Hydralic Jacks wont go down

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wilcoxks

Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2010
Posts
19
We took our RV on vacation in February and everything worked fine.  It sat until a couple weeks ago.  We took it to the lake and the Hydralic Jacks wouldn't go down.  Anyone have any ideas?
 
Do you have power to them?  Check fuse.  Mine is right on the controller box.  I know my hydraulic pump was changed once by previous owner.  Not sure if there is a relay or not for that.  Fuse. Relay. Pump. Or wires. 


If you have a meter you can test the voltage at the connection to the pump.  See if it is getting juice.

That's the first thing I would try. 

 
when you hit the button do you here sound? if so the electric if working. On my Bounder the house battries have to have a full charge to pull the solenoids in
 
Make sure the ignition key is off, the brake is set and the transmission in Park. Many rigs have an interlock to prevent the jacks from going down unless some or all of those conditions are met.
 
Gary RV Roamer said:
Make sure the ignition key is off,

My Bounder has an interlock that won't let the jacks (or the slide, for that matter) operate without the ignition ON, preferably running, though the emergency brake must be on, and transmission in PARK.
 
When we push the down button the red light comes on and when you push the lever to engage the jack you can hear a click but nothing happens.
 
wilcoxks said:
When we push the down button the red light comes on and when you push the lever to engage the jack you can hear a click but nothing happens.
Sounds like the pump motor might be bad.  Sometimes DC motors stop on a dirty or defective segment on the commutator or have worn brushes and won't start.  Try tapping on the motor with a hammer or heavy-ish tool while someone hits the engage lever.
 
I guess all unit's interlocks are different.  My 2010 Allegro has to have the engine running and parking brake engaged for them to etxtend.  I even found out that if I shut the engine off during the retract, they stop retracting!  When it's cold out, it takes a real long time for them to get up to "travel mode".  I have to let the rig sit idling till they get all the way up.  Almost went down the road with the jacks partially extended.  It's the same for my slides.  I have to crank up the engine to run the slides in or out.

I hope the OP got his fixed!

Gordon
 
[quote author=Gordon Groff ]
I guess all unit's interlocks are different. 
[/quote]

Gordon, my old Bounder is interlocked very similar to yours.  I have extra battery capacity, so I only need to have the ignition on, but don't require the engine to actually be running.  My slide does not require the ignition to be on, but does require the transmission and parking break interlock.

Maybe NOT so similar after all ;D :-\
 
After checking everything we thought might be the problem and replacing 3 parts we finally discovered it was a bad battery cable, not letting the batteries get a full charge and so the jacks wouldn't operate.  As soon as my husband cleaned the cable (soaked it in baking soda and water) to get all the corrosion off and then put it back on everything worked fine ;-)
 
I blew a fuse once and they wouldnt go UP while dry camping! I have carried a drill with the correct size socket ever since to manually raise or lower them in case of problems...
 
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