Goodness I hurt all over. Hope I did this right. jackedup.

[ron]

Ok, everything hurts .... At 59!!!!!  Geez, that really sucks.  This is why I hurt so much.

On to the topic:  is my procedure to raise the wheels for winter storage OK?  Hope so, I just did this an hour ago. 

-- put a 4x4x13" board under the 2x4 aluminum frame, between the two black steel attachment points for the axles.   A 14dbs by the way.  13" was the longest board to fit the space to spread out the jack point. 

-- raised this with the jack from my truck, until the wheels had 1/2" clearance.

-- blocked the black-almost square-axles with various wood blocks.

-- lowered the jack.

cl is therefore resting on wood blocks holding up the black axles between the tires.  Resting on four points.  Front jack is firm, and all 4 stabilizing jacks are down.

What do you think?  Hope this works w/out damaging my great wheel alignment.

cheers

[tinkeringtechie]

-- blocked the black-almost square-axles with various wood blocks.

I hate to be "that" guy, but Dexter specifically warns against using the axles themselves to support weight. They are just hollow tubes and can dent fairly easily. Their recommendation is to use the axle supports or frame instead.

[charliem]

[font size="3"]Pardon me for jumping in here, but I assume the reason for elevating the tires is to prevent flat spots. With today's tires, excepting China bombs, is this really a problem? It seems that any slight tendency toward flattening would dissipate with a short tow and would not be a problem since you're not riding in the trailer anyway. Is this problem real or just an annoyance? If it's ground contact there are easier solutions.
[/font]

[daplumbr]

So how do we know which tire brands are ok to store for 6-7 months with weight on them and which aren't? The tires on my snowmobile trailer (which I no longer have) developed cracks only at the bulge when stored with weight on them and as a result, never really smoothed out again. Lead to a constant, out of balance type vibration. Are the tires on our LL trailers ok to sit with weight for half a year or more each year? I spent $60 on jack stands and a few minutes with my floor jack to get the tires off the pavement and it seemed worth it to me. And recommended by the Tire Rack. 

[tinkeringtechie]

The tires on my snowmobile trailer (which I no longer have) developed cracks only at the bulge when stored with weight on them and as a result, never really smoothed out again. 

How old were these tires? Cracks are usually a result of aging and UV damage. Of course a bulge would make it worse, but I wonder if it just showed that the rubber was degraded from age.

[charliem]

[font size="3"]I would interpret cracking at a bulge to be a leading indicator of impending trouble to be avoided. If that small amount of stress generates cracks the rest of the tire can't be far behind. Highway problems avoided.
[/font]

[ron]

Well, thanks for the. Info, esp the note about dexter axles.  My CL sits against a wall, so access to one side is near impossible, meaning big jacks cannot be used.

The next choice is the 2x4 aluminum frame of the trailer  ...... These to me look also very likely to dent too....

I'm ready to be done with this for the season.

[spot1]

Ron, Know what you mean about rolling around on concrete and being sore!

After reading the following info, been jacking up my CampLite improperly.

Edit: We camp every month, so we don't winterize our CampLite (no water tank) or unload/jack up the CampLite, since we keep it ready to go camping all the time.  A wood jack pad can be used between the jack & frame to protect the aluminum frame and minimize slipping.

This quote is from the Dexter website:

http://www.dexteraxle.com/faq_s

"MISCELLANEOUS - Is it okay to jack up my trailer?
Dexter recommends that you do not jack up the trailer on the suspension components because there is always the potential for damage. Bent hangers, leaf springs, or axle tubes can cause bad axle alignment with bad tire wear resulting. Also, many trailer builders do not use Dexter hangers and we have no idea how strong these hangers may or may not be. Therefore, we take the conservative approach and recommend jacking up only on the trailer frame".

The following link is a manual for a 2011 CampLite TT. Check out page 21 for TT jacking instructions and page 22 for storage/tire care:

www.livinlite.com/pdf/service/CampLite2011OwnersManual.pdf

Page 21:

"Position a hydraulic jack on the frame close to the spring hanger".

Page 22:

"When storing your recreational vehicle for long periods you should completely unload
the vehicle so that a minimum weight will be placed on the tires. Make sure the tires
are inflated to the recommended operating inflation pressure. Avoid moving the vehicle
during extremely cold weather. Move the vehicle at least every two months to prevent
ozone cracking in the tire bulge area as well as "flat spotting" from prolonged strain
of sidewall and tread deflection".

