One of the easiest things there is to do in the RV world is to level a travel trailer. Essentially, you only have to worry about side-to-side leveling and then use the power tongue jack to level the thing front to back.
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Camco leveling wedges
For our previous travel trailer, we used the Andersen leveling blocks, which served us well the entire time we had the trailer. (My review on those is here.) We literally bought the wedge-shaped blocks at the dealership the day we picked up the trailer. But our new trailer has two axles and the Andersen wedge was just too long to fit between the wheels. Thus, I bought a set of Camco leveling wedges, which are much shorter and feature a rubber base that is meant to grab the ground so you can drive the trailer up the ramps and, thus, level it.
These proved to be a good solution the first few times we used them. But the moment we got onto gravel, the trailer basically just shoved the wedges out of the way and “shaved” the rubber gripping layer right off. Bummer.
As with so many things with our RV, I looked to the Facebook group I started years ago for this brand of trailer. It seems, I’m not the only one to have shaved the rubber layer off on gravel. It turns out this is something that’s not uncommon and more than one group member had contacted Camco after this happened and received a prompt replacement.
But I’m too dumb to do something that smart.
How they’re made
The rubber bottom of these wedges is screwed to the wedges themselves with a bunch of little screws. The rubber portion is specifically molded so that the screws hold it into recesses in the plastic wedge.
Since I already have a screw gun with me as it is, I removed what was left of the rubber and all the screws and got myself some Gorilla Super Glue. After cleaning the two surfaces with glasses cleaners from Costco (these have a lot of alcohol in them), I super glued them back together.
Since the recessed sections of the rubber were now shredded, I didn’t bother putting the screws back into it.
Did it work? Not really. The rubber portion and the plastic didn’t adhere well to one another. This might be why Camco used screws instead.
How would I fix this?
Obviously, I effected a repair to these wedges. I know Camco would certainly send me a new pair, since they had done so with plenty of the members of the group. But, clearly, there’s a flaw in this design.
First of all, the only thing holding the rubber to the wedge is those tiny screw heads. Perhaps some washers would help distribute the load. Also, some sort of super-duper industrial adhesive for the rubber would make a lot of sense. That way there isn’t a chance for the rubber to start to slip in the first place.
Why not the leveling blocks?
We do have a set of Camco leveling blocks and that’s what we used when the wedges failed. But I don’t like these as much because, as I’ve often written, if you want to figure out the laziest way to accomplish anything, watch me.
I like the wedges because we put our iPhone on the tongue of the trailer and just keep backing until the level app shows green. The wedges give us a continuously variable amount of level up to four inches. I really do like these.
With the leveling blocks, you have to guesstimate how much additional lift you need on one side and assemble a little stack of the plastic leveling blocks. Invariably you will have guessed incorrectly and have to move the trailer and then re-stack to accomplish level. Too much work for me—the beer’s in the fridge and it isn’t going to drink itself.
Tips
In our Facebook group for my brand of trailer, there were a few folks who offered tips to prevent the leveling wedge from stripping the rubber off in the first place.
More than one sage post suggested that you use a hammer to tap the wedge under the wheel before driving up onto it. I’ll try that with my glued solution.
The level app
I had mentioned the leveling app, and there’s one on your iPhone already. Apple includes a leveling app on the phone as part of the “Measure” app. It’s preinstalled on iOS and it’s a pretty nifty little app.
Essentially we just lay the iPhone on the tongue and, when the trailer’s level, the whole screen turns green with a big “0” on the screen. You don’t necessarily have to level the trailer completely while it’s attached to the truck, but side-to-side is important. From there you just follow your own unhooking procedure and then use the tongue jack to level the trailer front to back.
Trailer tips
I saw someone unhook their truck from the trailer recently before they used wheel chocks. I practically had a heart attack and wanted to give them a report card with a big fat “F” on it. Recently I did a podcast episode specifically about hooking and unhooking your travel trailer from your truck, which you can hear and share here.
Knowing someone whose trailer got away from them during the unhooking process, please chock your wheels with good chocks like these before you let it loose from your truck.
In summary
Would I buy these leveling wedges or recommend you do so? I don’t know. I’d like to have more experience trying to tap them under the wheels to make a final decision. I do see a lot of reviews on Amazon that are very positive so, perhaps, I’m a ding dong.
In terms of function, these are a great way to level your trailer side-to-side. They are surprisingly sturdy for being a light plastic honeycomb product. I had no issues before I shaved them.
They also come with smaller wedges that you tap under the side of the tire you didn’t drive onto to serve to chock the wheels and stabilize the whole level. As mentioned, the functionality of these was good. Until it wasn’t.
##RVT1059
I use a great leveler, it’s called a 2 x 10 cut in 6′ lengths.
I’ve been using the Camco levelers for over a year now. Mine didn’t come with rubber bottoms, just a ribbing of the plastic base. They work ok in most situations, especially on grass. But they can be tricky on gravel (and sometimes on asphalt) as Tony says. Tried gluing rubber strips on the bottoms, which promptly came off. For my asphalt at home, I’ve manufactured some stepped wood levelers with rubber strips glued to the bottoms and these work great. LevelMate Pro works great for getting the trailer leveled perfectly from inside the TV.
