Unhitch on an overnight?

[pupnut]

I'm new to the PUP world.  I have a new camper and have yet to use it.  (grrr) ...Although we have several trips reserved already for this season.

One of the trips is gonna require a two leg journey.  (Massachusetts to Virginia - with a stopover in Delaware)

The plan is to arrive late in the day, relax & get a night's sleep, then take off the next morning.

When you guys/gals say "overnighter", do you bother unhitching?  If you don't unhitch then I assume there's no need to level/chock/stabilize, or do you go through that process regardless.

How many of these steps can I "skip" for just a quickie.  ;)

Thanks

[Spirit Deer]

If you have a fridge, you will need to be reasonably level.  If that means unhitching, then you'll have to.  If the trailer isn't as level as it should be, it can also affect how the door closes and stuff like that.

We stopped for an overnighter once and decided not to unhitch.  The bugs were ferocious and we were in a hurry to get set up so we could go inside.  So we pulled the bunks and slide out and got all set up, only to realize we had left our Power Chill in the van, plugged in and running off the van battery.  The only way to access it was through the back lift gate of the van, which of course could no longer be opened since the front bunk was now right next to it.  SPUT!

We haven't attempted the dreaded set-up-without-unhitching since then.

What really saves the time, IMO, is what you have to deal with inside the trailer.  Setting up the outside seems to take the least time.  It's moving all the stuff on the floor of the trailer that is such a pain, so anything you can do to minimize that will help.

[wavery]

It depends if your front bed will set-up without hitting the back of your truck. I assume that it will.

I actually removed the center tongue jack on my trailer and installed a swing jack so that I can open the t/gate on the truck while hitched-up. We often open up our trailer when just stopping along the road.

As previously stated, being fairly level may be necessary. It's easy enough to pull up on your levelers for side-to-side leveling but fore & aft may require a pretty level spot. You shouldn't have to put down the stabilizers for an over-nighter.

Leveling will aid in the ease of roof raising and lowering.

[pupnut]

Excellent points that I had not thought of - thank you!

[Red Barchetta]

do you bother unhitching?  If you don't unhitch then I assume there's no need to level/chock/stabilize, or do you go through that process regardless.

You definitely want to stabilize the PU as anyone in the PU behind the axle/on the rear bunk will add quite a bit of stress/strain to the ball & coupler.
Chocking & leveling depends on where you've parked (flat as a pancake KOA site (), rest area, off to the side of a NF dirt road, etc...).

We have a 12' PU with a front storage trunk so can easily remain hitched for 1-night'ers.  The front king bunk is still at least 12" from the TV's rear window when fully deployed.

Once the TV's self-leveling rear end has stabilized after we've parked I lower the PU's stabilizer's.  Works nicely with no troubles.

We have a 1-night'er scheduled in July.  Last one was 4 months ago.

[tsc]

I've done two one nighters. The first one, I didn't unhitch.

We were level (or reasonably close) in both directions, so I left it as is. We did chock the tires and lower the stabs.

The second time, we were level left to right, but I needed to raise the tongue of the trailer. I again chocked, released the ball of the coupler and set up as per normal. In the morning, I just broke everything down and cranked her back onto the ball.

I've worked on the pup, when hitched, and I find that when not chocked, it seems to move more when walking around.

[Unstable Tripod]

You should be pretty close to level for raising the roof (avoid undue strains on the mechanism) and making the door fit.  As mentioned earlier, the fridge also needs to be level to work properly.  Finally, there is the personal thing of how well you can sleep on an incline.  I must unhitch because the front bed is the larger one and it can't be extended all the way when the TV is hitched. 

[Spirit Deer]

The fridge most likely will work okay if it's out of level too far, but that will cause irreversible, cumulative damage.  So if you do it too often, the fridge will be ruined.

[stubble]

The fridge most likely will work okay if it's out of level too far, but that will cause irreversible, cumulative damage.  So if you do it too often, the fridge will be ruined.

I'm curious about the mechanism that would result in damage rather than just sub-optimal cooling. I know nothing about how these things work.  We all leave them on all the time while we're hitched up and parked or moving, why doesn't this harm them too?

