Travel Trailer Shakes When Walking: Stop RV From Shaking
The age of rock and roll may have its place in the music industry but it is not for a travel trailer when you need to live inside. Some travel trailers do shake or rock a little after you settle on a nice location for the night. The fix is usually simple and easy.
There are two basic ways to solve this problem. First, make sure your travel trailer’s jacks are all the way down and stable. Second, buy some wheel locking chocks. The difference after you do this is like the difference between night and day.
To learn more about stopping your travel trailer from having the shakes, just continue to read our article. It has the information to help you live better and more comfortable when on the road. take a few minutes to see what you can do to stop your travel trailer from shaking when you walk.
Why Does My Travel Trailer Shake?
The design of the travel trailer is what may cause some of the shakings you feel when you move about inside. The travel trailer is supported by tires, springs, and a flex system frame that are made to be flexible.
What that means is that you should expect to feel some little movement when you walk around your trailer. But the reason most TT’s shake is not because of the design but because the TT is not placed on stable ground.
When the ground is not solid, then the stabilizing jacks won’t stay still either and will flex a little as you walk. When that happens your TT will shake a lot more than normal.
Another reason will be that the blocks used to support the jacks and other stabilizing equipment were not placed properly. Or these blocks may be built with some flex to them. In either case, your TT will shake more than normal and you will need to make a few adjustments.
Stability is going to be the key to keeping your TT from shaking with every little movement. Check the ground you are going to park on first before backing into place to make sure it is solid enough to handle the weight of the rig.
Travel Trailer Shakes When Walking
The stability of any travel trailer is as good as the stabilizing jacks that came with the RV or you added to help keep it level. Whether these jacks are scissor, ‘c’, telescoping, tripod, a jack stand, a power jack, or hydraulic jack, and so on, if they were designed to flex and have a little flexibility, you will experience shaking when you walk.
Some jacks are worse than others, like the ‘c’ & the telescoping models, and they are made to make sure there is some flexibility in their support. This causes the shaking and the way to get rid of it is to add a bracing system when using those types of jacks.
However, even with the bracing system, you may only eliminate 80% of the movement. When you are faced with shaking you will have to add more equipment to your travel trailer storage to make sure you get a solid feel when walking around the interior.
Besides the bracing system, other options will help you make your travel trailer solid to walk on without feeling you are walking on a boat still in the water.
RV Shaking While Driving
There are many reasons why you will feel your TT is shaking as you drive. The vibrations that you feel may be the same but there are different sources for the problem. here are some of those sources:
- Tires are not balanced - this will get worse the faster you drive. Plus these can shake loose screws, ruin bearings, joints, and loosen bolts to name a few of the problems that can occur.
- Tires are not round - the vibration will only be felt at certain speeds. Left unattended you can experience some of the same results as the previous source.
- Bad wheels - when these are not round, it will influence the tires and how they are supposed to operate.
- Front suspension problems - here a vibration is really a shimmy and when you feel it that is telling you that you have front suspension problems. Those problems can be a loose tie rod, dragline, or a worn-out steering damper.
- Driveline problem - the vibration’s source is in the center of the vehicle and this could be due to an incorrect driveline angle or the driveshaft was not installed correctly.
To diagnosis these problems there are simple methods to use and you may need the help of an expert with a lift to find the source.
RV Shaking at Night
The previous reasons already mentioned will be a couple of the sources for any shaking you feel at night. Those reasons will be the cause if the wind picks up and starts to hit your trailer. Unstable TTs or RVs can move at night when the wind rises.
Also, the design of the TT will contribute to the shaking you feel. The frame is like walking on a long plank that is only supported on the ends. The flooring feels solid when you are near the supports but when you move away from those items, you will feel vibrations and the flexibility of the frame.
Your weight or the weight of your family members will cause some shaking as they move about the interior of your TT. That result is attributed to the design of the TT as it is supposed to flex when weight is applied to different parts of the flooring.
Unfortunately, it will take a little extra work and extra supports to stop all the shaking from taking place. It is just the way TTs are made and you may have to learn to live with this movement.
