Leaving truck hooked up overnight

[jasin1]

Any problems with leaving truck connected overnight as long as it’s level? I put all the jacks down just touching snug, I have a Ram 3500 dually with air suspension…I put it in jack mode to disable the compressor…hopefully nothing weird happens with the truck trying to raise or lower.

Thought about pulling the truck out but all the slides are out now….might just go ahead and redo it

[flybouy]

Sounds to me like you'll be fine.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by flybouy

Sounds to me like you'll be fine.

Ok thanks!

[JRTJH]

^^Agree. Unless you've got the truck "pulled way up in the air" or "squeezed down close to the ground" by the leveling system on the trailer, you'll be OK. The problem that I've seen in campgrounds (well that I suspect would be a problem) is when the site is downhill and leveling the trailer causes the front landing gear to literally lift the truck rear suspension to an "unbelievable condition" where the tires are almost off the ground. Even that "may be OK" but if it were my truck, I wouldn't leave it in that condition.....

All that said, if the truck/trailer are fairly close to the way they'd be sitting during towing, I don't see any problems...

[jasin1]

Yeah this air suspension is GREAT but…it does some goofy things all on its own…I may just disconnect and auto level..it only takes an extra 15 min or so..wouldn’t want the air suspension to deflate and bring the weight of the truck onto the front landing gear….or god forbid it raises on its own when we go into the bedroom and tweaks the rear landing gear.

[gearhead]

I "think" on Rams the battery can be drained through the 7 pin connector. I would disconnect the plug.
I can also be corrected.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by gearhead

I "think" on Rams the battery can be drained through the 7 pin connector. I would disconnect the plug.
I can also be corrected.

I didn’t know that….thanks!

[sourdough]

I think you'll be fine as well but I would disconnect that umbilical to dodge any potential issues.

[jasin1]

Originally Posted by sourdough

I think you'll be fine as well but I would disconnect that umbilical to dodge any potential issues.

Ha! I see what you did there… “dodge”….Ram lol

I ended up disconnecting and auto leveling..gonna do some checking on the jack mode to make sure it keeps the auto level off until I reset it..will leave it overnight in jack mode and see if it stays that way when I get home…thanks

[rhagfo]

Chose the one with the biggest payload!

[RickV]

I will stay connected and just put the front jacks down if the site is somewhat level if we are just doing an overnighter while traveling. If not level I'll disconnect and pull forward just enough to allow leveling and in the morning it is an easy backup to reconnect.

[gearhead]

Draining the truck battery through the umbilical is a common thread on truck camper forums. RAM will drain its batteries if the camper battery is drained.
Either Chevy or Ford will not. Since I have a Ram it does apply to me and I try to remember that specifically

[wiredgeorge]

Originally Posted by gearhead

Draining the truck battery through the umbilical is a common thread on truck camper forums. RAM will drain its batteries if the camper battery is drained.
Either Chevy or Ford will not. Since I have a Ram it does apply to me and I try to remember that specifically

I had a truck camper years ago and I recall that an aftermarket "kit" was sold so the umbilical cord left attached wouldn't cause my truck's battery to drain. I had a Ford F150 at the time (slightly over payload...) and can't recall if the kit was needed. I bought the kit and installed it for fear of dumping my truck battery and not being able to take off in the morning after dry camping overnight.

[gearhead]

Originally Posted by wiredgeorge

I had a truck camper years ago and I recall that an aftermarket "kit" was sold so the umbilical cord left attached wouldn't cause my truck's battery to drain. I had a Ford F150 at the time (slightly over payload...) and can't recall if the kit was needed. I bought the kit and installed it for fear of dumping my truck battery and not being able to take off in the morning after dry camping overnight.

Same here. I had a 1980 F250 bought new and put a Tejas cabover on it. Apparently very overloaded before I put helper springs on it. A friend advised to put the kit on, which I think was just a diode.
I haven't put a kit on my Ram. I rarely use it without a generator or hookups, and it's easy to unplug. Kinda hesitant to start cutting into the wiring.