Steep drive and winch?

Aug 11, 2018
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Looking at a new house, there is access around the back, but drive is steep, but steep section is straight so wondered about a winch on tow ball so I could let it down or pull it up without risk or relying on my driving or motor mover, I would guess around 1 in 5.

Steep bit is shared land so winch would need to be on car not fixed.

Looking for ideas, it may be find some where to store it, but would prefer to have it at home.
 
Jun 26, 2017
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Hello ericmark,

A couple of points immediately spring to mind on this one ...

The first one, and something which I’m sure is very often overlooked, is an issue which arises from the transition from level ground, to the start of the slope of the driveway, and in your case, you say 1 in 5, which is a considerable gradient of 20%.

Depending on both the length of your caravan, and how and over what distance the ground changes from level to a 20% gradient is a very important factor. If the transition is rather short, and if we take an example where the van is introduced to the slope rear-end first, it could be that even when the jockey wheel is wound all the way down so as to lower the front of the van as much as possible, in order to raise the rear of the van as high as possible, it may be that the rear of the van would hit the ground of the slope before the wheels have begun to ride up the slope. In this case, it would be just as much of a problem if the wan was to be introduced to the slope tow-hitch first, but it would be the tow hitch that would hit the ground, and not the rear of the van.

A bit like this ... (As you can see, I’m no artist !)

UgtFZkM.jpg


Of course if the transition is a gradual curve, then this problem may not exist.

My second point would be your suggestion of using a winch instead of a motor mover. There are several good quality Motor movers from reputable manufacturers that should be up to the job, at least if their techincal specifications ore anything to go by.

Are you able to upload a couple of pictures showing the driveway ?

Ic.
 
Oct 12, 2013
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Your write about your diagrams :p but not bad but would it not work if he put some wood or something under the tyres as he is about to hit the ramp and elevate the van slightly , would that not work ?



As so.... !
 
Jun 26, 2017
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Craigyoung said:
Your write about your diagrams :p but not bad but would it not work if he put some wood or something under the tyres as he is about to hit the ramp and elevate the van slightly , would that not work ?

But not “rong” about your spelling ? :evil:
 
Jun 26, 2017
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Craigyoung said:
Your write about your diagrams :p but not bad but would it not work if he put some wood or something under the tyres as he is about to hit the ramp and elevate the van slightly , would that not work ?



As so.... !

If it is a problem, there could be a couple of potential solutions Craig, it just depends on the severity of the angle ...

Waiting for the photos ericmark !
 
Aug 11, 2018
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Tried dropping in images but seems I have to post them else where and put a link, and my website has been discontinued. However if a motor mover will do the hill then no problem, already have one fitted. Not sure if I can two around corner at bottom, but hill is straight run, so around corner then hitch up and pull up hill, it is shared drive for 4 houses to park cars at back, so is whole length of gardens. So drive goes around two complete properties then into one we are looking at.

Kia Sorento has the power it's corner at bottom, and coming down on motor mover if it does not hold don't think brakes would hold, although I have reversed most of my life with a trailer, on such a hill no room for error so not keen on idea.
 
Sep 4, 2017
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Van_Blocks.JPG
For what it's worth my drive is about that gradient and my PowerTouch does it with ease. I do have the kerb dip problem so use 2 x scaffold planks supported with grass mats under to raise the wheels just enough to get by. Also dropping the jockey wheel as much as possible.
 
May 7, 2012
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We had a similar problem with our drive and the chassis grounding as we left the drive. We had a motor mover but it could not manage the slope. We were able to get the caravan up the slope though by inching it up using the control to move each side up a bit at a time.
We did look at winches but could not find one that would work in getting the caravan out into the road.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Eric,
Your description of the drive going past two houses, suggests this could be quite a long hill. Whilst I know the original Carver movers were designed with the idea of climbing a 1:4,incline, which represents the angle of attack that a wheel meeting a kerb would produce, I would hope that other manufacturers specifications would mirror or better this but you would have to check your movers specification.

