Pads for under Leveling Jacks?

[CMcGGray]

We purchased a Thor Palazzo 33.2 (our first RV) and will soon begin a 1 year sight-seeing trip of the US spending only 1 or maybe 2 nights before moving on to the next location. We have been researching extensively so that sight-seeing & travel time is not lost due to unexpected repairs or maintenance.

Recently Hubby has heard that pads under leveling jacks are sometimes required. We expect to mostly stay at private campgrounds or state & national parks. Does anyone have information about how often we may encounter this situation?

Appreciate any & all assistance!

[dave54]

12x18" 1/2 plywood. If I need more height I use Lynx blocks. For storage I place the plywood upright as a wall liner in case anything heavy shifts while moving, prevents dings and dents on the bin walls.

[wilber1]

Lots of interesting ideas here. I just use a couple of pieces of 2X8 about a foot long. I also carry Lynx Levelers which are very good except for very soft ground.

[Gjac]

I made jack pads out of 1 in thick nylon bathroom stall separators that were being throw away. I cut 12 in X 12 in squares and put a hole in one corner so I can use the awning rod to remove them. Also made larger ones for tires to sit on when not traveling. Most of my camping is in unpaved camp sites and I thought I would use them more than I did especially when traveling to Alaska. In 14 years I only used them maybe a half dozen times, the feet that came with the HWH kick down jacks were large enough to support the weight(15,000 lbs) in most cases.

[2gypsies1]

lucy6194 wrote:
Have used small cutting boards under jacks.

x2

Get some of those hard plastic cutting boards (Dollar Store) and try to find them with a cutout handle. Tie a piece of rope through the cutout for ease when pulling them out when ready to leave. They are thin and easy to store if you don't have a lot of storage room for big blocks of wood.

We used public parks all the time - national, state, national forest, etc. and sites are rarely paved. Even if they're not required, we used them because of sinking in dirt or sand... and you will encounter this in public parks.

If you park anywhere on asphalt it's common courtesy to use something under your jacks so you don't make gouges in the asphalt - yes, even for a night at a WalMart!

I'll also agree with those who recommended that you slow down for this trip. You won't see the area if only spending a night or two. We full-timed for 16 years and traveled constantly and we still didn't see it all. 🙂

[Bob_E_]

Keep your eye out after roadway construction projects wrap up. You can often times find those rubber pads for the channelizer panels laying around after the contractor leaves. My dad has collected a few over the years and cut them in half to make 2 good size pads. Only bad thing is they are pretty heavy and you don't want to stack them more than 2 pads tall because they get a little squishy. But they are very stable and the feet of the jacks don't slip off them if the camper shifts a little.

[Veebyes]

Made my own by cutting & screwing short lengths of 2X4 together making pads 4" tall & more than doubling weight spread area on the ground. Same pads have been with me for 10 years & have been used many hundreds of times. Been used so many times that the tops have depressions from the leg feet.

[jplante4]

Bumpyroad wrote:

FLY 4 FUN wrote:
I use 15/16" trex solid plastic deck material. Heavier than wood...but will not absorb moisture and virtually indestructible.

trex seems like a great substitute for wood, but how wide can you get the boards?
bumpy

Not Trex, but the fascia board that I had left over when I re-did my deck with CorrecDeck. It's 12" wide and 1/4" thick. I glued and screwed 3 12X12 pieces together, drilled a couple of holes for a lanyard and put these down under the jacks.

[Solo]

Thunder Mountain wrote:
We have stayed at a couple of campgrounds where pads were required because of soft surfaces or blacktop. If the pad is concrete there is no need. Don't buy plastic pads for a MH with auto levelers. Unless the ground is firm and level they will shatter. My pads are 1' square made from two pieces of 1" thick fir plywood with the grain running in opposite directions. They are glued and screwed together. I drilled a hole in one corner so I could use rod with a hook in it for positioning under the pad foot. A friend made ones similar to mine with an additional layer of stall mat on each side and a drawer handle affixed to on side. That works great for his fiver with auto levelers, but they would be to heavy to wrestle around under my MH. He reasoned that the stall mat helps the pad self adjust for uneven surfaces.

I agree with Thunder Mountain and have made something nearly identical in construction and size. I used AdvanTech OSB with acq treated 2x material sandwiched on the inside. With a rod that I designed, positioning and removal under my coach is very easy. The pads are not used that often but, there are times where the surface is suspect and the additional surface area of the pad is needed. Your Palazzo is not as heavy as Thunder Mountain's Journey or our Ellipse but, you still are heavy enough that it would be wise in my opinion to consider some options.

[Bumpyroad]

FLY 4 FUN wrote:
I use 15/16" trex solid plastic deck material. Heavier than wood...but will not absorb moisture and virtually indestructible.

trex seems like a great substitute for wood, but how wide can you get the boards?
bumpy

[miltvill]

I use a 12 inch piece of 2x10 wood. I place it under my pads even if I am on pavement. I like to keep my pads out of the water if it rains. Here in Florida the rain may come down faster then your site can drain.

[FLY_4_FUN]

I use 15/16" trex solid plastic deck material. Heavier than wood...but will not absorb moisture and virtually indestructible.

[tjfogelberg]

I had trouble with the plastic blocks cracking or flexing so I splurged and bought “hoss pads” from CW. Love ‘em, they provide a more stable base for the jacks and have rope handles on them making them easy to grab. Also, they won,t conduct electricity in case of a lightening strike.

[Doss]

I had a 10 foot 2x10 laying around and it became landing pads. I like them because I can just toss them in the bed of the truck

I did that with some of the yellow ones. They now live somewhere on I-75.

[Bumpyroad]

I use large squares of thick aluminum under the jacks. I would not use lego type blocks under motorhome tires. they are too skinny and don't support sidewalls. fine for tT tires however.
bumpy