Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
Jayco RV Owners Forum
 


Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 10-26-2016, 05:22 PM   #1
Senior Member
 
blujay40's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Michigan
Posts: 940
Anderson Leveler review 1 year in.

In the 15 months I have had my Anderson Levelers (purchased June 2015), I have enjoyed the ease of use and portability of the Anderson levelers.

Sadly, that changed as of today when I tried to pull up onto the Anderson Levelers with our 7500# trailer and not one, but both levelers broke. I was trying to level the trailer along the curb in front of our house, which I have already done a dozen times or so in the past year, so they were sitting on concrete and there was no foreign objects underneath that could have caused any undue pressure of any kind on them from underneath.

But as I started to pull forward onto them and didn't see the trailer leveling, I got out to take a look. To my utter surprise, not one but both of the levelers broke. One broke at the second hole and the other at the third hole. Now this couldn't have happened at a worse time as we are preparing to leave in 5 days for an extended trip, and with the weekend coming up, I wouldn't have time to ship them in for a replacement, so I gave Anderson a call directly to see what could be done.

The rep I spoke with was really great and told me that I could simply call a few RV dealers in my area that stock them and do a warranty replacement that way. With a 3 year warranty, I was well within that period.

It's great to know that Anderson stands behind these like they do and I give them 5 stars for that. However, it has raised a few questions with me about their overall reliability that were not a concern previously.

With the Anderson Levelers rated up to 30,000#, how did my lightweight 7500# trailer snap them this easily. The rep did ask me if my tires were underinflated, which they weren't, but even if they were, I don't understand why that would or should make any difference, especially with my trailer only being 1/4th the rated weight capacity of the Andersons.

So although the Andersons will continue to be my primary method of leveling my trailer going forward, my previous 5 star rating for these now gets knocked down a star because I now won't leave home without some other backup method of leveling the trailer, "just in case".
Attached Thumbnails
levelers.jpg  
__________________
2018 GMC Sierra 3500HD Denali 4WD LB SRW 6.6L Duramax
2017 Jayco Eagle 330RSTS
blujay40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2016, 06:56 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
glsimms's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Southern Indiana
Posts: 1,326
Always a good idea to have a back-up plan.

Nice review and good to know about their 3 year warranty. I've been looking at them to replace my yellow plastic blocks.
__________________
2017 Some Other Brand (SOB)
2013 Jayco Jay Feather X23B (She Gone)
2014 Ford Expedition
Gerard
glsimms is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-26-2016, 10:35 PM   #3
Senior Member
 
North of 49°'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: Winnipeg
Posts: 942
I still carry a tote full of 2-by lumber, mostly for the stabilizers in case they don't reach the ground. But I've used the wood to level the trailer when it just needed a little tweaking and I didn't want to break out the Andersens.

But if one ever did break on me outside of the warranty, I'd probably just use it as a pattern and make my own out of laminated 2x6's, glued and screwed together.
__________________
Geoff & Jill
& Sierra, the little white monster
2013 Ford F-150 XTR SC Ecoboost
2015 Jayco Jay Flight 24FBS
Winnipeg, Manitoba
North of 49° is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-27-2016, 02:34 PM   #4
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 332
I think they are great, too. No failure for my 26 RLS. I do have plastic blocked I use under my stabilizers which could be substituted for the Andersons if I have a problem.

I hope your experience was isolated and that the replacements last for you.
__________________
2013 Jay Flight 26 RLS
2014 Ford F250 Super Duty
Reese HP Dual Cam
hbravo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-28-2016, 06:31 AM   #5
Senior Member
 
blujay40's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Michigan
Posts: 940
Ran to Home Depot last night and picked up 2-2x8 PT Cedar boards and 1-1x8 PT Cedar boards. Cut the ends to 45 degrees and 6 ft. in length so they will fit in my truck bed.

Backup plan is now in place!
__________________
2018 GMC Sierra 3500HD Denali 4WD LB SRW 6.6L Duramax
2017 Jayco Eagle 330RSTS
blujay40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-20-2017, 08:09 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
RPreeb's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2016
Location: NE Colorado
Posts: 311
Quote:
Originally Posted by blujay40 View Post
In the 15 months I have had my Anderson Levelers (purchased June 2015), I have enjoyed the ease of use and portability of the Anderson levelers.

Sadly, that changed as of today when I tried to pull up onto the Anderson Levelers with our 7500# trailer and not one, but both levelers broke. I was trying to level the trailer along the curb in front of our house, which I have already done a dozen times or so in the past year, so they were sitting on concrete and there was no foreign objects underneath that could have caused any undue pressure of any kind on them from underneath.

