Slide and Levelers Not Working

[Michelle Jensen]

We have a 1998 Patriot Ticonderoga and our living-room slide-out is currently stuck half open and our leveling system isn't working.  When we push the slide switch there is a clicking noise but nothing happens.  Same thing when we push the leveling switches.  We hear clicking sounds but nothing happens.  We double checked the bolts on the solenoid in the back with the leveling controls and they are passing 12v current when we press the leveling control buttons but the motor doesn't run. Everything else in the coach is working just fine; it's just these two issues.  Before we call a mobile mechanic is there anything that we might be able to do ourselves??  Also is there a way to bring the slide in manually?

Thanks in advance for any help you might be able to provide!

-Michelle

[Eric Maclean]

Michelle
Get someone to hold the switch while you tap on the motor it may be a  bad  contact at the motor commutator (brush springs) in the motor may be rusty.

[Michelle Jensen]

Ok we tried that and nothing happened.  Any other ideas?

[Joel Ashley]

Eric is probably on the mark.  There’s enough voltage to engage the contacts but resistance is too high to spin the rotor. 

But how much voltage exactly are you reading?  A pump motor can require some current, so be certain your batteries are charged;  a reading of 12 volts means your batteries are only half powered.

Joel

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Check to make sure you are not low on hydraulic fluid as I believe both are hydraulic systems.
Steve

[Eric Maclean]

Michelle
If you have a volt meter take a reading from the motor case to the motor feed cable and have someone hit the switch it should read somewhere close to 12 volts when the solenoid is activated if you do have 12 volts present the motor is the problem.
Next take a reading between the motor case and a good ground there should be little to no voltage present when the solenoid is activated if it reads above 2 or 3 volts the motor and pump arrangement has a bad ground. Provide a good ground and try it again

Hope this helps
Eric

[Michelle Jensen]

Okay, so we went back under the coach and banged on the square box at the top at the same time I pressed the slide out switch and we got it to pull in!!!  The levelers also worked while beating on it.  So, what does that mean though?  What needs do be repaired/replaced?

[Joel Ashley]

If the pump motor was heard this time but only “clicking” before, then Eric was right and your pump motor has too much internal resistance, assuming all exteriorly accessible electrical connections are snug and clean of exorbitant corrosion.  If you’re mechanically inclined you could conceivably remove the motor and replace its brushes if they’re worn, and/or clean up its interior.  Otherwise either get a model number off of it and replace the motor or plan on crawling under there a lot when using slideouts and other hydraulics.

Joel

[Eric Maclean]

Michelle
If you do the volt drop tests I outlined earlier you can determine whether it is just a bad ground connection or the motor itself.

Eric

[Eric Maclean]

Michelle
The easiest way to check for ground issues is using a booster cable provide a ground to the motor casing from either a frame rail or the battery bank if close enough.
And try it to see if that cures the problem.

Eric

[Fred Brooks]

    Michelle,
There is one other possibility you could be experiencing. You originally said you heard a "clicking sound" but no pump operation for the slide or Jacks. On the pump motor housing is the "12 volt pump solenoid relay. It has 2 battery cables going to it. See attached photo. Normally when you push the switch to operate the slide or extend the leveling jacks, this solenoid turns the pump on. I have seen in the past where that solenoid will click but NOT activate the pump motor. To prove that, have someone push the switch and have another person touch the solenoid large terminals together with an old screwdriver. If the pump comes on and the room moves, you have a bad solenoid. I would replace it with a "continuous duty" solenoid. Hope this helps, Fred