Slide Creeping Out While In Motion

[Dave Porter]

Greetings all!

Our front driver side slide on our 2005 Monterey is creeping out about 1-2" at the bottom while in motion.  The slide still seems locked in at the top.  We've been stopping every hour or so to retract the slide and then continue on our journey.  We normally travel North Georgia and have never had issues there but now we are on an extended trip (currently in Cody, WY) and have just had our first experience with some serious mountains (Bighorns).  So is the slide trying to extend normal behavior as the coach winds its way up/down these "hills"?  Or do I have another issue and if so, any ideas as to how to resolve? Is this something that needs to be addressed immediately or can it wait until I can get closer to a major repair facility (heading from Cody, to West Yellowstone then to West Glacier).

I did a cursory inspection of the hydraulic ram above the storage compartments and can't spot any obvious fluid leaks.

Many thanks!


Dave

[Gerald Farris]

Dave,
It sounds like you have a hydraulic leak. It can be either an external leak or an internal leak. An internal will be in one of the control valves that will let the fluid pressure escape back into the fluid reservoir, or the piston seal in the ram that lets the fluid pass from one side of the piston to the other.

Gerald

[Joel Ashley]

When ours did it in 2006, the 2 solenoids for that slide had to be replaced.  It sounds like it could be your "in" solenoid that's not holding, although our slide came out a whole lot more than a couple of inches, while on I-84, so there may be another cause.   Does the slide work properly when you set up and break camp?  Pumping fluid through by activating the slide may wash out problem debris from the solenoid seals.

The manifold of solenoids is likely under the right front of your year and model of coach.  The O rings associated with a solenoid can fail to seal due to a debris particle or other factor, and they can theoretically be attended to.  But HWH recommends replacing entirely both, at the same time, the in and the out solenoids associated with any one slipping slideout.  They can offer instruction and diagrams on their website.

I wish I could tell you which set of solenoids in the manifold go to which slideout, other than that any one set is opposite one another, so you may have to have help with that.  You might want to call HWH, or Beaver Coach Service in Bend, for advice and perhaps a repair facility reference.  Bretz RV in Missoula comes to mind.

In the meantime I'd get a piece of 2x2 or 2x4 to place inside behind the drivers seat, between the coach wall and slide lip while on the road, to keep it fully in.

Joel

[Dave Porter]

Thanks Gerald and Joel for your responses.  I ended up having both solenoid valves replaced for the front driver side slide and, so far, no additional problems.  Sorry for the late response but we've had spotty Wi-Fi coverage up until now.


Dave

[Orman Claxton]

Yeah Dave
I had  the same problem with my 2005 Beaver monterey, , In & Out Solenoids solved the Problem.

[Larry and Heidi Lee]

Hey Orman, did you replace the solenoids for the driver side living room slide yourself and if so can you describe the process you went through in getting the parts, installation process etc? My DS living room slide creeps out about 2" when parked for a month so I'm thinking I need to fix this soon.

[Orman Claxton]

Sounds as though you have a leak at one of the Solenoids on the passenger side, Mine was on the passenger side.I was lucky and used the extended  warranty. I keep an
 adjustable brace with me all time, Just in case.

[Joel Ashley]

If you contact HWH they may be able to send you repair instructions, or they may be available on their website.  They sent them to me in 2006 when we had trouble with ours on the freeway.  Then they shipped a pair of solenoids to the shop that actually did the warranty changeout.  They advise replacing both in and out solenoids simultaneously;  they should sit opposing one another on the manifold, commonly with the pump forward of the entry step mechanism.

I've since twice had slides suddenly appear popped out an inch or so even after months of being parked on our home pad.  Simply moving the slide out another inch with the switch, then drawing it fully back in and letting the pump "squeal" for a second after it was in seemed to lock it back in place.  I think it's just an O ring in the solenoid that isn't totally seated or that's compromised by a small piece of debris such that it can't seal snugly.  Punching the pump to it briefly one direction then the other seems to flush the O ring and reset it.

