How important is level on two way fridge?

[MBSNewbie]

Please be kind - we are newbies and have never owned a RV before.

I know this RV has stabilizing jacks but not leveling jacks. We want to be as mobile as possible and be able to come and go quickly from campsites or wherever we are to use the vehicle to go shopping, go out to dinner, etc. We don't plan on "setting up camp" for several days with this RV. Basically use it as a car and a camper. That's why we chose the smaller 24 ft Forester 2401W MBS RV. I've been reading and watching YouTube videos and this "leveling" an RV seems to be a pain with setting blocks, backup up over them, checking the level, adding or removing blocks, checking the level, etc. Is it as important as everyone is making out it to be? We are going to be constantly on the go, often only pulling into a park or campground late in the day and then heading out in the morning. I don't want to have to mess with trying to pull out blocks and backing back and forth for several minutes every day. I'm hearing that the fridge doesn't work unless you are completely level? What is the real experience anyone has had? I know this coach has a 2 way fridge but I don't know anything else. Obviously we need our fridge to work!

Thanks.

[jeff64]

You can probably be off an inch one way or the other but remember whether its on electric or gas power it still operates off of heat by "boiling" the liquid ammonia compound. The variance from level affects how the liquid runs back down in the tubes. Sometimes, " dead nuts level" can be a pain to achieve, especially side to side. My DW says the level is off the blood is rushing to my head and I can't sleep, but I've known that for years!

[SeaDog]

It is important to be close to level when stationary I think my old Norcold called for 3* side to side and 6* front to back. So IMHO it is necessary to be close. If you take a little time to practice how many blocks it takes level given the amount of lean it will become very easy to get it right the first time without repeated tries.

[windsurfdog]

Pick a spot in your RV that you can trust to be level. I use the glass cover over the stove as my level spot. Place a bubble level there. If at least half of the bubble is within the marker ring, you will be fine. You might be able to get away with a little more than 1/2 bubble but it certainly would be problematic if there isn't much bubble within the marker ring. $.02

[MBSNewbie]

Originally Posted by SeaDog

It is important to be close to level when stationary I think my old Norcold called for 3* side to side and 6* front to back. So IMHO it is necessary to be close. If you take a little time to practice how many blocks it takes level given the amount of lean it will become very easy to get it right the first time without repeated tries.

Fridge is mounted on the left side wall. What's more important - front to back leveling or side to side? I really don't want to worry about doing this unless we are camped for more than one night or if we are obviously on a slant (stuff rolling off the table).

[grumpy0374]

As SeaDog stated, practice.
I have two small levels, Camco #25503. Cheap, but good for what I needed.
In my driveway, got my Lexi Level using a regular carpenters level to get right on the money.
Took one Camco level and foung a place on the dash to mount it via double stick tape. This is for side to side.
Found a place on the plastic trim above the drivers door to mount the front to back level.
Now, when I pull into a spot, I can look right at the two levels and see what needs to be done.
I use the "leggo" type blocks which are 1".
After you get used to it, you'll be able to tell almost exactly how many blocks you'll need, and be able to avoid the "pull on, pull off, pull on, pull off" routine.
Grumpy

[MBSNewbie]

Originally Posted by windsurfdog

Pick a spot in your RV that you can trust to be level. I use the glass cover over the stove as my level spot. Place a bubble level there. If at least half of the bubble is within the marker ring, you will be fine. You might be able to get away with a little more than 1/2 bubble but it certainly would be problematic if there isn't much bubble within the marker ring. $.02

Is this the type of level you are referring to?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EDSSDY

[SeaDog]

Originally Posted by MBSNewbie

Fridge is mounted on the left side wall. What's more important - front to back leveling or side to side? I really don't want to worry about doing this unless we are camped for more than one night or if we are obviously on a slant (stuff rolling off the table).

Both are important IMO. However it's your rig so you need to do what you feel it best for you and your camping experience.

[windsurfdog]

Originally Posted by MBSNewbie

Is this the type of level you are referring to?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000EDSSDY

Yes...my bad...should have referred to bullseye level instead of bubble level. Mine only has the innermost ring so that is the marker ring to which I was referring.

[RedLdr1]

It is not just the fridge that can be an issue. The "W" has a very large, heavy, slide out. There is a lot of weight extended out quite a distance on that configuration. If you are not close to level you can damage the slide out motors trying to extend or retract the slide.

We had a "W" floor plan MBS. When I leveled our "W" I tried to get the drivers side about one to two degrees higher than the passenger side. Then when the slide was extended that put me very close to level. Check out the Mercedes Benz Sprinter Chassis subforum for more info.