I bought one of the newer Camco curved levelers with the attached rubber base. Yes, the rubber pulled free with first use. But I fixed it. The reason for the little screws is there are few adhesives that will have sufficient shear strength with Camco’s plastic formula. Most won’t stick at all (see the adhesive package about performance on plastic).
Here is what I did- I removed the screws and cleaned both the rubber and the smooth (slippery) plastic behind it. I took a box cutter and liberally scored the plastic in multiple directions. I reattached the rubber at one end to insure alignment. Then I used an ‘old fashioned’ contact cement on each well separated surface (use a prop to keep them apart). Once dried as specified on the package. I removed the prop and rolled the rubber back into place (contact cement sticks immediately, there is NO chance of realignment!). I replaced all the screws. I used ‘Shoe Goo’ to fill in all the screw points, at the edge of the rubber and in a grid pattern on the rubber for good measure. FYI- those scores on the plastic improve the shear strength of the adhesive. For good measure, I had some scrap EPDM rubber roofing. I made a ground pad for under the Camco leveler. It has so far held up fine.
My only concern with any of these is that the tire tread is not fully supported, at least on our 5er. I have the Andersons, which worked great, but I stopped using them when I asked Roger Marble whether they may have caused the 2 blowouts we had. While he didn’t answer that question directly, he did reiterate that the tires should be supported fully across the tread.
Depends on the tire. The Camco leveler is the same width as my TT’s tire tread (ST205/75R14)
The Anderson blocks can be trimmmed. We had to trim ours by an inch or so to fit in between our axles.
👍👍
We did the same thing, worked great
I recently went to a two axel trailer from a single and continued to use the Anderson under one of the axles and it level just fine
I’m not sure that’s such a good idea. You’re creating additional stress on the chassis while there’s greater weight while the rig is parked. I would get a second Anderson or do what you can to equalize the stress point on the frame while camped.
We use Beech Lane levelers. Same concept as Anderson but less expensive. They are every bit as strong and you can cut them down to fit between most dual axles. They come with a rubber mat for gravel surfaces..easy peasy leveling for sure?
I would add another precaution. This is experience based and I got lucky. I parked and leveled side to side (in the normal way) on a wet, slightly muddy, stable looking but gently sloped spot in the desert. As I began to raise the trailer off the ball HAVING LEFT MY CHAINS ATTACHED, the trailer began to slide sideways down this mild slope. If I had not left the chains attached it would have kept going into a nearby ditch. LEAVE your chains attached in any questionably stable condition until you have raised the trailer off the ball and know everything is solid. PS I then expeditiously added to the existing ground moisture.
You were very lucky, Steve. Not sure what to say about your last sentence, however, so I’ll keep my mouth shut. 😆 Have a great day! 😀 –Diane
Leaving the chains and brake controller attached is absolutely best practice when unhooking. Glad you and yours are safe and, to help others, here is a podcast about hooking and unhooking a travel trailer: https://www.stresslesscamping.com/podcast/0155
You missed the boat with the Anderson levelers, Tony. If you read the paperwork, they say to cut the tip off of one to use it between dual wheels. I had a triple axle 5’er so I had two with the ends cut off. Worked like a champ! If you’ve still got them, you’re in luck…
I knew that but I only had one and, when I sold the previous trailer to the walnut orchard, I included the Anderson leveler with it. As I was picking up the new trailer they had these Camco levelers at the dealership and I figured, “why not?”
I have a set of the Camcos from before they added the rubber. Work great! Occasionally slip so I carry a couple of rubber pads for those rare times
I wonder if an old section of tire might serve the purpose of the rubber under the levelers? Of course then you’d be hauling around a section of rubber tire. But lots of MayPop travel trailer tires will explode even when they’re spares so there is certainly a good source for tire tread in the world.
I cut up a 17 In. X 4 In. Rubber Safety Mat With Tread Surface from Harbor Freight ($1.99) to prevent slippage.
I love the Camco levelers. I had the Anderson’s but too much slippage on the ground plus they are heavy. Our Camco’s don’t have the rubber bottom, but a corrugated surface. I usually give each one a “bang” from a rubber mallet that we carry and haven’t had one slip yet. The Camco’s get my vote.
They definitely are lighter and seem just as solid as the Andersens I had previously.
One of the best device’s I have got was the large bubble level that mounts on the front of the trailer and you can see it with your rear view mirror to see when the trailer is level. The only problem I encountered was being use to the downward curve of most level bubbles I was moving my levelers the wrong way. Since this level the ends turn up you don’t have to calculate how much more you need, you just move until the large ball is centered and lock your levelers in place. Beats the wooden boards I’ve used for 40 years.
Anderson vs Camco HMMM
Andersen specifically states that it’s levelers can be trimmed to a shorter length to fit between the wheels on a trailer with multiple axles. It took me about 5 minutes to resize mine with a miter (chop) saw. And it has been my experience with Andersens that they are more likely to slip on asphalt than on gravel, but generally not as likely to slip on concrete IF the surface is rough. Smooth concrete is a different story. Andersen sells detached rubber pads for these situations.
Like Carl, I cut one of my Andersen levelers off when I got them about seven years ago. Rarely will they slide, but one time in a beautiful state park in MO with a very slanted gravel site my trailer shifted a foot to the side and fell off while leveling. Not ideal, but I learned that on gravel it’s best to have the truck and trailer in line while leveling. Also, I use the Hopkins RV Smart Level which I can see in the driver’s side mirror and it works pretty well.