Community Forums

jloftice · 12-16-2018, 08:53 PM

Entegra says, extend the slides at ride height then level. When departing, air the coach to ride height then retract the slides. They teach it, our dealer said to do it that way, and it's in the manual that way.

NeilV · 12-16-2018, 09:25 PM

My kids dropped the jacks with the slides extended once and it became apparent why the manufacturer said to extend the slides after leveling and pull them in before storing the levelers. If we were on a more uneven site the coach may have tipped over on its side or broken a spring and still potentially have gone over after that.

Many will be able to hear their coach creak and distort as the weight of the slides extends beyond the footprint of the main body and a severe lean may develop towards the side with the heaviest slide if the levelers are not deployed first. With diagonally opposed slides the forces developed as the slides are extended can become immense.

Read the book and follow the manual for the most part however be aware that what a manufacturer first published in their manuals when slides first came out in the 1990's may have been amended since then so even though they may have at first said extend and then level, after seeing the negative impacts and being chided by the leveler and slide mechanisms makers amended that to level first and then extend. So if you have a older coach that says in the manual to put the slides out first and then level you do well to check to see if they amended that but the amendment notice was never put on that page in your printed manual.

Watching an uneven ground test on a chassis can be a big eye opener too. Some chassis are stiff enough that they stay perfectly flat while others will twist so badly that doors will not open and body panels, doors, tailgates, etc may warp sustaining such damage that they can require replacing.

Saf · 12-17-2018, 01:30 AM

On HR DP 2002 Endeavor the manual says to extend slides 1st when level from pressurized air ride. It also says to make ground contact with front jacks 1st even if not needed. I imagine it is to stabilize the front frame so the windshields are net stressed by twists from the rear. It would make sense to level this way since the vehicle when pressured is at level.

I notice less slide motor stress when done this way.

WileyOne · 12-17-2018, 06:58 AM

My little 24' MH doesn't have slides or levelers, so that could explain why I'm confused.
.
But, why not do your rough leveling first, then extend your slides, then do a little fine tuning if needed?
.
It just seems logical. When you are mostly level, the final adjustments aren't going to significantly twist the frame.

Terryndi · 12-17-2018, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by strandedimo

Hi Everyone
My wife and I have been traveling in the motorhome now for several weeks. I thought that I either read somewhere or maybe while going over everything with the people at the dealership I was told that you should always level the motorhome before extending the slideouts. Now that we have been at several campgrounds my wife says that she noticed that some people level after they extend the slideouts. Do any of you more experienced travelers have any take on this one way or another?

always level first! You might damage your slides if you are cranked around the wrong way. As you travle,you will se people doing all kinds of stuff that will bite them in the behind one of these days!
This site and others like Rvillage .com are full of folks that will give you experiences answers to your questions as you go,and most of us know first hand what NOT to do [emoji1]

cvbdsl · 12-17-2018, 08:09 AM

OK, don't follow the manufacture's recommendations - at least that is what some are saying to apply in all situations when they say you MUST level first and that is the only correct way.

I politely disagree

.
I follow the very specific procedure in my owner's manual (which is contrary to my previous MHs). It states I need to be in "Travel" mode to extend the slides and then level. I have air leveling only, no jacks, four slides.

I have tried leveling first and then slides when parked beside my house. I noticed that the passenger slide was rubbing at the top against some nice woodwork both going out and in. There is not a lot of clearance between cabinets on the slide and the nice wood wall.

I decided to try it the way my owner's manual said. In the same spot I then put it travel mode (all aired up) put out the slides (with no rubbing) and then leveled. The manufacture's procedure works for me!.

Chris

Paul03 · 12-17-2018, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Triple H

My manual says level with slides in. Even if it didn't I would do it this way regardless. I'm new to this, but taking the coach on the first couple of trial runs and a couple of lumps on my head from banging it into the bottom of the slide out, my procedure is to level the coach first. Then I get everything out of the basement I will be using for my stay, chairs, grill, etc., I then do my hookups and then take the slides out. Then I do a quick check to make sure it's still level, which so far it has remained level and I'm done. I find this works best for us as I don't have to fight the slide overhang to get items from the basement and no longer worry about busting my head or breaking my back bending underneath the slides. I breakdown the same way. Slides in first, load our gear back in the basement, unhook all hookups and then retract all jacks and move on.

Yep, after years of banging my head getting things I'll need out, that's exactly what I do!

