Leveling a Cedar Creek Fifth Wheel

[Don C]

Today we moved into a nice Famcamp at Ft. Sam Houston at San Antonio, TX. The space is a new concrete slab. Our problem is that we could not level our fifth wheel. Front to rear is pretty level, but one side is clearly higher than the other. I worked with the supports, plus various combinations of wood blocks; I alternated raising the front and rear supports, etc. No good.

How to you level side to side?

[Mr.B]

I carry a 2x6 plank(s) and run the tires up on the plank on the low side. A lot of people use the "lego" blocks though. Either way the stabilizer jacks are not designed to lift. Although on concrete the pad should have been level to start with! It may have a small pitch to drain water but should not be unlevel to the point of needing to be leveled by other methods. Are you using a small level to check the side to side level? I place a torpedo level on the floor at my entry door and or kitchen counter.

[Radio]

Level side to side before unhitching.

I carry a 24" level I place on the rear bumper. Pulling the trailer into it's desired position, I check side to side level, then guess from experience how many layers of "Lego blocks" to put down on the low side. I pull forward, lay the blocks down and back up onto the blocks, in the exact desired position I started from. Check the level and do it again if needed.

Once level side to side, unhitch, level fore and aft with your front legs, then crank down your stabilizers.

You can fine tune your front legs by carrying wood blocks of various thickness, I have 2 x 8 x 8" pressure treated blocks, and several 1/2" thick 8 x 8" chunks of plywood. This gives me a better level than the 1" hole spacings on the legs will allow. I like for both front legs to "touch down" at the same time. Makes for a better level without twisting the trailer frame.

[MtnGuy]

How do you use the lego blocks on a tandem axle?? My single axle Trailmanor was a breeze to do, as I could make a "ramp" of Lynx Levelers to level. But with tandem axles, you can't do that because of 1 tire getting in the way of raising the other. So far, I have come up with putting 1 or 2 blocks between the tires, and 1 or 2 blocks behind the rear (or ahead of the front) and pulling up on those, and if I need more heigth then I do that over again from that point with 3 of 4 blocks.......never pulling the tires up more than 2 blocks at a time. I have seen people make long ramps so both tires ride across the "bridge", but they probably used 20 blocks for that. Is my way the simplest, or is there some other secret out there that I am missing???

[Radio]

I carry 2 bags of lego blocks, for a total of 20. And once or twice I have used every last one of them. Sometimes you have to get creative in how you use them, like when it takes 3 to 4 "rows" to level. Then I will make what looks like a double hump camel, ramped in front, sheer drop in back.

And I don't use lego blocks for chocks. I use real chocks and those wedge thingies that jam between tandem axles. And to further save my lego blocks for the axles, I carry wood blocks of various thickness for leveling up the front jacks. That works better because lego blocks only come in one thickness.

[MtnGuy]

Thanks, Radio. Just wondering if I was missing something. I also carry 2 bags of Lynx Levelers, and using my method of leveling I end up using 9 of those puppies if I have to go 2 high under each wheel.....2 stacks of 2 on each wheel. I also have the Lynx Leveler chock block on the down hill side, which straddles 1 if the 2 high stacks, and another single behind it, if that makes sense. 3 high, I would use 14 blocks......4 stacks of 3, plus a stack of 2 for the back end of the wheel choke. After that, I will start looking for another site, or a step ladder if those are on the door side.

[Radio]

Originally Posted by mtnguy

Thanks, Radio. Just wondering if I was missing something. I also carry 2 bags of Lynx Levelers, and using my method of leveling I end up using 9 of those puppies if I have to go 2 high under each wheel.....2 stacks of 2 on each wheel. I also have the Lynx Leveler chock block on the down hill side, which straddles 1 if the 2 high stacks, and another single behind it, if that makes sense. 3 high, I would use 14 blocks......4 stacks of 3, plus a stack of 2 for the back end of the wheel choke. After that, I will start looking for another site, or a step ladder if those are on the door side.

That's about right. Another thing I do involves Sweet Wife. I stack my lego blocks along side the wheels just like I want them, then tell Sweet Wife exactly where I want the axle hubs to be relative to the blocks. Then I pull the trailer forward, she slides the blocks over, and signals to me when to stop when I back the trailer up onto the blocks and the hubs are over their desired spots.

A picture is worth a thousand words, but I have never thought to take a pic of a really difficult leveling job.

Our whole leveling and unhitching combined process takes under 15 minutes, utilities hook up under 5. Push out the slide and otherwise settle in maybe another 15. Maybe.

We use a checklist and with a little practice it's well less than 30 minutes from selecting the site to begin preparing lunch or dinner.

[MtnGuy]

Originally Posted by Radio

Another thing I do involves Sweet Wife. I stack my lego blocks along side the wheels just like I want them, then tell Sweet Wife exactly where I want the axle hubs to be relative to the blocks. Then I pull the trailer forward, she slides the blocks over, and signals to me when to stop when I back the trailer up onto the blocks and the hubs are over their desired spots.

Yeah, I use the wife labor system also......saves me crawling in and out of the truck an extra 1/2 dozen or so times while both hitching and unhitching.

[cat1956]

WOW,I use the wife labor system also.It is a big help!!

[dezolen]

I carry 3 2x8x6'planks for leveling our 5th. Easy to carry in pickup bed. Found lego blocks would not support the weight of the 5th wheel ended up crushing a few