Power Windshield Drapes Inop

[Michael Kauffman]

Hi Everybody, I haven't checked in lately but I need help.  We are at Rest-a-While RV park in Hoodsport.  I closed the electric front window curtain last night.  Now it doesn't want to open back up.  I don't know if it's bound up or what.  I hear a little click when I try the switch.

Any ideas before I take it down manually?

Thanks, Mike K  

[Gerald Farris]

Mike,
You may be able to get it to work if you push gently on the curtain as you wife operates the switch. There are several things that cause a problem on your era of windshield drapes. A lot of the motors had a plastic housing that will crack with age and bind if the drapes are hard to retract, therefore pushing gently on the drapes will enable them to operate. There is also the possibility of a motor failure in which case you will probably have to convert the drapes manual operation if the motor is not repairable, because I do not think that a new motor is available. The other problems all involve a mechanical failure or binding in the track that will require you to locate and repair.

Gerald

[Larry Fritz]

Mike, Gerald is right. I have the identical coach that you do. I have had to nudge the curtain both to open and to close it for many, many years now. If you had the curtain totally closed past the entry door, then you likely will need to give it a big manual assist until it starts and opens that first foot or so.  I think the click means the motor is trying to pull but doesn't have enough strength to do so. Actually on mine with the curtain totally removed from the track I still have binding up in that track somewhere which is why I use the "manual assist" for the electric curtain!  Years ago, I moved my curtain switch to the right side of the TV cabinet which allows me to run the motor with my left hand and "manual assist" the curtain either open or closed. Gerald is correct, the only place you could find that motor is in a junk yard these days.  I just hope mine does not totally burn out or give up.

Larry Fritz

[Les Brandt]

Same curtain. I have to assist mine as well.

[Tom and Pam Brown]

Michael,

Mine broke an ear off the motor mount and was a bit of trouble.  Before I bought a new motor from a member who,had removed his, I took the curved piece of wood down and used a strap to hold the motor in place and worked well.

[Greg Kamper]

Mine is a two person operation... One person does the switch and the other person assists the motor by pulling on the curtain and also holding the pulley or what ever it is on the opposite end because it will push plastic chain out of the track... one of my future projects...

[Joel Ashley]

I don't have electric drapes, and am not familiar with their drive configuration, but thought I'd throw this in the ring in case it proves helpful to all those who apparently have worn systems:  there are a lot of small 12 volt motors available out there, and perhaps some of them might qualify as replacements.   I don't know the size, amp draw, rpm's, or forward/reverse gearing involved, so you'd have to wing it there, with whatever info gleaned from the old motor itself.  Nextrox and Hossen may have appropriate units.  Here is one of many sources, keeping in mind those two companys make many options other than what's here, in case this link has none that come anywhere near what is needed:
http://pluscompare.com/Industrial/306506011/Electronic-Components/Nextrox/

Just a thought, hoping it is of some use.

-Joel

[Roy Boles]

I have the same drapes in my coach. I used a cotton swab to apply silicon grease to the track as I worked it back and forth. Work better now.

[Michael Kauffman]

 Well I finally tore into my problem.  I removed the valance covering the motor assm, took the plastic motor housing apart so I could see the motor itself.  That little motor had so much torque that when the curtain was dragging while moving, it actually spun the motor within the housing until it twisted the 2 wires from the circuit board to the motor and broke at the solder point on the motor.  I re-soldered it and it works great.  When I put it back into the plastic case I'm going to make sure that it won't ever spin again.  Finally something easy to fix on the Beav...  Thanks All, Mike