Leveling a Caravan with Mover and Hitch
Maneuvering a caravan onto a pitch alone is an art. Leveling alone on top of that is a discipline of its own. With a mover, jockey wheel, and app, it's much more relaxed. Here's how we do it.
The classic mover workflow
With a mover (Truma Mover, Reich, Enduro etc.) you hold a remote and steer the wheels directly. That lets you maneuver the caravan onto any spot without the tow vehicle.
What you need to level cleanly:
1. Park the caravan roughly on the spot (mover or tow vehicle) 2. Before unhitching: check lateral tilt (roll) — open the app, read the value 3. If crooked: place wedge under the lower wheel, slowly roll on with the mover 4. Watch the app sound: closer to level, faster beeping 5. As soon as "green": stop the mover, set the brake 6. Unhitch 7. Crank the jockey wheel down — controls longitudinal tilt (pitch) 8. Drop the supports (only AFTER leveling!)
Hitch and jockey wheel
The jockey wheel on the hitch controls the caravan's longitudinal axis. Crank it long, the front rises and the rear drops. Crank it short, the other way.
Rule of thumb: 1 turn of the jockey wheel ≈ 1 cm of height change at the front (varies per manufacturer). Per 1° of longitudinal tilt at 5 m caravan length, you need about 8–9 cm of lift.
In the app: you see pitch live. As you crank the jockey wheel, the value changes. Once it's green, stop.
Operate the app from outside
The trick: your phone stays in your hand or on a magnetic mount outside, the app measures the sensor inside the caravan and transmits via BLE in real time. You don't have to climb in anywhere.
Typical solo workflow:
1. Caravan roughly placed, you're standing at the hitch 2. Phone in hand, app open, pitch and roll visible 3. One hand on the mover button, the other on the jockey wheel as needed 4. Eyes on the phone, ears on the sound — when it's green, stop
Sound + vibration as extra help
If you can't (or don't want to) look at the screen while maneuvering — sun, dirty hands — use the sound:
- Fast beeping: far from level
- Slow beeping: close to level
- Continuous tone: leveled, stop
Vibration works similarly on a watch (Apple Watch / Wear OS, if paired) — useful on loud pitches or with ear protection.
Tips for solo camping
1. Check position first, then unhitch. It's much more annoying to be unhitched and only then notice you're 4 cm off.
2. Lay out wedges before deploying the mover. Once the mover is engaged, you don't want to step out again to position wedges.
3. Mark your jockey wheel default. Mark a standard position on the jockey wheel for your caravan (e.g., with a marker) — then you know roughly where to start.
4. Final check before lowering supports. Lowering the supports changes pitch by another 0.1–0.3° (depending on the caravan). After lowering, check the app once more.
5. Sensor works offline. Our app stores your caravan profile locally — no network needed on the pitch. Crucial in mountains or on the coast without signal.
Why it goes faster with the 040 app
We're building this so you really only need the phone in your hand — no climbing in, no "honey, how's it look?", no trial-and-error. The wedge recommendation tells you directly which wedge under which wheel.
See you on the road — Your 040 Team