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Old 06-24-2022, 12:12 PM   #1
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Jacks down hooked up to towed? Unhook?

Hi Guys:
I was wondering when you are just stopping for the night and have your towed vehicle hooked up, if you deploy your jacks for leveling do you leave the vehicle hooked up?

I am heading out on a long trip, it will take me multiple days to get there. I plan on stopping at rest stops, and commercial parking lots.

I have to deploy at least one or two slides, I don't put out slides without the help of the jack being deployed if I can help it.

So leave the Jeep hooked or unhook?

PAM
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Old 06-24-2022, 12:19 PM   #2
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Unless your are on an unlevel enough surface to strain/ put the hitch in a bind, certainly, level.


If in doubt, has someone look at the hitch and front of the toad while you start to level and let you know if it is OK to continue.
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Old 06-24-2022, 12:36 PM   #3
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Unless way out of level we leave hooked up.
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Old 06-24-2022, 01:07 PM   #4
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We put the jacks down and stay hooked up in overnight stops in fairly level sites. Keep in mind the connection between coach and towed already allows for vertical movement. and it's not likely you're going to exceed that allowance by using your jacks.
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Old 06-24-2022, 01:09 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by luqutus View Post
If you have to put slides out and jacks down, go to a campground where you belong!


Rest stops and parking lots are not designed for such use, especially a a rest area, which is designed for autos and long haul truckers, not dry camping(although some states have special RV sections). Some folks buy a MH that cannot be used unless the slides are opened, then they must pay the consequences.



As to Pam's question, there is no need to unhook the towed unless you need it to run around or back up the MH for some reason.
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Old 06-24-2022, 01:44 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by Donskiman View Post
We put the jacks down and stay hooked up in overnight stops in fairly level sites. Keep in mind the connection between coach and towed already allows for vertical movement. and it's not likely you're going to exceed that allowance by using your jacks.

This was my immediate thought. I tow on a trailer and stay hooked up for "rest stops",weather we are in a campground, rest area, side road or parking lot. I don't have jacks, but I still level with blocks (old school stepped wood ramps).
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Old 06-24-2022, 02:09 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by Ray,IN View Post


Rest stops and parking lots are not designed for such use, especially a a rest area, which is designed for autos and long haul truckers, not dry camping(although some states have special RV sections). Some folks buy a MH that cannot be used unless the slides are opened, then they must pay the consequences.
I beg to differ with you Ray, rest areas are just that rest areas for all travelers. I'm sure that any trooper in any state would rather a 60 year old in a 20 ton coach spend 6-8 hours with his slides out in a rest area, than have to deal with the aftermath of the same person taking a nap at 60 mph on the interstate. You pointed out that many Rest Areas have special RV areas, I have noticed many of those RV sections actually have wider lanes to park in, I'm pretty sure it's extra room for slides, not because RV drivers lack the experience to navigate the narrower truck parking lanes.


Slightly hanging the subject, have you noticed that rest areas have been slowly disappearing? I've noticed it out here in the west, as Walmart, and travel centers have proliferated Rest Areas have slowly been disappearing.
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Old 06-24-2022, 02:23 PM   #8
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Yes, you can leave it hooked up. Shouldn’t hurt a thing. Whatever tow bar you have, it’s designed to have some flexibility in it so you can turn and go over uneven ground underway. Leaving it hooked when you level shouldn’t hurt it at all. Like others have said, if you are very far off or the Jeep is at some odd angle, I would unhook, but that should be rare in parking lots and rest areas. If we are stopping for the night and don’t need our Jeep, it stays hooked up and we haven’t had a problem with it. If we had to, we could pull the pins and leave the rest hooked up to make getting underway faster. We’ve done that, but not for overnight. Don’t forget to set the brakes if you do that.
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Old 06-24-2022, 02:33 PM   #9
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I've towed as much as five days in a row without disconnecting. Even as much as a foot differential should not bother the tow bar as it's designed to move up and down.
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Old 06-24-2022, 04:46 PM   #10
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I've towed as much as five days in a row without disconnecting. Even as much as a foot differential should not bother the tow bar as it's designed to move up and down.
Same for us. We towed our MINI from south Texas to Massachusetts without unhooking. Stayed in various pull-through campsites, Walmarts, and Harvest Hosts. No need to unhook unless there is a severe differential in height to get level. We do unhook the electrical umbilical each night to prevent the toad battery from trying to charge the coach.
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Old 06-24-2022, 05:23 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by luqutus View Post
If you have to put slides out and jacks down, go to a campground where you belong!
I disagree with this thought. I’ve been to dozens of places that aren’t campgrounds and seen thousands if not tens of thousands of RVs parked at similar places with slides our and jacks down. So, to believe RVs can only go to campgrounds to be useful you are denying yourself freedoms enjoyed by RV people for generations.
When traveling longer distances it is common practice to leave the toad hooked up for several days, so stopping at night and leaving it hooked up is also common.
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Old 06-24-2022, 05:47 PM   #12
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As long as the parking space you plan to use allows enough room for the overall length of your combination, I don't think this would be a problem for just a quick overnight stop.

My concern would be putting the slides out in something like a highway rest area or a truck stop. It's not uncommon for big trucks to sideswipe their neighbors when pulling in and out of parking spaces. As a retired long-haul trucker, I've had mirrors knocked off my big rig and once, had a truck scrape my front fender when exiting a tight parking space.

Can't imagine the amount of damage they could cause if they were to snag one of your extended slides while pulling in or out.
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Old 06-24-2022, 06:18 PM   #13
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Overnight stops I never put down jacks….no need to actually.
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Old 06-24-2022, 09:11 PM   #14
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In rest areas and truck stops have put levelers down, not unhooked but never put out slides. Just us. Do not like the idea of slides out in rest stop, truck stop or Walmart.
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