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MarcCarol · 05-08-2012, 07:26 PM

I have a 2008 Safari Sport 17 foot.
I am a brand new airstreamer. I was looking for the place to put a jack and noticed the tank or cover for the tanks, has been seriously damaged. I either hit something or I bought the unit with serious damage underneath. The tank appears buckled and might be torn open. I can't get low enough to see. I'm going to try to get a mirror under there. It looks like the tank/tank cover only has about 3-4 inches clearance above the street. Is this standard? Can these units even be used on dirt roads? What sort of an inspection should I ask for? There is no Airstream dealer nearby. Marc
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Lumatic · 05-08-2012, 07:55 PM

Photos would help. You should have a not more clearance than 3". Check with Oasis RV in Tucson.

TBRich · 05-08-2012, 08:18 PM

Hey Marc...Bummer! Have you used the tank yet? If so, did you notice any leakage? You need to get a better look or have it inspected to see what's going on... Sorry we didn't see that when you were at the Lake Pleasant Rally...but then we weren't looking for it...

Good luck!

MarcCarol · 05-09-2012, 05:19 AM

Thanks Terry,

I made an appointment at Affinity RV in Prescott to have it looked at Monday AM. I'm camping this weekend with the Prescott Group at Point of Rocks. I flushed the toilet a couple of times and saw no leakage.
(I did find a dead rabbit which might have been caught by a coyote and got under the trailer where the coyote couldn't go.) I am going to hook up water to the trailer this AM to see what if any tank might be affected. If no leaks I'm probably going to be okay for the weekend.
I just had a probably dumb thought and wonder if all that damage might have been caused by putting a jack under the tank instead of where you showed me it should go? I'll know more when I get a mirror on a stick under there later today.

blkmagikca · 05-11-2012, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarcCarol

I just had a probably dumb thought and wonder if all that damage might have been caused by putting a jack under the tank instead of where you showed me it should go? I'll know more when I get a mirror on a stick under there later today.

Why would you have put a jack under the trailer? The only people I have ever seen jack up an AS trailer have been factory service at Jackson Center. Everyone else drives one wheel up on a long chock so that the other wheel is off the ground. Just about all AS come with BAL stabilizers, thus no jack is necessary.

dznf0g · 05-11-2012, 09:35 AM

Um, a lot of us use jack and jack stands.

vswingfield · 05-11-2012, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blkmagikca

Why would you have put a jack under the trailer? The only people I have ever seen jack up an AS trailer have been factory service at Jackson Center. Everyone else drives one wheel up on a long chock so that the other wheel is off the ground. Just about all AS come with BAL stabilizers, thus no jack is necessary.

The original post is about a 17' Airstream. I'm assuming that it's a single axle trailer, I don't recall seeing any duals that small.

**DKB_SATX** · 05-11-2012, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blkmagikca

Why would you have put a jack under the trailer? The only people I have ever seen jack up an AS trailer have been factory service at Jackson Center. Everyone else drives one wheel up on a long chock so that the other wheel is off the ground. Just about all AS come with BAL stabilizers, thus no jack is necessary.

17' Safari Sport is a single-axle trailer.

Lumatic · 05-11-2012, 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blkmagikca

Why would you have put a jack under the trailer? The only people I have ever seen jack up an AS trailer have been factory service at Jackson Center. Everyone else drives one wheel up on a long chock so that the other wheel is off the ground. Just about all AS come with BAL stabilizers, thus no jack is necessary.

BAL stabilizers are just that stabilizers, not jacks.

dsrtgrls · 05-11-2012, 12:55 PM

that would be some kind of levitation trick though. maybe the vegas airstream dealership will get it on.

AWCHIEF · 05-11-2012, 01:15 PM

Why do some people that have a trailer with two or more axels thank that all trailers do? In every thread that is simular to this someone all ways says to just drive it up on a block thus no jack is needed. What works for some does not always work for everyone.

Belegedhel · 05-11-2012, 01:19 PM

Pictures would be extremely helpful in allowing us arm-chair doctors to provide a diagnosis. But I agree with the above assertion that you should have way more than 3 inches of clearance. A couple of comments/Questions/suggestions:

1) Did you buy the trailer brand new? If not, there is just as good a chance the previous owner did the damage. It sounds like the damage has allowed the tank to fall so that you have a lot less clearance. If it is just hanging there by its plumbing, then you probably need to get it diagnosed before you lose it on the highway.

