John Stephens
Well-known member
Last year when the front cylinder blew out on my largest living room slide, I had my house mechanic rebuild all six cylinders for the front two slides, knowing that when one blows, the rest will usually follow. I am presently on my first trip after these repairs, and after extending and retracting the slide two times, it again is leaking fluid from both the middle of the coach as well as the outside end of the ram, and extending crooked, with the front end going too far and the rear not going far enough. The front end damaged my interior trim that holds the slide in place when extended, and the rear didn't drop to floor level. When I realized fluid was leaking, I decided to retract the slide and not use it for the rest of our month-long trip, figuring I would take it back to my house mechanic and ask him to make good on his work. I assume there is something wrong with the sync cylinder that caused the slide to extend crooked, more on one end that the other, and the leak is either the front cylinder blowing again from extra pressure, or a fitting blowing or coming loose because that end of the slide went too far out.
Our house was in the bullseye of Hurricane Ian in Cape Coral, FL. We have no power, water, cell, internet, or mail until further notice. We may not have power for one to two months because much of the grid has to be rebuilt. We were fortunate to be on the road when this happened, but I see no reason to go home until power is restored. My driveway has a 20 degree slope, so we can't park it there and use the fridge, and there is nowhere else to park it near the house. I have made reservations at a park in Lake City, FL for a month, hoping the power will be restored by then. If not, we'll stay longer.
We are traveling with three large dogs, so this coach is beginning to feel cramped without the use of our largest slide. I'm beginning to think it would be a good idea to have it repaired so we can use it for the rest of this longer than planned trip. Does anyone know of a reputable mechanic or company that can work on hydraulics anywhere close to I-75 between Knoxville, TN and Lake City, FL? Obviously, the cylinder(s) will have to be rebuilt again because new cylinders won't be available from HWH within a reasonable time frame.
Another question for anyone who may know: when speaking with a mobile mechanic in our current park, he said he heard that HWH is up for sale and has already closed or sold their facility in Georgia. I didn't know they had any satellite operations outside of Moscow, IA. Does anyone have any reliable information regarding HWH? I planned on driving to them next year to have this repair done right if it can't be done before then, so I don't want to make wasted plans. I know that when this problem happened a few weeks ago, I wrote them an email that hasn't been answered yet.
Thanks in advance to anyone who can provide me information on these questions.
Our house was in the bullseye of Hurricane Ian in Cape Coral, FL. We have no power, water, cell, internet, or mail until further notice. We may not have power for one to two months because much of the grid has to be rebuilt. We were fortunate to be on the road when this happened, but I see no reason to go home until power is restored. My driveway has a 20 degree slope, so we can't park it there and use the fridge, and there is nowhere else to park it near the house. I have made reservations at a park in Lake City, FL for a month, hoping the power will be restored by then. If not, we'll stay longer.
We are traveling with three large dogs, so this coach is beginning to feel cramped without the use of our largest slide. I'm beginning to think it would be a good idea to have it repaired so we can use it for the rest of this longer than planned trip. Does anyone know of a reputable mechanic or company that can work on hydraulics anywhere close to I-75 between Knoxville, TN and Lake City, FL? Obviously, the cylinder(s) will have to be rebuilt again because new cylinders won't be available from HWH within a reasonable time frame.
Another question for anyone who may know: when speaking with a mobile mechanic in our current park, he said he heard that HWH is up for sale and has already closed or sold their facility in Georgia. I didn't know they had any satellite operations outside of Moscow, IA. Does anyone have any reliable information regarding HWH? I planned on driving to them next year to have this repair done right if it can't be done before then, so I don't want to make wasted plans. I know that when this problem happened a few weeks ago, I wrote them an email that hasn't been answered yet.
Thanks in advance to anyone who can provide me information on these questions.