Leveling Blocks

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Any time you park the vehicle for camping, you should do several things to make your sleeping arrangements more comfortable and to make the refrigerator function more efficiently.  Chief among these is the fact that you should level the vehicle as close as possible.  The easiest thing to do is to pull the vehicle onto spot that looks flat and level.  After you've camped several dozen times, you'll quickly learn to spot an area that looks perfect.  If you find a spot that you believe to be level, you may not have to do anything else.  But if you know things are tilted or if you are relatively new to RVing, then you'll need some hardware items to help tell you that the vehicle is level.

Most people rely on those simple and cheap bubble level that are about and inch or two on all sides and are nothing more than a bubble inside of a painted circle.  With a little practice, you can tell just which wheel needs to be elevated to bring the bubble into the center of the circle.  You accomplish this raising of the wheel by driving over on top of one or more blocks of wood or plastic that are about an inch or two thick.  The downside to this is that you may have to back up and down several times until you get it right.  And unless you have a helper, you'll be getting in and out of the driver's seat repeatedly.

The truth is that you don't have to level the vehicle until the bubble is perfectly centered.  The refrigerator will operate just fine with up to several inches of one wheel or another being out of level.  For a detailed explanation of leveling for the refrigerator, see this web page: How Level Is Level?  If the vehicle seems level to you as you move about inside, and if sleeping on the beds seems to be level and you feel comfortable, then its probably close enough and the refrigerator should work just fine.

I have found another handy item to tell if your vehicle is out of level: the bathroom door.  Unlatch and move the door to the 90 degree position and let go.  If it starts to swing closed all by itself, then the front of the vehicle is too low.  If it starts to swing further open all by itself, then the rear of the vehicle is too low.  If it remains stationary, then the front and rear of the vehicle are approximately the same level.  But now you need to check for side to side level. Simply move the door to a point of only an inch or two from being fully closed and then let go.  If it starts to swing open all by itself, then the right side of the vehicle is too low.  If it swings to the fully closed position, then the left side of the vehicle is too low.  You'll quickly learn that an out of level condition of four inches or more will cause the door to swing quite fast.  Anything less than that will cause to door to move very slowly and if you feel comfortable, then the vehicle is probably close enough to being level.  You do not have to achieve a perfectly level condition in order to enjoy RVing.

Leveling block kits made of plastic are available at Wal-Marts and probably every RV store.  You can also use 2x6 blocks of wood approximately 12 inches long.  Such wood blocks can be obtained free at nearly every housing construction site but be sure to ask permission before thinking that you can just take whatever you want.  The plastic blocks can and will crack and break off especially is you use them on uneven ground or on pebbles or pea-gravel.  The wood blocks are practically indestructible but weigh more than the plastic blocks.

Note: The orange blocks shown are not recommended.  The tires sit on top of the round areas and can lead to tread separation.


Additional Accessories:

[ Awnings ] [ Back Up Alarm ] [ Beverage Holders ] [ Dash Cover ] [ Electrical Acc. ]
[ Foglights ] [ Front End Bra ] [ Headlight Guards ] [ Hitch-Haul Carrier ] [ Leveling Blocks ]
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Page Updated: 5 August 2014