Camper Base question to Stan

[Walldiver]

This is a question to Stan: I am going to make the Interlocking Camper Support System that you posted a couple of years ago. When the camper is on this system is the camper stable enought to support 2 people in the extended cabover bed, is the base weighted down enough to keep the camper from tipping? I would like to offload the camper when at a campsite so that I can use the truck to launch my boat every morning. I ran across a Fishing Guide who did this with a older FWC, thing is he did not have the extended cab like is standard nowdays.

Pat

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

It should be OK on the normal camper models that have items like the sink, stove, refrigerator, couch, etc.

We have the campers in our showroom sitting on wood boxes and they are not tied down.

We have never had a camper tilt forward when customers were up in the bed.

At the trade shows we set the campers on those plywood interlocking pieces, lower the jacks to the ground (4 corners), and we are good to go.

If you have a short bed "empty shell model" style of camper, then maybe it would be a good idea to put something under the cabover portion of the camper to keep the camper from tipping forward. But that said, I still think you would be OK.

If you have 2 people in the cabover bed at night, one of those people has their weight directly over the front wall of the truck camper, so I don't think this person really adds to any tipping forward weight.

If in doubt have the smaller / lighter person sleep all the way forward (up near the wood folding panel) and have the bigger / heavier person sleep on the slide-out portion of the bed.

You should be OK like that.

Hope this helps.




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[Barko1]

Reminds me of the saying "don't come knockin if this van is rockin" Might want to control what goes on in that cabover

 

[Ted]

Probably of equal concern is making sure the feet of the jacks are on solid ground or a support that spreads out the weight. We were in Slough Creek CG in Yellowstone once with a nearby camp that had a camper on the legs only. Had been that way for a day when suddenly one leg dropped into the soil, tilting the camper almost to the point of rolling it. Turns out there were rodent tunnels underground, and the support under one of the feet gave way all at once. That poor guy was throwing chairs, coolers, anything he could under the camper to stop it from sinking and rolling.

 

[Stan@FourWheel]

Good Point !

See small pieces of wood under the camper jacks on the attached pictures.


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Probably of equal concern is making sure the feet of the jacks are on solid ground ...

 

[Walldiver]

Reminds me of the saying "don't come knockin if this van is rockin" Might want to control what goes on in that cabover

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing myself. Seriously, I was thinking of just setting the camper jacks on the ground for added support. I am also thinking of using a couple of the longer jack screws that are for supporting home floor joist beams under the cabover, seen them online for as cheap as 25 bucks.