Replacement Electric Tongue Jack that Will Allow Full Opening of Tailgate on Tow Vehicle

Question:

Hi, I have a 1985 Avion 24ft camper and a 2019 Chevy Suburban. The electric tongue jack that I have on the Avion is too tall to allow the rear lift gate on the Suburban to open. The jack I have is about 26 inches tall from the top of the trailer frame. I think I need something at least 2 inches shorter. Id like something that I can permanently wire on the trailer and one that has some lights built in. Id guess that the camper weighs about 7000 lbs - what lift weight so I need for the tongue jack?

asked by: David M

Expert Reply:

I have a solution for you, but the Bulldog # BD500200 is only going to be about 2" shorter than you current jack, and I think we can do a little bit better than that to make sure that you get full use of the tailgate on your 2019 Chevy Suburban. When choosing a trailer jack, it will need to be able to lift the tongue weight of your trailer and not the entire weight of the trailer; your 7000-lbs trailer should be in the neighborhood of 1000-lbs tongue weight when the trailer is fully loaded (the TW of your trailer should be between 10-15% of the total GVWR).

I recommend using the Bulldog Powered-Drive Trailer Jack # BD500187, which has a 3500-lbs of lifting capacity (which is plenty considering your 1000-lbs tongue weight) and only measures 20-1/2" from the top of the mounting bracket to the top of the jack- so you're getting a jack that is about 5-1/2" shorter than you current jack and should provide you with the full operation of your tailgate. This Bulldog jack comes with an LED light on the head of the jack to provide light during nighttime operation and comes with a crank included in the event of power failure that allows for manual operation.

I've linked a review video that you might want to have a look at, as well, which will show you this jack in action.

expert reply by: Erik B