Jacks under the slides...

[Glenn and Lorraine]

Anyone ever use jacks under the slides?

Was thinking that they may help to further stabilize the rig

[faeb and genb]

Glenn have never used them. I use a small bottle jack under each spring hanger & that does better than any thing I have tried.Im' scared that I would forget they are under there.
Gene

[H. John Kohl]

Glen,
I would be afraid of putting too much pressure on them on the outside corners and moving the top in, breaking the seal at the top. I like Gene's idea of the bottle jack better. On my 33' TT I put a third set of scissor jacks right in front of the wheels for the same purpose. It helped some but still some wiggle. I do use the tire chocks that scissor out and they help alittle with tire movement and wiggle.
Lots of moving parts.
good luck
John

[stiles watson]

Yes, I have four jacks that I use two each under the living/dining slide and entertainment/refrigerator slide. These are screw jacks. I put them out toward the end of the slides and up against the slide rails just past the teeth on the rail.. I have a small block of wood to keep metal off metal. I just bring them just up snug so as not to exert undue pressure or twist on the slides. I use nothing under the bedroom slide. I still plan to invest in at least one between-the-wheel expanding/locking chock. RVers that I have talked to in person have raved about the difference the chock makes.

[sreigle]

Glenn, check your manual. If I recall, mine says do NOT put jacks under the slides.

I've had a tire go down on our rig while parked. No way jose do I want a jack under the slide when that happens. That could be an expensive fix should it damage the slide mechanism.

My opinion and nickel, for whatever it's worth.

[Dave Anderson]

HI Glen; I used to use jacks under my main slide,but like Steve I read where you shouldnt because of trailer "settling" and your jacks leaveing you up in the air ,so to speak, Another thing, you dont want to put a reverse" tilt" in your slideout that would allow water to intrude . I still have my jacks and must admit the rig seemed more stabil when I used them , just snug them up but dont let them raise the unit.. PS good to hear from you, our love to Lorane

[patodonn]

Steve is correct, I believe, about the prohibition in the slide manual. I also seem to recall a thread on this subject in the early summer...might do a search on it....the answer was the same, due to the possibility of a tire going flat and having the slide damaged by the stress.

Steve...WAY cool signature block...!!

Best,

[Dave Anderson]

Bad Spelling,also give our love to Lorraine!!!! Dave

[kdeiss]

I also read jacks under a slide is a no no. If the tires and the front jacks settle at the site at a different rate than the jacks under the slide you are going to have a problem

[Glenn and Lorraine]

quote:Originally posted by Dave Anderson

Bad Spelling,also give our love to Lorraine!!!! Dave

No problem Dave, Lorraine, Lorane, Lowrian doesn't matter she's seen them all.

quote:Originally posted by stiles watson

I still plan to invest in at least one between-the-wheel expanding/locking chock. RVers that I have talked to in person have raved about the difference the chock makes.

Stiles, They do help. Picked up a pair at a yard sale and put them in yesterday. (See my "Speaking of garage sales...." post) They do make a difference but there is still some movement.

Back to the slides...
An 03 3295RK pulled in here the other day and while setting up he installed 2 jacks under the livingroom slide. When I mentioned that I did not think it was recommended he claimed it was in his owners manual. Claims you can use jacks when it is going to be an extended stay. Guess I'm gonna have to see his owners manual to believe it.

[sreigle]

Ours is an '03 3295RK but my manual says don't do it. Maybe his is the late '03 and is different but I can't imagine any mfr recommending jacks under the slides. I have been wrong before and could be this time, too.

Glenn, we put scissor jacks on the frame behind the rear wheels, like John did in front of the wheels. It helps on the side to side movement but doesn't eliminate it. But, it DOES eliminate the up and down bouncing on ours.

[Montana_1985]

Our manual on the 2005 3650RK says to use slight pressure on the slides if using for extended periods of time...(over 60 days?)..
Our house moves back and forth quite a bit when walking around..only use the yellow wheel chocks on each wheel..
Would a tripod help in this situation??

[CountryGuy]

If you are on a concrete pad for a while, maybe, but then you still have the problem of what strain are you putting on the unit and slides if you get a flat tire while you are sitting. If you are sitting on gravel or grass or mud or dirt of some kind, personally I think you would be asking for trouble in a big way by putting jack(s) of any kind under those slides.

