Slides not opening or closing

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Gazelle05

New member
Joined
Jul 24, 2018
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2
Slides on 05 Safari Gazelle won't open or close. Checked all fuses and relays with meter all good. No click when activating switch. No sounds nothing. Plugged in to 50 amp power so plenty of juice. Batteries new 3 months ago. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
There may be an in line fuse or a fusible link powering the slide. Unfortunately, there probably isn't a wiring diagram available, and the only way to find it is start tracing the wiring.
 
Check your interlock switch.  The interlock switch will disengage the slide switch if it senses a cargo bay door open or it may be defective if bay doors closed.

Jennifer
 
As ferfer says, a common problem is an interlock that is designed to prevent moving the slides except wwhen parked. RVs vary, but it's common to have an interlock with both the ignition switch (must be off) and the parking brake (must be applied).  If the wire carrying the interlock signal get broken, the slide controller may refuse to activate.

It's also common for the the slide motor(s) to be wired directly to the battery or 12v system and have its own fuse or breaker, separate from the main fuse panel.
 
I had a problem with the slide on my fifth wheel not working. Turned out to be a poor ground connection at the battery. Low current items like lights worked just fine, but the higher current draw of the slide motor was no go.
 
Am important clue with high draw devices like a slide motor is whether there is any attempt to move (even a grunt) or simply nothing.  Wiring and ground problems usually result in some attempt at movement but no joy; interlock or switch problems are more likely to exhibit no sound or attempt to move at all.  You probably don't have to be a pro to distinguish the difference, but you do have to watch and listen closely.
 
Personal experience for a different RV: I have an 04 Fleetwood with PowerGear slides and the control boards for my slides just stop responding once in a while until I go push on the board, move the wire harness going into the boars, apply some pressure to them. I had to label each board so if just 1 of the 4 slides is not working, I know which board to go "wake up" to get it to start responding. My Slide control boards are mounted on the back wall of the bay with the inverter.  I have had a similar issue as other describe with a safety switch for one of my back slides that had a door for the TV and a sensor has to be closed before the slide will move. I didn't realize I had pulled a wire/ sensor out or alignment and it wouldn't allow that particular slide to work until I fixed it.
 
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