RV Stabilizers-- Does Anyone Use Them?

[rvsprinterguy]

Hi Everybody,

In an advertisement sent me by Marcus's company I see an RV Stabilizer that will stop the swaying and rocking caused by moving around in my Class B. Looks like a pair of them, situated front and back, would do the job. They generate lifting force through the use of a ratchet strap.

My van doesn't have leveling jacks, and I understand M-B didn't allow them on T1Ns. While this isn't a major problem, not being awaked in the middle of the night when the van moves would be welcome.

Has anyone tried these? Are they worth the problem of storing them when not in use?

[Jon in AZ]

For those (like me) that had no idea what it is, here's a photo...
Marcus Stabilizer.jpg

There isn't much clearance under my Chevy, nor many places where the bar can make unobstructed contact with something substantial enough to bear weight. It only limits movement on one axis. Also seems like it would get really dirty and involve a fair bit of crawling around on the ground to deploy and remove. None of which is particularly appealing to me.

[InterBlog]

Originally Posted by rvsprinterguy

.....

My van doesn't have leveling jacks, and I understand M-B didn't allow them on T1Ns. ...

T1N owner here. We don't have leveling jacks, but FWIW, we recently added Sumo springs front and rear. Those are not primarily intended to be stabilizers per se, but they do suppress a lot of the motion experienced while parked.

That motion never bothered me, but my husband did not like it. For instance if our dog got up middle of the night to stretch and re-twirl to lay back down again, the van would shimmy. It's much less so now.

[rvsprinterguy]

Thanks for your replies, and Jon, thanks for posting the picture. I think I'll pass on these and put up with the van's movement.

[rvsprinterguy]

I'll take a look at the Sumo Springs.

[BrianCO]

I use the one Jon has pictured, putting the feet on the small plastic pads used otherwise for light leveling. I place one stabilizer under the rear hitch bar and tighten it up. It makes a huge difference in how much the van moves when we're in bed or just walking around. I know a few people who put them under a side area to control front/back motion but that's never a big thing for me. I have a few buddies who use the same on their pull campers.

The bar is easy to put up, take down and only gets dirty if I skip the pads on mud. If we're using the van as a camper (vs travel van) it's always packed.

[chrisbcain]

I use one of these in the rear, it installs in just a few minutes and makes a big difference. I have another unit for the front, but that require crawling to ensure it is placed on the front framing. Not worth the effort or getting that gritty.

[Murph]

Does the generator interfere?

[chrisbcain]

Yes, but I do have to shift the position well past the generator, close to the front wheel mounting points. You want to be careful on the the stabilizer is contacting.

[Ray B]

We also did the Sumo Springs on our MB chassis and it did a world of good.

[Tim R.]

We lived on a boat for 7 years. The movement in our van is minimal in comparison. Although we always found the boat movement somewhat comforting.