It’s rare that you can play bowls at a campsite. Not only are there far too many campers, tents and caravans in the way, but the ground they’re parked on is rarely smooth and flat.
Lumps, bumps, inclines and hills can have your campervan parked up at some pretty wild angles. This is usually all part of the fun of camping, but can cause headaches if you find you’re sleeping at a bizarre angle.
On top of this, some camping products, like fridges, work best on level ground – or as close to level as you can get.
Thankfully, there’s a whole range of tools you can use to ensure you’re able to compensate for even the wonkiest of camping pitches! Many of these are especially useful for wild camping, where you’ll rarely be setting up on a tailor-made camp pitch.
Levelling Chocks
An affordable, easy to use solution to parking up on uneven ground, levelling chocks are wedges of tough plastic, usually brightly coloured, which you can effectively drive up in order to level out your vehicle.
If one wheel has ended up in a divot, or you’re parked on a slope and one side of your camper is much lower than the other, you can place your blocks on the ground, drive your camper up the ramp until it levels out, and then park up like you normally would.
It’s important to note that every care needs to be taken when using levelling blocks, as they’re not to be used to lift the vehicle for maintenance or other work, and you’ll need to check carefully that the tyres are securely located in the middle of each chock to ensure that the vehicle won’t slip off.
You’ll be able to practice at home before you head off on a camping adventure, though, and it won’t take you long to get the hang of it!
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Van Levelling Chocks (Pair) with Spirit LevelFrom £2.68 Regular Price £2.95
To £29.95 Regular Price £32.95
Spirit levels
A quick and easy way to check just how off-centre your camper is, spirit levels for campers can show how far you’ve tilted in two dimensions (forward, backward, left and right), rather than just two (forward or backward, left or right).
This is great for making sure that you’re parked level enough that your water tanks, fridge, gas bottles etc. won’t be affected by the uneven ground.
They’re every bit as easy to use as a regular spirit level you might whip out for some DIY, and are a lot more accurate that just winging it!
Grip Mats
While maybe not technically a product for levelling out your vehicle, uneven ground and mud go together on camping trips like wasps and BBQs.
Rather than risk getting bogged down by mud, gravel or sand and having to try push your camper to less treacherous ground (inevitably getting yourself filthy in the process), tuck a couple of anti-slip mats somewhere in your camper.
If you do find yourself spinning your wheels and going nowhere, you can slide these underneath and give your tyres something to grip so you can free yourself.