If it is 1:4 capable, it should of course mange a 1:5, but it will means its working towards the top of its capability, and as you have already indicated, there may be concerns about the movers rollers grip on the tyres, both for moving up the hill and of course safely controlling the decent. It will be essential the mover is properly set up, and you must check your tyres for condition and pressure before negotiating the incline. You would also need to ensure the caravan's battery was in good condition and fully charged before starting the climb.

For safety no-one should stand down hill of the caravan. Always have someone else with you when you are moving the caravan on the incline. Both of you should have a good wheel chock to hand, and you should track either side of the caravan by the wheels. This means you will be ready to safely deploy the chocks if the mover starts to loose control of the caravan.

A winch system would be a good alternative, You would have to make sure the winch had enough cable for the length of the hill. Using a winch and would save the heavy demand on the caravan battery.

Which ever system you go for the attack and departure angles of the caravan and the hill will have to be sorted out
 
Nov 11, 2009
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ProfJohnL said:
Hello Eric,
Your description of the drive going past two houses, suggests this could be quite a long hill. Whilst I know the original Carver movers were designed with the idea of climbing a 1:4,incline, which represents the angle of attack that a wheel meeting a kerb would produce, I would hope that other manufacturers specifications would mirror or better this but you would have to check your movers specification.

If it is 1:4 capable, it should of course mange a 1:5, but it will means its working towards the top of its capability, and as you have already indicated, there may be concerns about the movers rollers grip on the tyres, both for moving up the hill and of course safely controlling the decent. It will be essential the mover is properly set up, and you must check your tyres for condition and pressure before negotiating the incline. You would also need to ensure the caravan's battery was in good condition and fully charged before starting the climb.

For safety no-one should stand down hill of the caravan. Always have someone else with you when you are moving the caravan on the incline. Both of you should have a good wheel chock to hand, and you should track either side of the caravan by the wheels. This means you will be ready to safely deploy the chocks if the mover starts to loose control of the caravan.

A winch system would be a good alternative, You would have to make sure the winch had enough cable for the length of the hill. Using a winch and would save the heavy demand on the caravan battery.

Which ever system you go for the attack and departure angles of the caravan and the hill will have to be sorted out

Most motor movers have a rating for slope and caravan weight. So you would need to ensure that your caravan is well within the weight limit given the length of drive. A spare fully charged battery would also be essential. As would periodic breaks in manoeuvring to prevent the mover cutting out on overheat.
 
Sep 4, 2017
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Quote from Powertouch themselves:

With its exceptional power and improved traction it will drive any single axle caravan (regardless of its weight) up slopes in excess of 1 in 4 (25%).

A visual judgement simply is not good enough, you must measure and work out the actual gradient. However if it is 1/5 that is only 20% slope. This mover will eat it up. Obviously my drive is not very long but any reasonable distance will be just fine. I have used mine to navigate some lengthy hilly distances at different parks without a problem.

I have used mine for some time without any spare battery. I do however plug in and charge roughly 2 days before using the van. 110 VA battery.

I do not leave the mover engaged to prevent tyre problems so all I use is the handbrake and 2 small rubber chocks on each wheel. The van stays put even in some of the gale force winds we have recently experienced. I must confess I did peek out the window a few nights ago to check it was still there!

https://www.powrtouch.com/evolution.html
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Grey,

you write:-
Grey13 said:
A visual judgement simply is not good enough, you must measure and work out the actual gradient. However if it is 1/5 that is only 20% slope. This mover will eat it up.

An incline of 1:5 is still a very significant slope in caravan terms, and the caravan mover will still be working quite hard to move the caravan up the hill, especially if its is a long hill. There could a risk of the motors over heating, or the battery not being able to supply the current the motors need.

The system will be working at an highly elevated rate which will stress the components and is more likely to expose any weakness in the equipment or its fitting or adjustment. Equally if the system were to fail in mid operation, It would be foolish to underestimate the potential injury or damage a caravan would cause if it were to start to roll down the hill. It is therefore a sensible precaution to have people with chocks at the ready.
 
