]

Originally Posted by ernest917

Go to local Tractor Supply and buy a “stall mat”. Use a power saw and cut it into squares (u decide on size - I did 12” squares...

Works great and stacks and stores great....

I did something similar buying rubber patio/landscape from a discount store. Work great and packed well

[justusdj]

I went to Home Depot and found a couple of 2x12 boards in their scrap pile (70% off with the purple paint), had them cut them up into pieces. I have smaller pieces for under the jacks and longer pieces for under the wheels that I can stack depending on how high I need to go.