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Old 05-23-2020, 12:53 PM   #1
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Roof raise on grass/leveling

So I just bought a 2010 Blue Bird Vision and the only place I have accessible to build in is right in front of my house. I checked with the pocal PD and they assured me it was totally legal, and my neighbors have all said it's fine, so I'm not worried about that, but the way my yard is I can fit all but one corner on pavement, and one corner will have to be on the grass. Since I am thinking about doing a roof raise I'm trying to figure out if I can put down a sheet of steel or some 4x4s or something in order to makeshift some stable ground to support jacking/cribbing that corner to get the bus level. Is it better to have a front tire on the grass for less surface area or better for the back tires because they are larger, with two tires, and I'm guessing hold less weight than the front with the engine right over it.

I'm also pretty unclear on the process for jacking/cribbing in general. How important is leveling the bus, anyone have recommendations of good jacks? What's the best method for cribbing? Any insight would be helpful!

Excited to start this! Thanks!

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Old 05-23-2020, 12:55 PM   #2
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It really doesn't matter too much. Just get it as level as you can.
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Old 05-23-2020, 01:02 PM   #3
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It really doesn't matter too much. Just get it as level as you can.
Cool, thanks for your insight! Do mean don't jack/crib it and just park as level as possible? Or jack it up but don't be too stressed about it? Any thoughts on having one corner on grass? I'm worried I'll get it level but maybe the part on the grass will sink a bit as it sits there
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Old 05-23-2020, 01:22 PM   #4
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Originally Posted by Perigee View Post
Cool, thanks for your insight! Do mean don't jack/crib it and just park as level as possible? Or jack it up but don't be too stressed about it? Any thoughts on having one corner on grass? I'm worried I'll get it level but maybe the part on the grass will sink a bit as it sits there
I bought a long level from HF and used it to sorta get the bus a bit more level. I did have concrete to park on. But really all you have to do is get the bus more or less level with a jack or two strategically placed and there isn't much else to worry about. As long as everything measures right before you weld it up its fine anyhow.
I was all nervous and freaked out from stuff I'd "heard". When I actually proceeded with the raise it was super simple and nothing to stress over.
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Old 05-23-2020, 01:40 PM   #5
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I'm pretty sure the back wheels will exert a lower ground pressure when the bus is unloaded, so you'd want one of them on the grass. It's still going to be enough pressure to sink in a bit, though, so you want something under it to distribute the weight and lower the pressure.

You want something like 10 PSI or less to avoid damaging the sod, so if your bus weighs 16,000 pounds like mine, that's 4,000 pounds (actually less since the back wheels would be less loaded) that needs to be spread over 400 square inches, or 20" x 20". Which is actually not all that much larger than the combined footprint of two rear tires anyway, but I'd still want something larger since your bus might be there a while and it could rain.
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Old 05-31-2020, 04:19 PM   #6
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Don't worry too much about parking the bus level. If you have to park tires on dirt make sure to put wood or steel under the tires not just so it doesn't sink in but mainly so the tires don't rot out from being in the same spot for a long time on moist soil. It's really cheap to buy 4 six or eight ton harbor freight jacks to level the body when you are working on the roof raise. That way you can easily readjust to level if you have to move the bus and you have some jacks left over to change the tire or work on under bus things. Just make sure you put the jacks under the body not the axles.
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