"Jacks down" lights come on - excessive temps ?

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WhiteEagle

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Joined
Sep 4, 2009
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349
Location
Wisconsin
I have been relatively pleased with almost all aspects of this MH but after returning from Yellowstone trip last week, have in Kings campers for a number of warranty item repairs / replacements...
Main item is that while driving in Yellowstone and on way back, the "Jacks down" light on dash and the leveling panel strts flashing and beeping -- scary while driving thru narrow tight roads..especially once when I believe they actually started to go down..... first couple times, I pulled over asap, turned on leveling system, start jacks down, put jacks back up, shut off system, good for another 3-4 hours..... after the third time, I tried turning on the system while continuing to drive on, pressed on emergency brake lightly, released it and lift it's brake pedal arm firmly with foot, pressed the jacks up switch repeatedly and everything seemed to reset ?... until the next time a couple hours later again......
The dealer is telling me that they relayed this info to Winnebago and were told that all swithes and panel are fine - this is not uncommon when coach is being operated in high heat conditions... just need to reset like I did and not worry about it..... Dealer further tells me that some Tiffin coaches have same problem and on those, the driver just needs to push the "store" switch and all is OK...
Question... Is this correct ? ... Anyone actually have this happen ??
The ONLY thing that makes me MAYBE believe this is that it was the hottest I've ever had this coach exposed to .. but it doesn't seem logical that this happens to both Winnegabo's with this system and similiarly with Tiffin coaches ? 
New antenna cable is apparently on order for the outside radio - apparently has a short in it somewhere...
Both the front fenders have been "reglued" back on... I was astonished to learn these are actually glued to little rubber blocks which are then screwed to frame with plastic screws.. each one came loose on way out and truck drivers motioned for us to pull over ... wasn't noticeable to us but fender flops away in the wind when driving... fortunately, nothing apparently bent out of shape - must have caught it early - happened to have bungi cords so drove around with cords holding my fenders in place...
Hopefully the drivers window will now work well, one broken compartment latch replaced. some door squeaks hopefully quietedby tightening somethings inside, and finally,
The lock down latch on the large awning arm apparently let loose once while we were in very high winds on top of mountain pass in a rainstorm... the spring loaded corregated metal thing that curls around the awning when retracted became "open" and boy did it rattle ... sounded like a dozen people banging on the roof with metal rods...  got soaked and tired hanging unto whatever was there while on roof in the rail putting bugi cords on both arms and wrapping duct tape on the metal shield so it could be driven rest of vacation...... not sure yet what they did to correct this from happening again....should find out Fri after radio cable is replaced...
Had windshield crack repaired Friday.... thanks to rock thrown in central yellowstone off another vehicle..
Crack is low and not in line of sight so hopefully the "glue job" repair will last fine..
 
This is now embarrasing and untimely because all my manuals, supplemental manuals, and briefcase with all MH info is in the MH which is still at dealers until I get it back on Fri...
I know they are hydraulic with auto leveling ( or can be done manual) but I don't have the Brand/model/specs on them....
Having just been told that it's common for this to occurr, I though I'd get some experience input on it before I go to pick up the MH on Fri and get told again to not worry about it... may also contact Winnebago tech support unless a number of folks say it's common for this to happen in high heat usage....
 
Have never heard of heat being a problem - how hot was it?. While it has been hot everywhere this summer, in other years coaches are often driven in high heat. Most anywhere in the southern US between May and September and much of the midwest in summer is going to be in the 95-110 degree range and most RVs plow through it ok.

Even if it is true, I find it hard to accept that as an excuse. The jacks ought to work right in those temperatures. They aren't all that uncommon.
 
Exactly my thoughts.. I find it hard to believe that it's common for the "jacks down" lights, the "emergency brake on" light, and the jacks on lights to come on unexpectedly while driving and start flashing because of heat ( believe last week out there was 90-97 each day... and over 100 in sun but ?....
I did find that the jacks on the MH are the more advanced automatic leveling model of the "Kwikee" Brand ...
 
