How to Stabilize a Travel Trailer

A travel trailer is a non-powered vehicle used for camping or for temporary living quarters that is towed behind a car or pickup truck. Most travel trailers are self-contained, including a full bathroom, kitchen, dining area, and a bedroom or sleeping area. Like your tow vehicle, travel trailers have a spring suspension to soak up road bumps. However, while it is parked your trailer will bounce and move around on its springs every time you step into it or walk around inside. For this reason, it is important to stabilize your travel trailer to prevent the unwanted movement.

Instructions

1

Chock the wheels of your trailer before unhitching it from your tow vehicle to keep it from rolling. Place two chocks at the front and rear of each tire on each side of the trailer. Be aware that chocks are the only things that will keep your trailer from moving back and forth.

2

Install stabilizers on each of the four corners of your trailer, if it is not so equipped. Use the stabilizer mounting plate as a template and hold it against the desired location on the trailer's frame from the underneath of the vehicle. Mark through the stabilizer mounting holes onto the frame with a pencil. Set the stabilizer aside.

3

Drill though the frame on the pencil marks with a 13/64-inch drill bit attached to an electric drill.

4

Hold the stabilizer in position and run in the attaching bolts through the stabilizer mounting holes and into the drilled holes with an adjustable wrench turned in a clockwise direction. Use the crank provided with the stabilizers and make sure they are fully retracted before moving the trailer. Repeat these steps for the other three stabilizers.

5

Use the stabilizers to eliminate up and down motion of the trailer while parked. Level the trailer from front to rear using the trailers tongue jack. Check the trailers built-in bubble level and crank the jack in a clockwise direction to raise the front of the trailer and counterclockwise to lower the front of the trailer.

6

Lower the stabilizers on the low side of the trailer by placing the crank onto the stabilizer lowering nut and crank in a counterclockwise direction until the trailer is level from side to side. Check the trailers built-in bubble level so that you dont crank too far. Lower the stabilizers on the high side of the trailer in the same fashion until the base of each stabilizer is touching the ground.