motorhome levelling

[vr46]

 

 

Posts: 2

 

Hello All, Must be an age old question, but what is best form of levelling for motorhomes. I have been looking at the new milenco quattro levelling blocks, and the aluminium ratchet system for our autocruise starblazer and would be greatful for any feedback on these or any other system.

Many Thanks

[Sssnake]

Very new to motorhomes ourselves but have some Fiamma blocks which have proved inadequate on two sites to date. Have just bought some Milenco Quattros having read about them in a couple of mag's and had them recommended at the last site we were on in Dorset by a very experienced motorhomer. So no advice just my very limited experience. We're off on tour next weekend for 10 days so hopefully will be able to recommend our £40 Milenco's after that!

[Brambles]

Most people just use the Famma ramps/levelling blocks. They are relatively cheap and lightish weight. On camsites you will also see some peope using just bits of wood.

I think most people after a while stop trying to get too level and just try and make sure they park on fairly level ground....not always easy so one just decides to make sure their head is higher than their feet.

 

Edit -- Our Van like many slopes down towards the front so we always try and park the front up hill and usually with the aid of ramps manage to get close to level.

 

[MotoHomer]

We've used Fiamma levellers for years and have found them fine except on a very few pitches with high degrees of slope. Need to be aware that the clutch can be worked a little hard in such circs!

On near level non-hardstandings it is often worth moving forwards/backwards a little as you can sometimes find a spot where the ground undulations provide a level pitch anyway.

We use a glass of water on the kitchen worktop as a reference but you can sight a window sill/top against any visible horizon etc.

Often find that our van can settle slightly a day or so after initial levelling - had to "fine tune" at one site last week but this is rare.

Using levelling ramps on your caravan door side can result in a big step to get in/out so you might want to carry a supplementary step.

[le canichot depang]

I read somewhere that if you are using the fridge on gas, then the van should be fairly level, as the gas flame which naturally flows directly up could damage the fridge. Anyone know if this is correct?

[Mel B]

A lot of fridges are very tilt tolerant now so it isn't a problem, if the flame was so big as to cause 'damage' if the fridge was used at an angle, I doubt if it would pass safety regulations anyway for it being installed in motorhomes in the first place.

 

We used to use levelling ramps a lot, but that was before we got fed up with pratting around for just an odd night. We've had some lovely 'angles' on our van and, so long as we don't roll out of bed and the pans don't drop off the cooker when I'm making tea, we're pretty happy!

 

Our van too is as standard set with the rear riding higher than the front, so depending oin the angle of the ground we will pitch accordingly. The last time the ramps were used was last year on one particularly sloping aire, before that I think it had been a couple of years since they saw the light of day!

[davenewellhome]

I use a pair of large Fiamma ramps and we almost always try to get the van reasonably level although I haven't resorted to using a spirit level as yet. Our house is level and stable and we kinda like living like that. I have four "Attwood" style jack legs at the rear, each capable of lifting near to half a tonne so I tend to set the van slightly nose high and then lift the rear with the jacks (DO NOT do this with the windup caravan style corner steadies, they are not designed for lifting!) till the van is level and stable.

 

D.

[Mel B]

But Dave ... we know that you don't want to spill a drop of your tipple by it 'sliding' off an uneven surface ... and as to what you get up to in the back of your van that means you need those jack legs ..... :D :$

 

We like to live 'on the edge'!!!!! :->

[davenewellhome]

Mel, sorry to disappoint you but the jack legs have nothing to do with what we get up to at night. Its quite simple really, our house doesn't wobble when we walk around in it and the floors are pretty good for level. We quite like that and see no reason why, if its reasonably possible, that our motorhome shouldn't be the same, after all it only takes a few minutes to get levelled up and deploy the jack legs and then there's no need for the "if this van's rockin' don't bother knockin" sign :D . Anyway most of our camping is at outdoor shows and the 'van will be parked for five nights, we don't get the opportunity for much touring around staying for one night only very often although when we do we still try to get level and stable.

 

D.

[trooper]

I think you will find the M/H should be fairly level so that the refrigerant circulates properly, newer ones are not so prone to this problem.

[vr46]

Hello all again,

Thanks to everyone who has replied, I should add one of the main reasons for getting the motorhome level, is that our fridge seems to require an almost level pitch to operate properly.We stayed on a site at the weekend and the best pitch we could find had adverse cambers on front to back and side to side, and was a devil to get level enough for comfort and the fridge to work right. We have the standard fiamma incremental blocks and the fiamma wedge ramps but still struggled in our plight.

[Archiesgrandad]

We have the usual Fiamma wedges, but we don't use them much. For our previous RV I bought a sheet of 8x4 25mm plywood. cut it into 12 inch wide strips accross the width, 4 I left full length and 4 I cut in half. with a combination of these we made up wedges that made it easy to get level, and we also used them on soft ground to stop us sinking in.

AGD

[Derek Uzzell]

The Refrigerators chapter in John Wickersham's "The Motorcaravan Manual" book (Why haven't you all got a copy of this?!) contains advice on levelling requirements.

 

According to JW, all Electrolux fridges made before 1986 need to be completely level to operate properly. Since then all Electrolux/Dometic fridges have been 'tilt tolerant' - some models able to operate at an angle of 3°, others at 6°.

 

Presumably modern fridges from other manufacturers (eg. Thetford) can also handle a reasonable amount of tilt. If your fridge is recent and is picky about operating on gas unless absolutely level, then it might be worth having the chimney/burner cleaned to see if that improves matters.

 

I need to use levelling wedges on our Hobby if the vehicle is parked tail-down, otherwise the shower won't drain. I normally 'rock' the motorhome on to the wedges to avoid abusing the clutch and I've noticed from other campers' actions that stepped wedges (like the Milenco Quattro design) seem to be considerably easier to drive up than the traditional type. Logically, the wider, longer, higher and stronger the wedges the more useful they are likely to prove.

[vr46]

Thanks Derek,

A lot of interesting information in your post. We will certainly invest in a copy of the book.

We have a Thetford fridge aboard our 2006 Autocruise Starblazer, and as i said before it seems to require a very level base to function properly. ( Electric is more of a problem than gas.)

And to all ,we would still value any feedback on the Milenco Quattro blocks.

Thanks again, Keith and Karen.

[machinehead]

I just pick a reasonably level site and use a sprit level to level in two directions.

 

As said before, little movements on a site can make a big difference to your levels. After a while you get an eye for choosing the better sites too.

 

In 25+ years of campervans I have never even owned levelling blocks.

 

M.

[Keith T]

Id we are just overnighting, we don't worry too much, but if staying more we do try to level as much as possible - more though to stop the pans slipping on the hob than worrying about the fridge or bed angles! Why don't they make hobs with non-slip trivets, rather than the silly thin slidy ones...ours at home ( on a perfectly level surface,of course) has non slip ones!

As far as the blocks are concerend, we use the big Fiamma ones, but this is the second pair, and we find they are splitting in the middle where they are on less than even surfaces. As far as getting onto them is concerned we have the Fiamma accessory which locks in and stops the blocks moving when you drive onto them. We also tend to put a plank of wood under the front wheels when on grass, to stop 'sinking'too much!

[Derek Uzzell]

There's a useful article "Levelling Ramps and Grip Mats" on pages 229 and 230 of MMM October 2009.