I do recall in the HWH manual for my 06' Meridian. They did state that "thermal expansion" of the fluid could cause the jack warning light to go off while driving. While it never happened to me, the cure was simply to turn on the system and hit store.  There must have been an issue in the past for them to include that in their documentation. 
 
After slowly climbing the grade to the Eisenhower Tunnel at the Continental Divide on a hot day a month or so ago, the jack alarm came on while I was in the tunnel.  I pulled over at first opportunity, noticed that one jack was down a few inches, and stored it.  A tech at HWH told me that the problem was simply thermal expansion due to the heat/grade, and not a bad solenoid or weak spring.  Hasn't happened since.
 
Aldo: is your rig a DP? I could see thermal expansion doing this especially with a puller putting engine and exhaust heat under the chassis but not being a problem with a pusher, just a thought.
 
I've experienced the jacks light coming on while driving on two different coaches (both Winnebagos). One was a gasser (02 Adventurer with HWH hydraulic jacks) and one a DP (10 Journey Express with Power Gear leveling system). In most recent instance, I was driving only about 4 miles from home to fuel up the night before a trip. It hasn't happened since and that's after 2500 miles of travels. Not something I fret over as I believe the jacks will not fully deploy without the parking brake being engaged and the coach in park or neutral.
 
I've heard the thermal expansion of the hydraulic fluid theory before too, but it has never happened to us traveling in very hot weather ...60k miles on this coach.  However, I did note one thing in your original post ... you said,
I pulled over asap, turned on leveling system, start jacks down, put jacks back up, shut off system, good for another 3-4 hours.....
  I don't know about other brands, but on the HWH computerized systems HWH has said to many of us that we should NEVER shut the system off manually ...and that if we do, and the jacks are not fully cycled, they can creep down while driving and set off the alarm just as you describe. The system will shut off on it's own when the retract cycle is complete, just as it does when the automatic extend cycle is complete.
 
You're correct... I stopped and did that twice on the first two times it happened but believe both first two times it was after we had been in campgraounds for an evening and the jacks had retracted in AM normally.... system had operated normal and automatically down for the previous evening and back up in AM... IF I recall correctly, it happened once each of those first two days.. then the third day was a longer one and it happened three times during that day but I didn't stop.. I set brake slightly, released it while driving and believe I also turned system on manually, hit "all up" a couple or few times, and the lights and alarm went off - for a couple / few hrs...
Heat theory Interesting because after arriving back in MN / WI I don't believe it happened on the last two days of driving -or - earlier this week during the 45 mi trip to dealer .... still don't believe something like that however should be allowed to happen ... has to be a corrective solution.... to prevent drivers heart attacks while friving on tight and steep roads if nothing else.... going to pursue with Kwikee if they'll respond...
 
.... going to pursue with Kwikee if they'll respond...

I don't think Kwikee is the company to contact about your jacks.  They don't know jacks. :-X  HWH is who you want to contact concerning your jacks.

I think afchap hit the nail on the head here.  I recommended that same solution to another guy in here recently who had shut his HWH system off manually instead of letting it turn off automatically.  It sure solved that same problem for me.  So the bottom line is, if you shut your HWH system down manually, you should expect to see a "Jacks Down" light on in your future.  It's the only reason that I know of why the "Jacks Down" light comes on.
 
We had a similar problem many years ago on Tiffin MH with HWH jacks.  This happenened a few hundred miles down the road from campground.  Tiffin asked if we manually tyrned off jacks (starting engine does same thing) when green light came on..which we did.  They explained the green light only indicates that the jacks are above the minimum clearance for moving but have not fully retracted.  They said when we restarted MH to re-engage the stow function and let the controls turn off the system.  We have followed this procedure and have had no further problems.  In the fully retracted position the jacks apparently have room to creep if that is what happens.
 