[pinstriper]

[quote source="/post/5347/thread" timestamp="1417315098" author="@ron"]Ok, everything hurts .... At 59!!!!!  Geez, that really sucks.  This is why I hurt so much.

On to the topic:  is my procedure to raise the wheels for winter storage OK?  Hope so, I just did this an hour ago. 

-- put a 4x4x13" board under the 2x4 aluminum frame, between the two black steel attachment points for the axles.   A 14dbs by the way.  13" was the longest board to fit the space to spread out the jack point. 

-- raised this with the jack from my truck, until the wheels had 1/2" clearance.

-- blocked the black-almost square-axles with various wood blocks.

-- lowered the jack.

cl is therefore resting on wood blocks holding up the black axles between the tires.  Resting on four points.  Front jack is firm, and all 4 stabilizing jacks are down.

[strong]What do you think?[/strong]  Hope this works w/out damaging my great wheel alignment.

cheers


[/quote][p]
[/p][p]What I think is you traded a far more likely personal injury or damage to your trailer for the very debatable tire life benefit.[/p][p]
[/p][p]I've reached the point in my life where I don't care if tires last 6 years or 4.[/p][p]
[/p]

[kycamper]

I store my trailer in a very rural area. Not real safe, if you catch my drift. I was thinking not only of jacking the trailer up but also removing the wheels for storage at my house, miles away. Sounds paranoid, but those sure are good looking wheels!!

[ron]

Again, my thanks to all, especially exploringcarolina, who referenced the manual.  I really did read this thing, again and again, back in March 2014 when we got it, but I guess my graying mind has forgotten a good bit, especially the part about winter tire storage.  

Also ... to pinstriper, I do agree 4 years vs 6 at this point is not hugely significant.  I was thinking that improper winter storage for tires would cut lifespan to 2 or 3 years ....but in hindsight, and looking around, I see very, very few campers raised, so folks just replace tires, or it is not that hugely significant.  

Being a first time RV owner, I was trying to do it 100% right, but if raising the tires will not save that much, and I might cause damage.......indeed I may forgo this item.

As I type, the camper is now sitting on 12" long wooden 2x6 pieces of wood, under the frame in four places, immediately in front of the tires, and right behind the tires ...so hopefully I have not damaged the frame or axles with all my work and sweat and soreness.  

I may call D&L tomorrow just to add one more point of view to this, but I am now leaning towards just unjacking the entire thing, and going by the CL book.  

Sure wish I had posted this BEFORE I did all this work.

Oh well, that which does not kill us, makes us stronger.

Thank you all for kind remarks and input. Next winterization will hopefully go much smoother.

ron

[solds88]

[p][font size="3"]Ron,[/font][/p][p][font size="3"]
[/font][/p][p][font size="3"]Are you storing your rig outside? If so, wheel covers will cut down on UV exposure, which is detrimental to tire life. The following size fit my 21RBS, [a href="http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/tandem-tyre-gards-27-29-double-white/32119"]http://www.campingworld.com/shopping/item/tandem-tyre-gards-27-29-double-white/32119[/a] You'll need two of these. For under trailer work I use a creeper which has an adjustable head rest, it helps a lot.  [/font][/p][p][font size="3"]  [/font][/p]

[ron]

Entire rig is covered with a Goldline cover.  Covers the tires and even the propane and hitch, so I' m good here.  I even have a tarp over this, and I put a big fan on it as necessary to keep it dry.   It has huge zippers, a great cover.   One downside, it is on slightly sloped mulch, so no creeper.  I need to post a pic of my storage solution, 3' from my house, right outside the garage door.  Now, to get a level concrete surface!!!!

I moved a cubit yard of dirt for this location, by hand.  It seems as if I have been cultivating sore muscles for this camper.  Pretty funny in hindsight.

If I knew what the future held, eg how long at this house, I would build a shed in a second if we knew how long at ths location and the time made it worthwhile.  Oh well.

For sure these last few months have been quite a learning curve, thanks to a lot of valuable input.  

Now back or amazon to finish research on battery chargers ....... Until I read to NEVER ever remove the battery ....  

Good evening. R

[pinstriper]

I agree with james about using covers for UV if you are storing outside. And if you aren't on concrete or gravel, I'd roll the whole thing up onto 2x6's under the tires.

Oh boy, lemme tell you what you can do to your back when lifting a battery...