# Levelling and pitching: choosing a spot you can sleep on

> Slope, soft ground, wind and a fridge that dislikes tilting: how to read a pitch before the handbrake goes on, and how to level with ramps and chocks.

Source: https://camping-spirit.com/magazine/rv-levelling-and-pitching/

*By CampingSpirit Editors, 2026-09-04*

A pitch that looks flat in the afternoon often turns out to be anything but at bedtime. A slope of a few degrees is enough to roll a sleeper towards the wall, leave a shower tray draining the wrong way and, in a vehicle with an absorption fridge, put the cooling unit under strain. Choosing the spot well removes most of the work that follows.

Levelling is only one of several decisions made on arrival. Ground, weather, sun, neighbours and the way out matter just as much, and they are easier to judge on foot before the vehicle is parked than from the driver’s seat afterwards.

## Walk the pitch first

On a campsite, Stellplatz or aire, a two-minute walk across the pitch is worth more than any gadget. The aim is the flattest strip, not the best view. Look for what a windscreen hides: hollows that collect rainwater, roots, kerbs, drain covers, low branches, and verges that look firm but give way under a vehicle of three tonnes or more. A bubble level, or a phone placed flat on the floor of the living area, shows the real slope before any ramp comes out. Where a pitch slopes, many travellers park lengthways along the slope with the head end of the bed uphill, since a tilt from front to back is easier to correct, and usually better tolerated by appliances, than a tilt from side to side.

Sun and shade deserve the same attention. A pitch in full sun from 08:00 turns the living area into an oven by mid-morning, while deep shade under trees keeps solar panels idle and may drop resin, fruit or dead wood on the roof. In summer, shade over the sleeping end and sun on the panels is the usual compromise; in cool weather the priorities reverse. It also pays to look up: a dead or broken limb above the pitch is a reason to choose another one, however pleasant the spot.

## Ramps, blocks and chocks

Drive-on ramps and stackable blocks are the standard tools. Levelling starts from side to side: the ramp or block goes in front of the wheel on the low side, the vehicle is driven up slowly while a second person watches the level, and the driver stops as soon as the bubble is centred. The last centimetres are easy to overshoot, so a helper outside is worth having. Only then is the front-to-back angle corrected, on a trailer with the tongue jack. Chocks go in once the vehicle is level and before anything is unhitched; the parking brake alone should not be the only thing holding a vehicle on an incline.

Stabiliser legs and corner steadies are a separate matter. They remove wobble once the vehicle is parked, but manufacturers such as Keystone state plainly that they are not meant for levelling, and a vehicle lifted on steadies alone loads the frame and the legs themselves. On soft ground, a board, a plastic pad or a purpose-made base under each block or foot spreads the load; without one, ramps and legs can sink into sand, wet grass or gravel within hours. Motorhomes with a factory levelling system should follow their own handbook.

## What the fridge and the slide-outs expect

An absorption fridge, the type that runs on gas or mains, has no pump. It circulates its coolant by gravity and therefore depends on the vehicle being close to level. Limits differ by make and model: one Dometic installation manual states that the refrigerator may not exceed an angle of 3° from level, and some makers allow more tilt from front to back than from side to side. The handbook for the installed model gives the figure that counts. Short tilts during a lunch stop are generally not a concern, but a night or several days off level are what manufacturers warn about, because poor circulation means weak cooling and, over time, damage to the unit. Compressor fridges are generally less sensitive to tilt.

Slide-outs follow the same logic. Level first, extend afterwards, and check the level again, because the shifted weight can change it. Before extending, check what sits in the path of the slide: trees, posts, a neighbour’s table, a hedge, a low wall. A pitch with a clear metre on the slide side is the cheaper choice than a damaged seal.

## Wind, water and awnings

Wind is the factor most often underestimated. A large flat side acts as a sail, so turning the narrowest face of the vehicle towards the expected wind reduces both the load on the awning and the rocking at night. Awning manufacturers are consistent about the limits. Thule’s manual for its Omnistor awnings describes an awning as protection from the sun, not all-weather shelter, says it should be closed in storm, snow, hail or heavy rain, and warns against leaving it extended and unattended. It adds that no auto-retract system guarantees protection in severe weather. Hold-down straps help against gusts, but they do not turn an awning into a storm shelter.

Water is the second hazard. A pitch beside a river bed, on a tidal beach or in a hollow can become a trap after a night of heavy rain. In dry washes and canyons of the American South-West, flash floods can be caused by storms many miles upstream. Checking the forecast for the wider area, not only for the pitch, and parking on slightly higher ground with the vehicle pointing towards the way out costs nothing. Rainwater should run away from the vehicle and from the door step, not towards them.

## Night safety on informal stops

On informal overnight stops, safety and level go together. A spot that requires reversing out in the dark, wedges the vehicle between others or sits on an isolated lot is better skipped at 21:00 than regretted at 02:00. Park so that the cab can leave without manoeuvring, keep keys and a torch in a fixed place within reach of the bed, and leave a ventilation opening if a heater or gas appliance is on. If anything about the surroundings feels wrong, moving on is a reasonable decision, even after levelling.

## A routine that works

A short routine avoids most problems. Walk the pitch and look up. Choose the flat strip with sun, wind and the way out in mind. Check the level inside, drive onto the ramps from the low side, then set chocks and the parking brake. Adjust front to back, lower steadies only for stability, extend slide-outs and awning last, and look at the level once more. Before leaving, retract everything, collect blocks and pads, and walk around the vehicle one more time; ramps and chocks are easy to leave behind.

## Sources

- [Tips for leveling your RV like a pro (Lippert)](https://www.lippert.com/blog/tips-for-leveling-your-rv-like-a-pro)
- [How to level your RV at the campground (Keystone RV)](https://www.keystonerv.com/keystone-life/level-your-rv-at-the-campground)
- [Dometic RMDX 21 installation and operating instructions (Dometic)](https://www.dometic.com/externalassets/rmdx21_9500001384_71100.pdf)
- [Omnistor Regal awning instruction guide (Thule/Lippert)](https://forestriverinc.com/files/Component-Manuals/Awning/Thule%20(Lippert)%20-%20Awning%20Model%20Omnistor%20Regal%20%20Instruction%20Guide.pdf)