We've operated the coach in over 110 degree weather with no HWH jack issues, and like all of the other responders, we always let ours cycle off automatically.
 
Jacks are Hydraulic cylinders Thermal expansion is usually minimal in cylinders this small, however a bit of air in the cylinder for whatever reason will increase the effect a lot. Sounds like to me that the Jacks were not fully stowed before you drove away and they extended a bit for whatever reason. Maybe there is air in one of  them.

wayne
 
I'll ask dealer about checking for air in them..
I did find a brochure on the MH from when I bought it new last year.. It shows the leveling jacks as "Kwikee  Level Best" automatic self leveling system...
I then found the Kwikee Products Company web site and they do show the same - and the panel is the one I have on the MH....
Printed off the manual ..
Directions for Retracting the Levelers and the third(last) step in the process states,,,
" When all leveler legs retract to the travel position, the red "ALL UP" LED will turn green, and the pump will shup off. You can now turn off the power switch and the vehicle is ready to travel"
Based on that, I'm thinking I have followed those directions and what's happening is not supposed to.....
These supposedly have a 5 year warranty so seems like Winnebago should end up honoring whatever correction is appropriate...
The Kwikee number listed in their most current manual for "Questions for the Kwikee service department at 1-800-736-9961"  is a NON-WORKING number.....
The number listed for the company is 541-942-3888......... so far after 6 tries, no one ever answers....

So far, the Winnebago tech folks have previously responded with reasonable information replies.. guess I'll try them on this issue also.....
 
I did find a brochure on the MH from when I bought it new last year.. It shows the leveling jacks as "Kwikee  Level Best" automatic self leveling system...

Sorry WhiteEagle, I thought you had HWH jacks.  Kwikee does indeed make leveling jacks, I looked at them on their website.  The Kwikee Level Best brand are two-way hydraulic jacks which means the jack legs are raised and lifted hydraulically.  They can also move one jack at a time, versus only in pairs as HWH does.  They actually look like pretty nice jacks but nobody seems to know much about them.  Why don't they answer their phone? 
 
WhiteEagle said:
It shows the leveling jacks as "Kwikee  Level Best" automatic self leveling system...

Ignore all previous posts about HWH jacks then  :eek:

The Kwikee number ........ so far after 6 tries, no one ever answers....

This is a  common complaint about Kwikee going back for several months or maybe a year or more.  I think Kwikee's policy is now to only work directly with dealers and will not talk to the end-user.  Search the forum for Kwikee and you will have some interesting reading.

So far, the Winnebago tech folks have previously responded with reasonable information replies.. guess I'll try them on this issue also.....

They will help you out!
 
If I recall in the HWH manual it says that after you hit the store button and all the jack down lights go off, not to press the off button.  That way if there is any pressure increase while going down the road it will bleed off.  That sounds like what is occurring with pressing the store button multiple times.  Not familiar with the Kwikee brand but maybe a sensor is seeing a pressure increase and "thinking" a jack is extended.
 
Still working on it but Winnebago tech support came back quickly... with some good info at least..
Kwikee has now merged with Power Gear.  It is best to contact them directly at their email address of [email protected].
The leveling system warning lights are wires in a series.  When the lights go out the system is closed.  For the lights to come on while you are driving, the system is creating an open circuit.  We would tend to believe there is an intermittent problem with a bad connection or a leaking solenoid on a jack.
Suspect that's why Service line is not working and maybe why no one will answer their main phone.... Sorry example of customer service ......
I have sent Powergear the info by email and made a request for recommendations...
Have also called dealer that has my MH and asked that in the absence of anything firm between today / tomorrow, at least check all connections on the Kwikee level controller panel and the circuits where they can, the emergency brake switch, for something loose, and to check for air in hydraulic fluid, or one of them leaking.... they say they will....
Hopefully Powergear will come back with something...
 

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