If I just want to leave a big "Footprint" because of soft soil or sand, I use 1/4" plastic kitchen cutting boards, like you can find at any Wal Mart. At $4, an inexpensive option to DICA pads, and they can withstand tons of pressure. A tip shared with me in this very forum. The hand carrying slot in the boards make it easy to reach them with your awning rod when breaking camp.

If I need more height, I use the plastic yellow leveling blocks squares from CW.

My MH is very heavy. Both of the above items have held under the weight without any damage.

Craig

I've got both the larger orange pads from CW and the smaller yellow pads (4 boxes of them). I've had 1 of the yellow pads crack. It was an uneven gravel site with an additional left to right slope. On concrete, no pads are usually needed, with asphalt, I'll use the orange pads to spread the weight. With rock/dirt it is often a combination of both pad types. More slope, the more pads Ill use. Also the yellow pads can be used as a ramp if needed.

I'm in the same boat . . . I used to use the pads under my leveling jacks with my 5th wheel, but I have never gotten down on my hands and knees to put pads under my leveling jacks on the motorhome. Is this necessary to do if you're on level ground? I guess I could understand it if you were on really soft sand or wet ground or something . . . but the jacks have big round flat feet . . .I'm with BlacktieShooter - what am I missing?

Although we have the pretty yellow ones in the carry bag from CW, we faithfully use plywood. Rick screwed 2 12x12 pieces together, 3/4" each for a total thickness of 1.5". He drilled a small hole in them so he can use the awning rod to push and pull them into place and he tied a thin piece of rope to each one so he can retrieve them. We've been to some rallies that required plywood under the jacks. They've held up well and we don't worry about sinking into the earth.

quote:

Originally posted by GraciesMom:
Is this necessary to do if you're on level ground? I guess I could understand it if you were on really soft sand or wet ground or something . . . but the jacks have big round flat feet . . .I'm with BlacktieShooter - what am I missing?

Again, not necessary on level ground unless you are on soft or sandy soil. I rarely use my Wal Mart cutting boards, but when I do, thay have come in very handy. I read in another forum where a gentleman damaged his jack system when he deployed them in soft dirt. Apparently one of the jacks sank deeply into the soil and would not retract. An expensive lesson on why you might need a big footprint when camping in soft dirt.

A couple of hours in the wood shop (garage) this morning and I have some really nice and robust jack pads for under $40. I glued the 3/4" plywood skins on each side of the PT 2x12s with PL Polyurethane Construction Adhesive ($5 a tube at Home Depot with better viscosity than Liquid Nails) and screwed them in place with 1 5/8" stainless steel deck screws. I drilled a 1 1/8" hole through the top sheet of plywood in one corner so they can easily be positioned or retrieved with my heavy duty awning rod from Lazy Days. All that's left to do is lightly sand the edges and put on a coat of Thompson's water seal and they should last a very long time. They seem incredibly robust at 3" thick. I don't think splitting under load or on uneven ground will be an issue any longer. To have pads made by DICA or Summit Products to similar dimensions would be ridiculously expensive and they would be way heavy.

I will weigh them this afternoon at Publix (44# for all 4 The DICA 15x15x.75 would weigh 22# but would only be .75 v 3") and post a pic.

http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=10h9frd&s=4

2 2x12 or 2 2x14 pressure treated squares works good with ropes attached. Move them in place with the awning rod. When attaching them put the wood grain opposing each piece (on the bias) for strength. The one time in 8 years I did not use them I was on soft ground and got my outriggers stuck in the soil a shovel and a 5ft digging bar freed them 3 hours later. I ALWAYS USE THEM NOW

I use the untreated 2x12x16. I attach a black rubber bungie cord (the kind with the S hooks that go in each end) with screws to one end. Leave a little slack so that you can get your hand and use them for a handle or to push in, position & pull out from under the jacks with aforementioned awning rod. If in questionable soil conditions put two side by side under the jack and a third crossways centered. If you don't need the height, centering one of the 12x12 orange squares from CW works in place of the third board to spread the load across the boards. If this combination won't carry the weight without sinking, you probably shouldn't be parked there. I use untreated lumber because it is cheap and light. If a board goes bad, remove the handle, throw it away and make another. Saves a lot on weight and ease of handling.

for use under my front landing jacks and rear stabilizers i took two lengths of 4" X 6" X 8' pressure treated lumber and cut them into 12" pieces. I then glued and screwed two pieces together on the wide side to make 8 4"h X 12"w X 12"l blocks. I have of the a total of 8 blocks. i generally use 3 under each landing jack and one under each stabilizer. for the few times i go to boondocking in a field, I cut 4 pieces of 2' X 4' X 3/4" plywood pieces in half making 8 2' X 2' pieces. rotating the grain one turn I glued and screwed two pieces together. this distributes the weight very nicely. none of the blocks or plywood pieces show any signs of damage after 4 years of use.

Under the tires (for leveling) i use the orange Lynx Levelers along with the interlocking tire chocks that fit them. again no sign of damage after 4 years.

btw - my trailer weighs in at a modest 16K #'s.

In reference to JACK PADS, I bought an 8' landscape timber and cut it into 4- 2' sections. Works great on soft/muddy soil and are easy to store. I use two under each jack.

They are also helpful if coach is VERY unlevel. Gives me 3" more of lift.