RV Water Pump Shaking
One reason for this situation is in the design of the water pump and how it is supposed to function. Pressure switches are used to start and stop the pump and when those pressure switched kick in, you should hear some shaking going on.
If the switches are not set properly, then you will hear some shaking or pulsating as some people call it. To stop these actions the pressure switch has to be very sensitive to the change in water pressure.
If you hear a rattling noise coming from the water pump area of your TT or RV, then the simple source would be a loose nut or screw. These do work themselves loose as you go down the road due to a variety of issues, like a bumpy road.
To solve the shaking all you have to do is open up the panel or crawl under the TT and use a wrench or screwdriver to tighten the loose screw or bolt. This is not a serious problem if you do not let it go for too long.
Leaving any loose item on your TT stay loose for a long time can lead to more serious and more expensive issues to fix.
RV Air Conditioner Shaking
This is a common problem due to the fact that your TT’s air conditioning unit has many metal parts that can work themselves loose or get bent. here are some causes for the vibrating and shaking you feel when you are inside the TT enjoy all of its comforts:
- 1. screws are loose - this happens over time as screws can work themselves loose through the many bumps and jolts the TT experiences. Just take a couple of screwdrivers up to the roof with you and tighten those screws.
- 2. bent motor shaft - the Dometic brand AC units seem to have this problem more than other brands. This is a case where you will need a professional to handle the repairs and replace the shaft.
- 3. Unbalanced fan blades - not that common but it can happen if there is any debris on the blades or they got bent somehow. Just check the blades to make sure and straighten any bent ones and remove any debris you find.
- 4. cooling lines are loose - this happens in the same way the screws on the unit loosen up. These lines can cause a lot of shaking and you will need to replace the clamp or put some rubber between the line and the clamp to stop the shaking
- 5. coil fins are clogged - it does happen and the dirt and debris that gets inside can help the unit to shake or become very noisy. Just clean the coil fins with a vacuum cleaner and you should be good to go
- 6. coil fins bent - this also can happen through normal use, wear and tear and you will need a special tool called a fin comb to straighten those coils out. It works just like a hair comb except that you have to be more gentle than you would when you comb your hair. Just comb in one direction from the bottom to the top.
How Do I Stop My Travel Trailer From Shaking?
This is not always a difficult task to do. To start, you should check all your screws and bolts to make sure none of them are loose. This is the least expensive method to use and sometimes solves all the problems.
Next, you should check your stabilizing jacks to make sure they are firm, solid, and in the right place. Also, add in some locking wheel chocks and you should solve a majority of the shake problem. Make sure that you use solid blocks when you are not on concrete.
Another option would be to add in some of your own jacks than what is already installed on the TT. The scissor jack is supposed to be one of the best additional options you can use but it does not stop the side-to-side motion you may still feel.
On top of that, you need to place those jacks in the right place to help stop some of the up and down shakings you feel when you walk. Or use larger blocks under your jacks so that they do not extend as far. The further they extend, the more opportunity they will have to flex on you as you move.
Stop RV From Shaking
To stop your TT or RV from shaking you need to do a little work above and beyond just extending the stabilizing jacks. Since those items are built with some flexibility, you will need help to stop any shaking you feel.
The first item to use to aid those jacks is the wheel chocks. The locking variety is the one most recommended and when you combine chocks with the jacks most of your shaking will stop.
You may need extra jacks underneath the TT to stop the flooring from contributing to the shaking you already feel. One of the most important things you can do is not park on unstable or soft ground. If it is possible, park on concrete to make sure the ground under your feet is solid and stable.
If concrete is not available make sure the ground is not too wet, soft, or unstable. Keeping your TT on a solid foundation should eliminate a lot of the shakes that can occur.
Some Final Words
When you want to shake, rattle and roll you turn on a singer like Elvis or some other classic rock and roll artist. But that is after you get the shakes out of your TT. The fixes to this problem are not that difficult to do and involve minor costs for chocks, extra jacks, or a screwdriver.
Once you solve the TT’s shakes, you can dance the night away to your favorite music knowing the TT is well balanced and stable.