2) Which tank is it (fresh water, grey water, or black)? I think your trailer has the freshwater tank above the floor, so I assume it is grey or black. Knowing which tank it is will help you to figure out what conditions to look for a leak in (ie., flushing the toilet won't matter if it is your grey water tank).

3) On the topic of stabilization jacks, there are many of us that use these to stabilize the trailer. There aren't very many places to put a jack under the trailer that will take any force, so it is very possible that someone stuck a jack in the wrong place, or the trailer slipped off of a jack and caused damage. It is hard to imagine a stabilizing jack causing enough damage to result in your tank dropping out of your trailer. On my trailer, it is apparent that a previous owner tried putting a stabilizing jack underneath the banana wrap instead of the frame rail, and caused some very neat dents in the banana wrap.

good luck!

blkmagikca · 05-12-2012, 09:15 AM

OK, my fault for not realizing that the original discussion was a single axle trailer. That said, though, the original post did not elaborate on *why* the jack was placed there. Being a 2008 trailer, it should have the BAL stabilizers, so then the jack was for some other reason (not disclosed by the original poster).

That said, there are issues relating to the very low clearance and the described damages which do require repair. Perhaps some photos would assist in providing more information which would allow for better diagnosis.

Lumatic's suggestion to check with Oasis RV in Tucson merits consideration.

TBRich · 05-12-2012, 04:11 PM

I think he was just trying to locate the proper jack points...not actually trying to jack it up. ... when he saw the suspected damage...

ROBERT CROSS · 05-12-2012, 05:34 PM

Marc,

Jack on the axle plate....I used the same location on our single axle Safari.

Bob

robert claus · 05-12-2012, 07:08 PM

My Bambi came with ambiguous arrow stickers on the sides at the back that said "jack point". I figured out that the jack point they were indicating was identified by a little aluminum plate that was riveted to a chassis point. I used those once, but that point was so far back that you had to jack it way up to unload the axle and get the wheel off the ground. So, I use the axle plate now, like Bob Cross has recommended.

Ahab · 05-13-2012, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blkmagikca

Why would you have put a jack under the trailer? The only people I have ever seen jack up an AS trailer have been factory service at Jackson Center. Everyone else drives one wheel up on a long chock so that the other wheel is off the ground. Just about all AS come with BAL stabilizers, thus no jack is necessary.

Not when you have a single axle.

MarcCarol · 05-17-2012, 03:49 PM

Thanks everyone,
I made an appointment with Oasis RV in Phoenix since two of you recommended them and they advertise Airstreams. I was going to get a CBC?? which is an inspection for everything but everything seems to be working so I don't think it would be worth it for a 2008 Safari Sport 17' I will ask them to give me an opinion on the tank.
I appreciate the info on where to place the jack especially the photo by Bob Cross. As soon as I get a handle on how to operate everything on the trailer and keep it going, I'm gonna learn how to upload photos for the forums. Thanks again to all. Terry R, I'll see you in Santa Fe! Marc

Goin camping · 05-21-2012, 11:54 AM

Here's the question everyone else already knows the answer to...

Why can't the OP pull his single axle trailer up onto blocks on one side to get clearance under the trailer?

marc,

We take our trailer down dirt roads and across the desert on almost every trip. It does fine as long as I go slow.

mefly2 · 05-25-2012, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

Why do some people that have a trailer with two or more axels thank that all trailers do? In every thread that is simular to this someone all ways says to just drive it up on a block thus no jack is needed. What works for some does not always work for everyone.

A$$ you me-ing again; or, just speeding a reply and not reading the information in the OP. We have moved back to a single axle AS and do not regret it even a little.

One suggestion to offer regarding jacking is to put wood or some other slightly compliant material between the jack head and the jack point. Remember your science / physics class and assure that the jacking piston is perpendicular to the jacking point to exert true vertical movement; otherwise you are asking for a surprise.(Unless you have a nifty floor jack on a hard surface which will usually self-correct) Metal on metal is more likely to slide... as well as it erodes/scrapes paint / undercoat / rust-proofing. Just make certain that you are not relying on the front trailer jack to immobilize the AS. We chock in front of and behind the opposite wheel +++ and block up the front "A" frame before any jacking operation. To ease the scenario, we first use a hydraulic jack to elevate slightly higher than we want for level and then easily adjust a screw jack into position before releasing pressure on the hydraulic.

No problems with clearance on our 20 FC around here on Montana back roads and logging access ... it sounds like the OP may have hit something and torn loose the lower covering ... if the tank is intact, a pop-rivet repair with new AL skin over the existing tear might save some $$$.

Marc - let us know how this worked out for you ...