But as I started to pull forward onto them and didn't see the trailer leveling, I got out to take a look. To my utter surprise, not one but both of the levelers broke. One broke at the second hole and the other at the third hole. Now this couldn't have happened at a worse time as we are preparing to leave in 5 days for an extended trip, and with the weekend coming up, I wouldn't have time to ship them in for a replacement, so I gave Anderson a call directly to see what could be done.

The rep I spoke with was really great and told me that I could simply call a few RV dealers in my area that stock them and do a warranty replacement that way. With a 3 year warranty, I was well within that period.

It's great to know that Anderson stands behind these like they do and I give them 5 stars for that. However, it has raised a few questions with me about their overall reliability that were not a concern previously.

With the Anderson Levelers rated up to 30,000#, how did my lightweight 7500# trailer snap them this easily. The rep did ask me if my tires were underinflated, which they weren't, but even if they were, I don't understand why that would or should make any difference, especially with my trailer only being 1/4th the rated weight capacity of the Andersons.

So although the Andersons will continue to be my primary method of leveling my trailer going forward, my previous 5 star rating for these now gets knocked down a star because I now won't leave home without some other backup method of leveling the trailer, "just in case".
I have a question about your post above. You say that your TT is 7500 lbs, but Jayco specs say different. I see it at 9400 dry without the residential fridge option, and over 11,000 max. Still a lot less than 30,000, but I wonder where you got your numbers? Or have you changed TT's since that post?

I have the Anderson levelers and used them for the first time this week... the easiest leveling system I've seen. When we were packed up to leave I just drove off of them, then picked them up and put them away.
__________________
Rick



2016 F-150 XLT 4x4 Super Crew 3.5L Ecoboost
2017 Jay Feather X213
RPreeb is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-20-2017, 08:21 PM   #7
Senior Member
 
blujay40's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Michigan
Posts: 940
It was my previous Coachman that they broke on. Our Jayco was still on order.
__________________
2018 GMC Sierra 3500HD Denali 4WD LB SRW 6.6L Duramax
2017 Jayco Eagle 330RSTS
blujay40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2018, 06:22 PM   #8
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: Clinton Township
Posts: 33
Quote:
Originally Posted by blujay40 View Post
Ran to Home Depot last night and picked up 2-2x8 PT Cedar boards and 1-1x8 PT Cedar boards. Cut the ends to 45 degrees and 6 ft. in length so they will fit in my truck bed.

Backup plan is now in place!
I'm a bit late to this thread ... but I thought that I'd share my leveling solution ... a variation on yours ... three layers, pinned with carriage bolts (so the boards don't shift; second and third tiers are sectioned to allow greater flexibility for storage. Center of the risers are aligned with the center line of the hubs.

Overall, this set up is a fraction of the cost of curved levels ... and it'd take a lot to snap these.
Attached Thumbnails
IMG_20180407_163108254.jpg   IMG_20180408_094250775_HDR.jpg  
__________________
Paul Schriro
2018 Jay Flight SLX 287BHS
2015 GMC Sierra 1500 Z-71 5.3L
pschriro is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-14-2018, 06:30 AM   #9
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2018
Location: East Lyme
Posts: 168
I have the same levelers... Love them.

Just out of curiosity, were you using them "arch up" to get more height out of them? If so, that's why they failed, as UHMW is not a material that's very strong in tension loading.
White Ox is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-14-2018, 07:11 AM   #10
Senior Member
 
blujay40's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Michigan
Posts: 940
Quote:
Originally Posted by White Ox View Post
I have the same levelers... Love them.

Just out of curiosity, were you using them "arch up" to get more height out of them? If so, that's why they failed, as UHMW is not a material that's very strong in tension loading.
No, they were not being used "arch up"!

Who knows why it broke like it did. I am guessing I just got one with some sort of manufacturing defect. But I will update my OP with the fact that I have been using my replacements regularly on a much heavier trailer (11,000#) for over a year now with no further issues. But I also still carry my boards as well.

Have a great day!
__________________
2018 GMC Sierra 3500HD Denali 4WD LB SRW 6.6L Duramax
2017 Jayco Eagle 330RSTS
blujay40 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-14-2018, 07:43 AM   #11
Senior Member
 
RogerR's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2016
Location: Mapleton
Posts: 4,336
My leveler broke after about 25 uses. Called Andersen and they mailed me a new one!

As the previous posts, I always carry some 2x6 pieces for soft ground under the stabilizers and was able to use them.

Anything will break but the fast warranty service is great!
__________________
2017 SLX 195RB
2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit L 5.7L V8
Andersen WDH hitch, Renogy 100 AH Lithium &
200 Watts solar panels from Renogy

Prev. '14 Jeep Grand Cherokee Overland, gas 3.6 V6
RogerR is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3
Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Jayco, Inc. or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:19 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright 2002-2016 Social Knowledge, LLC All Rights Reserved.