[Wattsworld]

My first RV was a tt in 1974 and I always heard that the level had to be right on for the refrigerator to work properly. I used a round bubble level in the bottom of the refrigerator to check for level. Refrigerator never seemed cold enough. I checked the level with a 2 foot level on the floor and it didn't make any difference. Darn thing would never get real cold. Once we went camping and arrived late and didn't have time to set the camper up we just went on to bed. We were leaning slightly to one side, not enough to mess our minds up but the bubble was out of the center of the round bubble level. Woke up the next morning and the refrigerator/freezer had never been that cold before.
After that we always set the camper slightly off to get the refrigerator to cool like we wanted. We had that camper 12 years and the refrigerator never failed us once. We almost always kept it on gas, but it worked ok on electric also.
Next RV was a motorhome. That refrigerator would keep ice cream frozen in the freezer compartment. We always tried to level it close, but we didn't have leveling jacks only a good stock of wood to put under the wheels.
After going 15 years without an RV we bought a motorhome 5 moths ago but I haven't even turned on the refrigerator. We haven't taken it out camping yet. Maybe next week. I can't believe we are retired and never have as much time as when we worked full time.

[DaveSchwartz]

Originally Posted by MBSNewbie

Fridge is mounted on the left side wall. What's more important - front to back leveling or side to side? I really don't want to worry about doing this unless we are camped for more than one night or if we are obviously on a slant (stuff rolling off the table).

It is most important to have an absorption fridge leveled side-to-side - in the case of a side-mounted fridge, that is leveling the RV front-to-back.

Referring to this image



the reason is that the working fluid condenses and flows back to the boiler through a zig-zag arrangement of tubing. If the fluid is allowed to pool and slow down at any point before the boiler (i.e. one of the switch-backs becomes level or up-hill) crystals can form that will no longer convert back to liquid or vapor. Then it just snowballs until the tube blocks and the whole plumbing system has to be replaced.

There's more information than you probably ever wanted to know at http://www.rvdoctor.com/2004/02/rv-a...on-basics.html

[MBSNewbie]

Originally Posted by RedLdr1

It is not just the fridge that can be an issue. The "W" has a very large, heavy, slide out. There is a lot of weight extended out quite a distance on that configuration. If you are not close to level you can damage the slide out motors trying to extend or retract the slide.

We had a "W" floor plan MBS. When I leveled our "W" I tried to get the drivers side about one to two degrees higher than the passenger side. Then when the slide was extended that put me very close to level. Check out the Mercedes Benz Sprinter Chassis subforum for more info.

Why did you sell yours?

[Just the 2 of us]

The fridge will die when the coils get clogged and it's a very expensive fix. Leveling takes no time at all once you get the hang of it

[CaptnJohn]

Originally Posted by Just the 2 of us

The fridge will die when the coils get clogged and it's a very expensive fix. Leveling takes no time at all once you get the hang of it

Or call the dealer and have Ground Control 3.0 installed. As an old guy I like pushing the button and be level in 90 seconds or less while it does all the work.

[ben31]

I found Andersen Levelers to be the easiest way to quickly level my trailer. Small, and can take the place of up to 3 leveling blocks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j-kdZ6sYuA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4JQV15VzBc

[grumpy0374]

Originally Posted by ben31

I found Andersen Levelers to be the easiest way to quickly level my trailer. Small, and can take the place of up to 3 leveling blocks.

OP has a class c motorhome. Those won't work.
Grumpy

[Myrle]

Originally Posted by MBSNewbie

Please be kind - we are newbies and have never owned a RV before.

I know this RV has stabilizing jacks but not leveling jacks. We want to be as mobile as possible and be able to come and go quickly from campsites or wherever we are to use the vehicle to go shopping, go out to dinner, etc. We don't plan on "setting up camp" for several days with this RV. Basically use it as a car and a camper. That's why we chose the smaller 24 ft Forester 2401W MBS RV. I've been reading and watching YouTube videos and this "leveling" an RV seems to be a pain with setting blocks, backup up over them, checking the level, adding or removing blocks, checking the level, etc. Is it as important as everyone is making out it to be? We are going to be constantly on the go, often only pulling into a park or campground late in the day and then heading out in the morning. I don't want to have to mess with trying to pull out blocks and backing back and forth for several minutes every day. I'm hearing that the fridge doesn't work unless you are completely level? What is the real experience anyone has had? I know this coach has a 2 way fridge but I don't know anything else. Obviously we need our fridge to work!

Thanks.

Since I worked 40+ yrs in home construction I have a 4' level by just looking at bubbles I can tell how much I need to level. After some practice it should be easy for you to do this.

[dahagen]

I was told by an RV service man that with the newer (after 2000) refers that if it's just for a few days....as long as you don't roll out of bed you are OK.

[mtnlvr]

I have nearly 19,000 mi. on my 2014 Solera 24S. I have arrived many times late in the evening at campgrounds or home and have been too tired to level it perfectly. I too frequently just stay for the night and don't want to hassle with blocks and don't bother hooking up my water & sewer line. I just hook up to power. My frig still works fine. I do turn it on a day before a trip to get it cool enough. I did learn my first week of camping why it's good to be level, left to right. I opened an upper cabinet and a pile of dishes slid out and hit me on my head, hard.
( I store the dishes more secure now also.)