Tripod on front, rear stabilizer jacks and some adjustable jacks that we place near the spring holders, plus the "rotochok" between the tires. Sometimes we use 2 sets of adjustable jacks near tires and spring holders. We have stopped well over 90% of the wiggle, front and back, up and down with these "goodies". Without one or more of the goodies, it is like riding a carneval ride in there when one is sitting and the other is moving around. IF it rains, and we are sitting on less than a concrete pad, we sometimes have to go out and "tweak" the settings on one or more of these goodies.

Our 2 cents worth.

[Glenn and Lorraine]

quote:Originally posted by CountryGuy

If you are on a concrete pad for a while, maybe, but then you still have the problem of what strain are you putting on the unit and slides if you get a flat tire while you are sitting. If you are sitting on gravel or grass or mud or dirt of some kind, personally I think you would be asking for trouble in a big way by putting jack(s) of any kind under those slides.
Tripod on front, rear stabilizer jacks and some adjustable jacks that we place near the spring holders, plus the "rotochok" between the tires. Sometimes we use 2 sets of adjustable jacks near tires and spring holders. We have stopped well over 90% of the wiggle, front and back, up and down with these "goodies". Without one or more of the goodies, it is like riding a carneval ride in there when one is sitting and the other is moving around. IF it rains, and we are sitting on less than a concrete pad, we sometimes have to go out and "tweak" the settings on one or more of these goodies.
Our 2 cents worth.

CountryGuy, Again with my constant Yard Salein' about 3 weeks ago I had picked up 2 pair of those screw type adjustable jacks for just 8 bucks. I installed 2 of them behind the rear tires and they worked great. Again thank you for the loan of your jacks at Pla-Mor. I now have the tri-pod, the chocks between the tires and the adjustable jacks behind the tires. This rig is 90% wiggleless.
Guess I'll pass on trying to get the little bit of movement out of the slide. Couldn't find anything for or against usung jacks in my owners manual. But the reasoning I read in most everyone's posts above convinces me it is something I don't want to do.

[CountryGuy]

You are most welcome Glenn, it was OUR pleasure to loan you those jacks, cause we got to use YOUR step!

90 % is good, the other 10% is to remind us that we are in a RV not a stick built house!! (Well, it sounded like a good excuse for 10 % !!!!)

[Montana_2194]

It helps on the side to side movement but doesn't eliminate it. But, it DOES eliminate the up and down bouncing on ours.
[/quote]

Steve,

Forgive my indelicacy, but up and down bouncing?? Do you have a trampoline? or?? I get it now, - line dancing, right!

jhadley

[Montana_648]

I mounted a set of scissor jacks in front of the wheels it really helps fritz49 03 3670

[sreigle]

Gee, golly, jhadley. It's just simple walking around. We're not particularly slim people and don't walk on our toes! We used to use the triangular camper jacks under the spring hangers and that worked well. I went with the scissor jacks instead simply because they're easier to operate. Like the others, we've probably got rid of about 90% of the movement overall but not all of it.

Tedd, like CountryGuy and the others suggest, there are several things you can do. Any one of them will help but it is cumulative. We use a tripod up front, the standard stabilizers in the rear, the scissor jacks behind the wheels, and the chocks that go between the wheels to stop movement. Instead of scissor jacks you can put jacks under the spring hangers. I used to use those triangular travel trailer stabilizers under the spring hangers, the ones you can buy at Walmart, 4 for about $38.

[Treecounter]

With the front jack's down and the rear jacks down I don't see how a low tire would lower the rig. The jacks are attached to the frame. We have used jacks in the past but not now. What we used were two bumper jacks we got at the junk yard. Had to shorten them to fit. We put them at the end of the slide arms not on the wood siding. Montana says that jacks would lift the room and cause leaks. It could happen. Forgetting them happened and they just tipped over when the room came in. We stay a month in one spot several times a year and have had no problem with the rooms. We use wood blocks cut to shape and pulled together with an all thread and a wing nut used to hold propane tanks on pull trailers. A "A" frame on the hitch. We also use two additional braces in the back. They are against the frame and pulled together with a strap and ratchet. Our trailer doesn't move.

[captbanjo]

We use the rear stabilizers with a front king pin jack/stablilizer but still find a little movement. I just bought two of the between-wheel chocks and we'll see how they work when we head to Fort Wilderness, etc. this March.