Opinion/Advice raising top on a hill - Hi-Lo camper travel trailer forum

hilltool · 07-26-2012, 08:14 PM

So

I live at the end of a residential street on a slight hill----and though I can back the trailer into my drive, my drive has two retaining walls and it is a tight squeeze. In fact, if I lowered the top with the doors out at a right angle they would not clear the retaining wall on the way down--so it is tight. Which means- it is a pain to load when we want to use it. It is do-able, but not any fun. What would be MORE FUN would be to pull it up along the curb and across the drive so I could easily walk inside....but i would have to raise it on the "hill" . How bad would this be? You are going to ask "how steep?" I don't know how to estimate the grade.---- I will take a picture and post. Anybody ever have to do something similar?

Rick

JackandJanet · 07-26-2012, 08:25 PM

I think you're going to put some damaging stress on the guide tracks if you raise the top with the side to side orientation badly out of level. Couldn't you put the "downhill" wheel(s) on leveling blocks?

- Jack

hilltool · 07-26-2012, 10:49 PM

Its a "front to back" issue, mostly. I don't know if the photos come through but right at the drive it is maybe a 30% grade. Putting the wheels on a ramp is something I also thought of ,though it will take a long ramp with double axle. Another thing is,of course, seeing how low I can get the hitch to go either by NOT hooking up the spring bars or, even, unhooking and dropping it down as far as I can get it. Even way- it would take some serious "chocking". maybe more trouble than squeezing in the drive. I need to hook her up and pull her in front and check the levels, I guess. Front to back I guess the concern would be stress on cables.

Rick

hilltool · 07-26-2012, 10:50 PM

sorry . I don't know how it went in upside down. Guess i need to work on this aspect of things.

JackandJanet · 07-27-2012, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hilltool

sorry . I don't know how it went in upside down. Guess i need to work on this aspect of things.

I was going to say that would be VERY stressful on the "top" half!

I really don't know how much "tilt" is safe though. I think front to back would be less of a problem however, due to the increased length, vs the side to side dimension. It really looks like the tilt would be minor and could be mostly taken out with the front jack.

- Jack

PopRichie77 · 07-27-2012, 09:32 AM

The manual says 6 inches out of level. Your hill looks like more that that. The stress is on the plastic glide blocks, they will crack in the middle and eventually break the holding screws off or they will pull out, happened on the 95. When faced with this type of condition, I always face the trailer down hill, block the wheels, unhook and raise the tongue till the trailer is level. This works easy on trailers with springs like my 95 as the swings arm between the spring keeps the weight even on both axles, on my 2209 that has independent torsion axles, I have to drive the front axle wheels onto riser blocks before raising the tongue or it puts to much weight on the Atwood 2500 lb tongue power lift jack and it will ratchet and not lift. It is a pain to do this but safer than damaging the trailer and it works.

Dabbler · 07-27-2012, 01:21 PM

hilltool:

I put that photo into my Picture Publisher software and righted it. You mentioned you live at the END of a residential street. Does that mean this is Deadended or a Through street? How much traffic do you see go by in a short period of time?

Judging from the photo, your drive looks fairly level. Your problem could be quite simple if you are at the end of a Deadend street, and if your neighbors are understanding people, it will make it even easier.

Back your trailer up into your driveway, but leave the axels resting on the sidewalk, or if they can go far enough into your driveway, and still let your trailer door which should be on the passenger side, clear of the retaining wall, try that. Your towing vehicle will be sitting out in the roadway in somewhat of an angle but... the trailer should be self leveling to a degree, that will allow you to raise it for loading. It will be better than on the hill in front of your house.

If you put most of the items you want to take along on your trip, out on the front porch before hand, you will shorten your inconvience stay in the roadway.

It's only a thought... Dabbler

PS.