Sep 4, 2017
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Prof - reasonable point. But having used my motor-mover (Powertouch) a lot and at least once tried to drive off after disconnecting power but not disengaging the drive...well the wheels simply do not turn. I would imagine if you lost power on a slope the van would just sit there. In any case I do have my rubber chocks handy when "mounting" my drive!
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Grey13 said:
Prof - reasonable point. But having used my motor-mover (Powertouch) a lot and at least once tried to drive off after disconnecting power but not disengaging the drive...well the wheels simply do not turn. I would imagine if you lost power on a slope the van would just sit there. In any case I do have my rubber chocks handy when "mounting" my drive!

Can I just give you a scenario from a real life experience that a customer had. His caravan was stored in a shed at the top of of a hill with steep concrete trackway. The caravan had been in store for about 2 months when the owner was keen to demonstrate the mover to some friends, so he said he would drive the caravan down and back up the up the slope. He engaged the mover and it was fine on the flat in side the shed.so he drove to to the start of the slope the. The jockey wheel started down but when he got the main wheels to start of the slope the caravan started to turn to the left and despite stopping the drive signal the caravan continued to swing until the jockey wheel dropped off the edge of the road way and into a drainage ditch. The caravan was precariously perched on the edge of the concrete road, and sideways across the track effectively blocking the track to the shed. Major embarrassment all round and clean trousers needed by some.

What had happened was the the right tyre has a slow puncture, which meant the quality of the movers grip was diminished on the RH side It was OK on the flat but could not control the the tyre when on the slope.

Having had time to get over the shock of what had just happened, he worked out what had happened and re inflated the tyres to the correct pressure. He reckoned on using the mover to reverse teh caravan a little whilst his friends tried to lift the nose of the caravan back up, Next problem was the battery was struggling with the power demand to start pulling the van up the hill.

We were called to check the mover after the event, and it was perfect, it was all about proper maintenance of the the caravan, and its services.

Moral of the story always check your tyre pressure and keep the battery properly charged, and have chocks at the ready something that the customer does every time now..
 
Nov 11, 2009
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ProfJohnL said:
Grey13 said:
Prof - reasonable point. But having used my motor-mover (Powertouch) a lot and at least once tried to drive off after disconnecting power but not disengaging the drive...well the wheels simply do not turn. I would imagine if you lost power on a slope the van would just sit there. In any case I do have my rubber chocks handy when "mounting" my drive!

Can I just give you a scenario from a real life experience that a customer had. His caravan was stored in a shed at the top of of a hill with steep concrete trackway. The caravan had been in store for about 2 months when the owner was keen to demonstrate the mover to some friends, so he said he would drive the caravan down and back up the up the slope. He engaged the mover and it was fine on the flat in side the shed.so he drove to to the start of the slope the. The jockey wheel started down but when he got the main wheels to start of the slope the caravan started to turn to the left and despite stopping the drive signal the caravan continued to swing until the jockey wheel dropped off the edge of the road way and into a drainage ditch. The caravan was precariously perched on the edge of the concrete road, and sideways across the track effectively blocking the track to the shed. Major embarrassment all round and clean trousers needed by some.

What had happened was the the right tyre has a slow puncture, which meant the quality of the movers grip was diminished on the RH side It was OK on the flat but could not control the the tyre when on the slope.

Having had time to get over the shock of what had just happened, he worked out what had happened and re inflated the tyres to the correct pressure. He reckoned on using the mover to reverse teh caravan a little whilst his friends tried to lift the nose of the caravan back up, Next problem was the battery was struggling with the power demand to start pulling the van up the hill.

We were called to check the mover after the event, and it was perfect, it was all about proper maintenance of the the caravan, and its services.

Moral of the story always check your tyre pressure and keep the battery properly charged, and have chocks at the ready something that the customer does every time now..

