Lift struts or electric actuators

[Cpl J]

HI, i am wondering if anyone has used lift struts or electric actuators to raise there roof top tent? I would like to have my tent low on the trailer but when I set up raise the tent high enough to put the annex on or walk under the overhang. Thanks

 

[Ed B]

I have an XVenture trailer. The roof top tent sits on a rack that uses struts to assist in raising and lowering the rack. The tent weighs over 200 lbs so the struts help a lot. You can see them in this photo.

 

[Cpl J]

View attachment 19199 I have an XVenture trailer. The roof top tent sits on a rack that uses struts to assist in raising and lowering the rack. The tent weighs over 200 lbs so the struts help a lot. You can see them in this photo.

That is pretty nice, do all of them raise up at once? is it hard to lower?

 

[Ed B]

That is pretty nice, do all of them raise up at once? is it hard to lower?

Each of the legs has a pin in it that locks it in place. My wife normally helps so we remove the pins on the same end and raise the rack to the desired height. We then move to the other end. Very easy to raise and lower. Convenient to unfold and set the tent up on the lowest setting and then raise it to the level we want. If we will be using the annex we raise it to the highest setting. If we are only going to use the awning we put it in the middle setting.

 

[Cpl J]

Thanks for the info, I am going to be building my rack on a 4x6 trailer. taking my roof top tent of my jeep so I can go mobile while out in the boonies.

 

[HoffmanMark]

What brand are the struts?

 

[traveler57]

Thought I'd post my own experience. Go to liftsupportdepot.com and they have all brands and sizes. I have a 128lb RTT & 100lb rack/frame on my custom trailer rack. 5ft at the lower "transport" position, and then lifts up to 6.5ft for opening the RTT and using the Annex. Yes, I had to buy a few pairs of struts (force vs lengths) before I "dialed-in" the right lifting capacity and strut locations. But at only $20-40 a set, it was not that bad. and MUCH cheaper than electric. (my opinion) It was not obvious to know how much lift is needed versus being able to lower the RTT back down easily. I ended up using two 60 lb Suspa struts. I now have about 20-30lbs of "net vertical weight" on the RTT and frame due to the complex lifting angles and the way my lift frame is designed. Very easy to get the lifting started with one person. And still enough weight to allow the RTT to come back down slowly, and stay down on the highway.

 

[BenCamping]

Mark, I'm local to DFW and curious if you found a good option for you struts? I have a overland trailer similar to the XV above but much more simple and I'm looking to have made a RTT rack for it that raises and lowers easily. Any direction on a local fabricator that could assist in making and installing?

What brand are the struts?

 

[traveler57]

Using liftsupportsdepot.com it lists thousands of struts and dozens of manufactures. I used both SUSPA and Their in-house brand. They are cheap enough that buying different lengths/forces to home in on the right struts was not so painful (money wise). I bought four sets ($20-60 each) before I got a good solution. My lift system for the RTT is still working after 2 years. But I am always looking for tweaks to make it easier. Right now, I need around 20-30lbs of manual "lift" to get the RTT to start its rise up. And maybe a bit more "down force" when getting it started to lower. Not so difficult, but I would like it a little easier. You just have to balance the strut forces (both lift and compression) to get an ideal result.

 

[BenCamping]

Do you have pictures of your setup? I'm a seasoned tent/family/backpack camper and just picked up my first overland trailer looking to move that direction with the family. And I'm a novice when it comes to metal fabrication, gas struts, etc....

 

[dstock]

Just my 2 cents, we started with gas lift supports but quickly moved to using linear actuators. Despite trying a couple different strengths of lift supports, the whole method still felt clunky. Also, if you want use a hard cover on your trailer you will get very tired of lifting your RTT up and down to gain access. We've had good luck with the linear actuators from Windynation.com, a 16" stroke actuator is about $60. In addition, when adding additional items to your rack, unless you go overboard, the same actuators will be handle the additional weight. We added a Rhinorack Batwing awning and a 7.0 gal Roadshower to ours with no issues.

 

[BenCamping]

Looks great, pretty much what I'm looking for! Did you install a switch to raise and lower or can it be done manually somehow?

 

[dstock]

Thanks, I used a momentary switch wired to all 4 actuators.

A lot more info can be found here in my build thread Dstock's M101A1 build... or the reality, I needed a new project!

I haven't had a chance to replicate it on this forum yet, and I've already started on v2.0 of my trailer build. Just know that these trailers are addicting!

 

[BenCamping]

Thanks, I used a momentary switch wired to all 4 actuators.

A lot more info can be found here in my build thread Dstock's M101A1 build... or the reality, I needed a new project!

I haven't had a chance to replicate it on this forum yet, and I've already started on v2.0 of my trailer build. Just know that these trailers are addicting!

Wow that's a long build thread. And impressive work! I called Windy Nation today and asked about the actuators. He said that not all actuators would lift and lower at the same speed, with a slight variation from piece to piece. He could match them up but that would take some time to test and find the right ones.
Were you aware of this issue when purchasing? If not, or if so and you didn't match them up, do you notice any difference or issues when raising and lowering?

Thanks again!

 

[Kutthroat_King]

Wow that's a long build thread. And impressive work! I called Windy Nation today and asked about the actuators. He said that not all actuators would lift and lower at the same speed, with a slight variation from piece to piece. He could match them up but that would take some time to test and find the right ones.
Were you aware of this issue when purchasing? If not, or if so and you didn't match them up, do you notice any difference or issues when raising and lowering?

Thanks again!

Now, the pricing is assuredly NOT $60 each but Thomson Linear makes the Electrak HD series of actuators available with a synchronization option that requires no controller. The actuators talk to each other through a sort of modified CANBUS system and tell each other to speed up or slow down based on position.

Source: am design engineer at Thomson Linear :D They are also rated from 1.7kN (382lbs) to 16kN (3600lbs). But, yeah, NOT $60 each. People get around the binding issue by not using them at all 4 corners or just by having play in the system (example: having enough clearance between the inner and outer tubes of your uprights so the mechanism can tilt some without binding so much that is can't be overcome). If you constrain a linear system too much it will bind.

I'm struggling with my own M416 lid design and want a simple solution but that is hard for me LOL.

 

[dstock]

Wow that's a long build thread. And impressive work! I called Windy Nation today and asked about the actuators. He said that not all actuators would lift and lower at the same speed, with a slight variation from piece to piece. He could match them up but that would take some time to test and find the right ones.
Were you aware of this issue when purchasing? If not, or if so and you didn't match them up, do you notice any difference or issues when raising and lowering?

Thanks again!

Thanks, it's been fun to document!

I was aware and they were close enough for it not to be an issue with my build. It was easy to level it off once it was at the height i wanted a little up, a little down, really wasn't a big deal.

 

[gosborne]

View attachment 19199 I have an XVenture trailer. The roof top tent sits on a rack that uses struts to assist in raising and lowering the rack. The tent weighs over 200 lbs so the struts help a lot. You can see them in this photo.

how many pounds are your struts?

 

[Pierre C]

80 lbs each for around 220 lbs (RTT and platform) to lift.

 

[OcoeeG]

My end goal is to utilize linear actuators to lift my RTT rack. But for now I am using a 30" lift scissors jack to lift it. Place it dead center under the rack and use my cordless drill to run it up to the height I want. It works really well and it is pretty dummy proof.