[noahnsteph]

The fridge most likely will work okay if it's out of level too far, but that will cause irreversible, cumulative damage.  So if you do it too often, the fridge will be ruined.

I'm curious about the mechanism that would result in damage rather than just sub-optimal cooling. I know nothing about how these things work.  We all leave them on all the time while we're hitched up and parked or moving, why doesn't this harm them too?

There's no "mechanism" in the fridge at all. It's an evaporation fridge meaning there's no compressor to kick on which is why they don't make any noise.  The gas flame or electric heating anode heats up amonia which expands and rises. As it cools it turns back to liquid and runs back down through a series of coils which is what creates the cooling affect in the fridge. If the camper is too far out of level for too long with the fridge running the amonia can settle in the coils and crystalize causing permanent damage to the fridge.  Short stops while running is fine and when your towing everything sloshes around so it's fine. It's just when the camper is parked for a long time out of level with the fridge running that you run into trouble.

[wavery]

The fridge most likely will work okay if it's out of level too far, but that will cause irreversible, cumulative damage.  So if you do it too often, the fridge will be ruined.

I'm curious about the mechanism that would result in damage rather than just sub-optimal cooling. I know nothing about how these things work.  We all leave them on all the time while we're hitched up and parked or moving, why doesn't this harm them too?

There's no "mechanism" in the fridge at all. It's an evaporation fridge meaning there's no compressor to kick on which is why they don't make any noise.  The gas flame or electric heating anode heats up amonia which expands and rises. As it cools it turns back to liquid and runs back down through a series of coils which is what creates the cooling affect in the fridge. If the camper is too far out of level for too long with the fridge running the amonia can settle in the coils and crystalize causing permanent damage to the fridge.  Short stops while running is fine and when your towing everything sloshes around so it's fine. It's just when the camper is parked for a long time out of level with the fridge running that you run into trouble.

This is more of a problem on the older campers. The newer campers have a tubing system that is more adaptable and ~less problematic for cooling off level too a certain extent. I still wouldn't make a habit of it.

[toaobigal]

On some trailers, like mine, the front bunk extends longer than the hitch. I can't open my PUP without unhitching.

[stubble]

There's no "mechanism" in the fridge at all. It's an evaporation fridge meaning there's no compressor to kick on which is why they don't make any noise.  The gas flame or electric heating anode heats up amonia which expands and rises. As it cools it turns back to liquid and runs back down through a series of coils which is what creates the cooling affect in the fridge. If the camper is too far out of level for too long with the fridge running the amonia can settle in the coils and crystalize causing permanent damage to the fridge.  Short stops while running is fine and when your towing everything sloshes around so it's fine. It's just when the camper is parked for a long time out of level with the fridge running that you run into trouble.

Thanks for the explanation!

[brgmgb]

I would love to be able to set up without unhitching, but the front bunk will hit the back of the Jeep.

If I could set up without unhitching, I would still use the stabilizers.

[Old Granddad]

Dear Pupnut (aren't we all?):

(1)  Unhitch and chock.  We have to, as the king front bunk does not clear the truck's canopy.  Besides, I can't get into the canopy's double back doors without at least 2+ feet of clearance, and we keep Good Stuff in the truck.

(2)  Level the trailer using the BAL and the tongue jack, as needed.  The fridge requires that the trailer be level, and you'll sleep much more comfortably.

(3)  Raise the roof.  Forget the dang awning.  Put down the stabs.  You know the drill.  Complete the normal setup.

(3)  Hook up only the utilities you MUST have.  If you don't need the kitchen, you may not need any utilities at all.

(4)  Leave the dinette down unless you really need it.  (Our trailer is non-slideout, of course.)

All this should consume 15 minutes or less.  Take down in the morning may take longer, since the dew and condensation on the bed ends won't dry until the sun hits 'em.  Of course, if you're setting up again that night, don't worry too much about the moisture, just pack it up and hit the road.


Been there, done that, bought that T-shirt,
Old Granddad