There’s also the scenario of when you arrive home and find the battery isn’t well charged as cables may not be fully tightened and whilst on EHU you wouldn’t notice. Then you are faced with the task of “parking”the van until the cables are fully secured and battery charged. Not what you want on a communal drive after a trip away.
For some manoeuvres with my mover when on the drive I lock the jockey wheel into its slot. That helps to prevent the nose slewing. I also do that if I need to jack up the wheel to align the darned Alko lock.
 
Jun 20, 2005
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Also, if moving the caravan in a rearward direction ensure you have initially set the hand brake correctly after you have reversed for a yard or so.

Will you have enough room at the bottom of the hill to turn through the 90 degs?
 
Oct 12, 2013
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JayTea said:
I'll be fitting a mover to my caravan after the hassle I had tonight. There's a car parked across the road that's un-taxed and un-insured that belongs to a neighbour and it's right in the way of me reversing into the driveway with the caravan. I had to partially reverse in, unhook, manhandle the van round a bit, reposition the car and hook it back up before I could get the caravan in

Worth every penny having one .
 
Nov 11, 2009
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JayTea said:
I'll be fitting a mover to my caravan after the hassle I had tonight. There's a car parked across the road that's un-taxed and un-insured that belongs to a neighbour and it's right in the way of me reversing into the driveway with the caravan. I had to partially reverse in, unhook, manhandle the van round a bit, reposition the car and hook it back up before I could get the caravan in

You will also find on some caravan sites that getting the van onto its pitch is neigh on impossible due to the opposite proximity of another van, it’s tow car or site fixtures such as lampposts, water stations or hedges etc. In Europe some can be tight even with a mover. Worth every penny as Craig says. Saves clutches to even on DSG or twin clutch autos.
 
Mar 24, 2014
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JayTea said:
I'll be fitting a mover to my caravan after the hassle I had tonight. There's a car parked across the road that's un-taxed and un-insured that belongs to a neighbour and it's right in the way of me reversing into the driveway with the caravan. I had to partially reverse in, unhook, manhandle the van round a bit, reposition the car and hook it back up before I could get the caravan in

If it's untaxed and uninsured, as you say, then it should not be on the road. I had a vehicle like that parked awkwardly outside my house a litlle while ago. When I mentioned the lack of tax and insurance, to the boys in blue, they became very interested, and were around like a shot.
 
Nov 11, 2009
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Niall_McIntosh said:
JayTea said:
I'll be fitting a mover to my caravan after the hassle I had tonight. There's a car parked across the road that's un-taxed and un-insured that belongs to a neighbour and it's right in the way of me reversing into the driveway with the caravan. I had to partially reverse in, unhook, manhandle the van round a bit, reposition the car and hook it back up before I could get the caravan in

If it's untaxed and uninsured, as you say, then it should not be on the road. I had a vehicle like that parked awkwardly outside my house a litlle while ago. When I mentioned the lack of tax and insurance, to the boys in blue, they became very interested, and were around like a shot.

In our area it’s a regular thing to see the DVSA contractor put a large clamp over the drivers side front wheel. Sometimes the clamps appear overnight. It’s generally the canal boater community that seem to transgress as they leave their vehicles parked up and then shoot off in the boat somewhere in order to avoid a Rivers and Canal Trust fixed penalty notice for overstaying their time moored in one place.
 
Oct 12, 2013
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Once or twice to get the hang off it and then you'll be fine . We live in a cul-de-sac and when i come home with the van I've gotta do a full 36o° turn to get on drive backwards and its awkward if there's cars parked in the turning circle and on the path opposite our drive . Still easier than pushing & shoving though !

Enjoy
 
Sep 29, 2016
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JayTea said:
The car has been sitting in the same position for over 6 months, it was taxed and insured in November when I last checked, but as soon I knew I was getting a caravan I checked DVLA and Asked and it was reported it to the DVLA straight away., I just need to wait until they do something about it now.

The police should deal with it very quickly following a phone call, there is I understand an increased drive to pursue and remove untaxed and uninsured vehicles.
 

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