Levelling blocks and gas safety

[Smith21]

With me being only new to caravaning and have not used ours yet, or even played with it on the drive I still need more answers to my questions please.

Firstly what would members recommend using as levelling blocks when sitting the van, I was given two lengths of wood with a taper at one end both lengths are the same thickness so I can adjust the height in just two stages. I have looked about and seen some which are like ramps so once level you just chock the wheel and that's it. What would other member recommend, also I need some that are light..

Secondly I have been told that the van has to be level for the gas system to work. My drive is on a slop and the van would have to go across the drive to fit on, consequently it would not be abled to be levelled, would I be able to override the safety device so I could test the gas system out.

Kevin

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Kevin,

Welcome to the world of caravanning.
Please don't be afraid to ask questions,- the fool is the one who does not ask a question when they should have!
Caravan leveling.
The method I use is two lengths of wood about 50cm long 15cm wide one is about 5cm thick and the other 2.5 cm thick. Each has a chamfer with a chamfer at one end to allow the caravan to ride up and to leave enough flat for the tyre to sit on the board and not the chamfer. They can be used singly or as a pair and have always provided enough lift to roughly level the caravan from side to side. I always chock the wheels. The jockey wheel is then used to level the caravn front to aft. The steadies are dropped and any small differnces can be tweeked with them, But dont use the stedaies to lift the whole caravan.
There are other devices available, which work equally well, but do make sure you chock the wheels.
The Gas System,
The fridge is most sensitive to attitude, Yiou should attemt to get it as level as possible. There are specially designed spirit levels with two phials set at 90 degrees that you easily see if the caravan is level. Generally though if he the caravan is comfortable to walk and move around in without you feeling the floor is sloping then it shouodl be ok
If you havn't got a spirit level, then simply part fill a pop bottle and stand it on the floor. You can then see how close you are to level by the liquid inside relative to the top or the bottom of the label.

 

[Smith21]

This one may be a bit more harder to answer but I have to ask, how level do you need the van to be does it have to be spot on or say your bubble could be 1mm off centre?

Kevin

 

[Martin24]

If I felt like checking the fridge was working I would do so in storage as our drive is also on the steep side, however I tend to use the fingers crossed method. As far as how level for checking the fridge works I can say no more than it needs to be more level than our drive allows. I'm sure a mm off centre will be fine, you'll only know about the sensitivity of your unit by trying it. Quite simple if not level enough it won't work.

Anyway levelling, I will assume you're on a single axle which makes life easier. First thing to say is do NOT try to get it level using the corner steadies EVER!!!! There are a lot of products on the market for my twin axle I use the milenco windy up method, one on each wheel. When we had the single axle I used either the small or the slightly larger plastic ramp. I did try the Milenco quattro when it was first launched but it was an unmitigated disaster, one side of the wheel it snagged on the mover mechanism and the other side fouled by something else (which I can't remember). The lucky thing was that I managed to sell it the day after I bought it to the motor home owner parked on the pitch next to us!! Many people use a variety of bits of wood and swear by it, others use the items on the market. It all depends how often you find you need to level up and what you find easiest to use and that is trial and error. If like us you are often in the middle of no where on cl's and cs's you may find the need to level more often than if you always use hard standings on "proper" sites be they club or commercial.

Hope amongst the waffle that helps.

 

[Mel]

you can make your own levelling ramps out of wood if you are handy; we're not! We use the milenco quattro ramps for side to sidwe levelling and flat bits of wood to go under the corner steadies if they won't comfortably reach the ground. Martin is right never level using the corner steadies as "jacks". As far as a millimetre either way goes, our fridge works perfectly well as long as the van is reasonably level.
mel

 

[Damian]

Quote "would I be able to override the safety device so I could test the gas system out. "

Just one thing to say about this comment.
NEVER try overriding gas safety devices for any reason!!

 

[waffler]

The Prof's comment about comfort is a good way of dscribing the situation needed. The fridge works on a convection system and so needs to be reasonably level to work- as opposed to being pumped. The tolerance is quite good on modern ones so you should be able to test on your drive- if it is comfortable to move round in. Mains, gas and 12 v all work in the same way so you should get the same result on any source.

 

[Martin24]

Waffler, on our drive It goes in nose first, I then crawl up and attach a rope to the central chest to be able to pull myself up the hill when loading!!

 

[Paul_5041263]

Kevin, I carry a variety of blocks starting from about 4" down to several that are about wood decking thickness and then one that is about half this thickness where you just need a touch under one wheel. I also carry a plastic ramp and chock. You will not need the big bessie size very often but now and again you will have large gap to bridge and its not a good idea to stack several thin ones together as they can topple over. You must also consider the jockey wheel as well because you could end up on a pitch that requires fore and aft blocking as well as axle leveling. As the jockey will only extend just so far it may need chocking as well.
One important point to consider is how you get the wheel up there in the first place.....
Some like to drive up or reverse up a ramp, in my own case I have an alko wheel lock which makes this procedure interesting to say the least!. Although I have a mover this is not practical to take a van up a single ramp without swinging. So my solution is that I have a hydraulic bottle jack which engages in a chassis bracket. I find with a little practice I can now get the van up, wheel lock fitted and blocked in a jiffy ( if the other wheel takes the wheel clamp I fit this before I unhitch) You can now jig about with the correct size block while you check with the van spirit level using the jack as a control. All this is in respect of a single axle van, if you have a double axle you are in a whole new ball game!
Regarding your fridge I can't offer any suggestions re using gas on a slope other than agreement with other posters that inconvenient that this may apear it is a safety requirement and should not be impaired. Use electric insread if you (as me) need to prepare your fridge in advance of a trip whilst on your drive.

 

[emmerson]

I use the wardrobe door as a leveler. If it stays open, it's level. if not, it ain't.
But the best method of all is the whisky glass levelling system.
1) Stand an empty glass on the work top
2) Fill to the top with whisky
3) If it's not level with the top of the glass, drink some of the whisky
4)Set the glass down again
5)If it's still not level, drink some more.
6) Keep doing this until the glass is empty.
The van still might not be level, but you just won't care anyway!
I've been using this method for years, and it works every time. Hic!

 

[ProfJohnL]

I use the wardrobe door as a leveler. If it stays open, it's level. if not, it ain't.
But the best method of all is the whisky glass levelling system.
1) Stand an empty glass on the work top
2) Fill to the top with whisky
3) If it's not level with the top of the glass, drink some of the whisky
4)Set the glass down again
5)If it's still not level, drink some more.
6) Keep doing this until the glass is empty.
The van still might not be level, but you just won't care anyway!
I've been using this method for years, and it works every time. Hic!

That's a great system,

But does the fridge work? after all you might like whisky but the OH may prefer cold beers!

If you can't get to the bottle in the first place or the glass slides of the table, then its probably too un-level- or you've just come back form the pub.