I looked closer at your photo. You are not at the end of the block; looks more like two houses away from a Yield street. My guess now is that you have through traffic. Also took a few measurements from your photo... the incline of you street is about four degrees. Your vehicle will be tilted, but the ball on your hitch will allow for any difference between your vehicle and trailer. You of course know more about passage of traffic, and the forgiving attitude of your police department better than I. If it was me, I would probably attempt to try the above suggestion.

hilltool · 07-27-2012, 04:48 PM

Dabbler, thanks for fixing the photo. It was right side up on my desktop when I uploaded it-so who knows?

Great suggestions and comments and warnings-all. I hooked it up and parked in front and tried some old "leveling" ramps I had from an old Class"C" I once owned with my dad ( long story- he didn't want his wife to know he had bought it....) that were made from three 2x6 s staggered and beveled on top of each other. I think I could make that set up work if I stuck it on the ramps and dropped it off the truck and , then , lowered the front jack. But poprichie's warning about the stress on the jack got me thinking and the fact it would take some serious "Chocking" to get it off the truck and insure it didn't head down -hill.....has made me abandon the idea for now. It does fit in the drive and, if i squeeze it in on the drivers side there is enough room to swing the door all the way open. Hooking up the shore power is a pain to pre-cool the frig, but, again, I have done it plenty of times. Actually, the easiest solution is to load the bed of the ruck with all camping supplies which keeps weight out of the trailer and with the cover on the truck that isn't a bad way to go.

Normally it is parked in a drive across the street ---but I don't have electric and water access over there. So- being able to pull it up out front would have been handy for washing the inside and out and other tasks but, in the end, life is not all that bad.

The picture DAbbler got turned right-side-up doesn't quite do the grade justice- and it gets serious right at my drive. I don't know- I may end up knocking down the retaining wall on the downhill side and rebuilding it a couple of feet over----I have another 2 feet on my property line over there. Or not.

Thanks for helping me think this through, everybody.

rick

PappaP · 07-28-2012, 12:28 PM

I would think dabbler's suggestion may work also, by leaving the trailer in the driveway but just not backed up far enough that the retaining wall is blocking the door, so the door could still be opened for access. Or, I was thinking the same thing you were, knock down part of that retaining wall and then there would be no worries and you have all the access you need. But there maybe a reason that retaining wall is there in the first place, to keep water runoff from flooding your drive? Just a thought.

sting32 · 07-31-2012, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hilltool

So

I live at the end of a residential street on a slight hill----and though I can back the trailer into my drive, my drive has two retaining walls and it is a tight squeeze. In fact, if I lowered the top with the doors out at a right angle they would not clear the retaining wall on the way down--so it is tight. Which means- it is a pain to load when we want to use it. It is do-able, but not any fun. What would be MORE FUN would be to pull it up along the curb and across the drive so I could easily walk inside....but i would have to raise it on the "hill" . How bad would this be? You are going to ask "how steep?" I don't know how to estimate the grade.---- I will take a picture and post. Anybody ever have to do something similar?

Rick

I wont be responsible for damages, if you do something like not chock the wheels and stuff...

but if you are going to pull up in front of the house, with trailer facing uphill, then do what I do. I back my trailer tires up on car ramps or actually my leveling blocks and boards. and leave hooked to pickup... Level it like you are at a campground... You probably cant leave it this way for weeks, but usually a couple days out on the street isnt an issue any more than I have with a level street and worries of it being hit or robbed.

BTW, our lakes and most of my motorcycle (boondocking) spots, are spots that are this un-level, and I have to backup on blocks, chock the wheels and have lots of 4x4's cut to get level, and I let tongue jack down most times. I have dual axles to boot.

BTW, buddy of mine build a really nice shed, with "manufactured" beams, made from 2x10's nailed together... he cut off the ends on a couple, which I snapped up, made my own leveling ramps out of (about 5ft long with slope enough to just back up onto... you could replicate with a few pieces of 4x8 nailed together correctly, to make it so you could setup and tear down quickly.

EDIT ok just saw you talked about making ramps... you can build a set to get high enough to get level with it hooked to truck... My driveway is that steep, lol, so I do what I am saying in my driveway when I want to load and get fridge cold...

Just a thought