So you’re building a tiny house on a trailer. Great!
Or you might be seriously considering it.. Either way, you’re at the right place.
By now you have probably already got your trailer and materials and you’re far beyond the planning stage.
Before you get started it’s important that you’ve selected the best construction site possible so that you can level your trailer and get ready for construction.
What You’ll Need to Level your Trailer
Image: Tiny House Giant Journey / YouTube
So here’s what you’ll need and/or want to complete this project as smoothly as possible:
- your trailer
- 6-ton jack stands or set of these RV stabilizer scissor jacks
- 3-ton service jack or even better these 20-ton bottle jacks
- carpenter’s level
- wooden planks and plywood scraps
- wheel/tire chocks to prevent wheels for shifting
So let’s get started below!
How to Level your Trailer
No matter how it seems the ground isn’t ever completely level. So the goal is to get the trailer level from every angle using the materials I’ve listed for you above. If this is your first time doing this, don’t worry, it’ll get easier with practice. And everything you need to know is right here in this article.
Before we start, I encourage you to watch the video below to gain a brief understanding of what you’ll be doing. Then I’ll outline what you need to do to level your trailer, step by step, below.
Let’s get started!
Steps
1. Park your trailer the desired spot. If you’re parking on grass or dirt be sure to use wood platforms underneath your jack stands to prevent having to re-level as much later when you add weight, etc to the trailer.
2. Apply any landing gear that’s built into the trailer by making sure they are touching the ground. You want to make it as stable as possible before measuring imbalances and making any adjustments. And again, if you’re building on the grass or dirt, place scrap wood between your trailer’s landing gear and the ground to prevent imbalances later.
3. Determine imbalances by using a carpenter’s level from side to side (across the tongue of the trailer, for example) and then repositioning it from front to back so you can find out which corners of the trailer need adjustments.
4. Adjust the landing gear that came with your trailer first before using any of your trailer jacks, cinder blocks or any other resources for leveling because this will make it easier for you later.
5. Use your trailer jack to lift the side that needs adjustments from side to side. Slide your wooden planks or other material into the gap between the closest support and the ground or level if needed.
6. Place a wheel chock to the nearest tire to prevent movement then lower the jack and use your carpenter’s level to see if this angle is properly balanced.
7. Now use your trailer jack to lift the lowest front-to-back area of the trailer to the height that’s needed and use your level to double check balancing then repeat the end of step 5 and step 6 in its entirety.
8. Check the balance of the trailer using your carpenter’s level from side to side and front to back to make sure and to determine any final adjustments you might need to make. Then place your level towards the center of the trailer floor to check overall balance.
9. Make sure the planks, chocks and levels are positioned securely before you move on.
Final tips: This process can be more time consuming than you’d expect so please take your time because it’s very important that your trailer is level before moving on.
Congratulations! You’ve successfully followed all the steps necessary to properly level your trailer.
Resources to help you with leveling your trailer before you start
- Tiny Home Builders Construction Videos
- Tiny House Giant Journey: Leveling the Trailer
- Tire/Wheels Chocks
- Plastic Wheel Chock
- 6-ton jack stands
- 20-ton hydraulic bottle jack
- Set of 4 RV stabilizer scissor jack (7500 lbs)
- 3-ton service jack
- Carpenter’s level
If you found this step by step tutorial on how to level your trailer before building or when you park your tiny house on wheels in a new spot helpful and useful, “Like” and share below to help us spread the word, ask any questions or leave any helpful suggestions/tips you might have in the comments below and join our free daily tiny house newsletter for more!
Alex
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Excellent how-to on the nitty gritty part of trailer-building. I love the pictures of unique and innovative housing, but we need these kind of articles more often. Very detailed and extremely helpful. Thanks!!!
Thanks Sally! Will do