Of course if it's more than that, replacement of the solenoid pair is advised.

Joel

[Larry and Heidi Lee]

Joel, your last paragraph describes what I'm experiencing so I'll just keep an eye on it. It's never been a problem on trips except when it's been parked in the driveway for a month or so. Probably trying to tell me it's time for another adventure!  

[Jim Nichols]

On our 05 Monterey the solenoids have nettle valves.  At the end of each solenoid is a 6mm nut you can tighten or snug up. Had a bedroom slide creep in slightly in every 8 hours. Had a chat with HWH rep in Gillette this year and he suggested trying that before replacement. Worked for us. Hope to see y'all at the Indio or Quartzsite rallies.

[Larry and Heidi Lee]

Since December my driver #1 slide continued to creep out an inch or so while parked even after closing it 2-3 times trying Joel's idea. When I spoke to HWH tech support they stated I only needed to change the one single solenoid causing the problem so I ordered an "extend" solenoid only. Changing it was really messy (about 12-20 oz.s of fluid pours out when you unscrew the old solenoid) so lay cardboard down, have a drain pan ready and wear safety glases. Regarding the solenoid's both the small or larger solenoid works and is interchangeable according to HWH parts department. I replaced my small solenoid with a size large. Screws right in and plugs in to the old connector no problem. Intrestingly a gal sells these solenoids new in the HWH box for around $165 on E-Bay while HWH sells them for $222. Don't know where the Ebay gal is getting them. Anyway it's been 2 weeks and the slide hasn't moved so we'll see. To refill the hydraulic tank I found the best way to do this is with a plastic dispenser as pictured.  

[Joel Ashley]

Thanks for getting back to us with your experience re. the procedure, and for supplying recommendations and pix, Larry.  Scratching my head;  HWH advised the shop and me in 2006 to always replace solenoids in pairs.

It leads me to think If I ever need to deal with the issue, I might try new O rings first just in case that's the root problem.  Do you think clamping off hoses connected to the tank or manifold might reduce the spillage?

Joel

[Lee Welbanks]

I'm going to have to tackle this problem on our coach, the front pass slide creeps out sometimes. I used solenoid valves for years and we always OHM'ed out the solenoid and if they read ok look at the valve itself. Don't know what the ohm reading should be but easy to figure out, just ohm out 2 or 3 of them to get a number, usually if the solenoid is bad the windings will be Open or Shorted to the case either way you will see the difference.

Has anybody used the HWH O-Ring kits? I have read in here or some place else that the orings are special and directional. Dug all through the HWH site and no mention for a O-Ring kit, probably have to call their parts dept.

[Larry and Heidi Lee]

 the fluid comes out really slowly in a very small trickle so as long as you're prepared to catch it it's no big deal. It's a really tight space and the solenoid manifold is up above the tank making access a real bear. I used channel locks to remove the old solenoid and it takes some patience because of the lack of space to move a tool. I would be afraid to damage the internal lining of one of those hydraulic lines with a clamp? The picture is of the actual hydraulic fluid tank with the dipstick/fill access on top. I am laying on my back and sticking the camera way up into this area -you can't see anything from below so you are working blind. Before checking the fluid level consider wiping around the fill cap before removing it. My tank had lots of road dust and grime sitting on top and when you rempve the cap it is flush so dirt can fall right in. I wish I saved the old solenoid we could have taken some measurements and spec'd out some O-rings. If someone is successful changing out the O-rings I would like to hear about it.

[Lee Welbanks]

Looks just like the unit in the Patriot, going to do some cleaning before I take anything apart. With the gene all the way out I can pretty much sit there and get at both sides of the manifold, have to pull some hoses and wiring out of the way but shouldn't be too bad. At least that's what the fine print says. Going to contact HWH about O-Ring kits, we'll see what kind of reply I get.
I know the solenoids are good because the slides work in and out just fine, just the one doesn't hold.

Lee