757driver · 12-17-2018, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Terryndi

always level first! You might damage your slides if you are cranked around the wrong way. As you travle,you will se people doing all kinds of stuff that will bite them in the behind one of these days!
This site and others like Rvillage .com are full of folks that will give you experiences answers to your questions as you go,and most of us know first hand what NOT to do [emoji1]

Making a blanket statement to always level first without knowing the OP’s motorhome make is poor advice and a good example of what not to do. Some makes/models are slides out first and then level for very good reasons. The best advice is to follow the manufacturers directions period.

Dav L · 12-17-2018, 12:20 PM

As mentioned earlier in this thread, this subject was beaten up on the Newmar forum quite a bit. What was NOT "revealed" was a mechanical description of why slide then level. Most all said "because they said to do it that way".

I can suggest come concepts:
Because when the RV is riding on it's air bags, the air bags are compliant and the stiffness of the frame will push the high corner down, since the air bag will collapse a bit. Therefore, the chassis has a better chance of not being twisted before the slides are moved.

Some have said "because that's the way they build and align them at the factory". Which I personally discount that theory of Why. The real world camping site isn't level like the factory floor is going to be.

The Newmar group is very sure that one needs to go outside and "check the gaps" before moving the slides. And, if the gaps aren't even around the slide (the chassis is torqued), then level and check again. If the gaps are even, move the slides.

I believe all of these workaround are rooted that "if the chassis is twisted, don't move the slides". Which makes perfect mechanical sense to me.

I just believe that with a four post leveling system and good level / plumb indication, then the gaps and the slides should be happy. Note my caveats of Level AND plumb. Seems like some leveling systems intend to do that as end result. My system does not have the sensors to do this from the factory (neither of my RVs).

Any additional mechanical insights to consider? This is the question that drove the Newmar thread off kilter. Most are happy to "follow the manual and that's all you need to know". Which is fine. I just like to understand and improve a situation if I can. If you aren't interested in changing the system, then just follow the vehicle specific Owner's Manual instruction. If that's not your happy place, let's discuss on how to improve the status quo. My goal is to have a "Dock" button that "does everything to get the vehicle ready to camp". Why? Because we can.

Danesrus3 · 12-17-2018, 03:03 PM

My Berkshire 38' the OM states to level first then the slides.

cvbdsl · 12-18-2018, 08:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dav L

As mentioned earlier in this thread, this subject was beaten up on the Newmar forum quite a bit. What was NOT "revealed" was a mechanical description of why slide then level. Most all said "because they said to do it that way".

..................

The Newmar group is very sure that one needs to go outside and "check the gaps" before moving the slides. And, if the gaps aren't even around the slide (the chassis is torqued), then level and check again. If the gaps are even, move the slides.

......................
Any additional mechanical insights to consider? ....

I think that one important point is/might also be overlooked in this discussion and your comments on the Newmar group brought it to mind. Having owned a couple of Newmars previously, their slides all seem to be flush slides (correct me if I am wrong), at least they were on mine. That is, they retract right into the frame all the way.

If they are not level/square/plumb it is possible to "hook" the edge of the slide opening fiberglass and crack or tear it going out. The tolerance around the edge does allow some error but not a lot.
This happened with my bedroom slide on my last Newmar. The bedroom driver side slide floor had gotten soft on one side due to water damage and dropped just enough to hook the fiberglass and make a crack around 2 inches long. When closed it was obvious that the clearance was not the same all the way around. I have seen pictures of at least two other Newmars and the damage was far worse, the crack was over a foot long. In fact there was a very detailed post on how one was fixed.

On my current MH the edge of the slide overlaps the opening by maybe an inch or two - not flush but seals against the side. It works but you don't get that smooth slick look, but again my slides do not like it when you level first, again I have air leveling only.

Chris

Dav L · 12-18-2018, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cvbdsl

Having owned a couple of Newmars previously, their slides all seem to be flush slides (correct me if I am wrong), at least they were on mine. That is, they retract right into the frame all the way.

Chris

Yes, a Flush retracting slide will be pickier that the opening is near perfectly square. And easier to see that it is out of square than an overlapping slide. My Gas is overlapping, and the DP is flush fitted. And an FWS (Full Wall Slide ie: big slide) will be more particular to a non-square chassis as any twist is magnified by the large length of the slide. I don't have an FWS but the main slides are pretty big.

On the DP, the slides are flush. They still have a decent sized gap to tolerate some slide movement and chassis torque issues.

The issue of non square openings also effects not just the outside finish, but also along the side width of the slide and any rollers or rub strips that are in place to locate the slide equidistant in the openings and height.