RV Leveling Jacks Inspection and Maintenance
Dave SolbergIt’s important to regularly inspect RV leveling jacks to ensure your Lippert slide room is in proper condition for use on any kind of roadtrip, whether you’ll be drydocking for days at a time or making a quick pit stop for the night. If you know all the components of your hydraulic slide room system are fully functional and well maintained, you can rest easier and get more bang for your buck.
While there’s not much to do in the way of maintenance (Lippert sliders are less stressful to care for than most), there are certainly things you can look for prior to hitting the road. To help you complete a thorough inspection, expert Dave Solberg walks you through his checklist for a hydraulic slide room system. He explains why each item is essential, and tells you what you should do if you find an issue with any of the components. As always, know before you go; save yourself the headache!
I have a 2005 fleetwood american tradition motor home i was getting ready for a short trip pushed the travel button on the panel jacks came up but then it started beeping and showing a fault and noticed one of my jack didn’t retract all the way it is down about 3 inches would like to know what to look for to repair thanks mark
Hello Mark,
Thank you for contacting us.
It depends on the system but most of the time there is an internal issue with the jack if it can’t retract all of the way. If you have a hydraulic system there could be an issue with the fluid, valve or an air pocket in the system. You can try to run them all back out and back in a few times and see if it goes up higher each time. If it does it could just be air in the system working out. If it stops at the same point every time there is most likely an internal issue with the jack. The valve to retract could be stopping premature but often when this happens the jacks won’t stop at the exact same spot every time.
If you have any other concerns, please contact us at 1-855-706-3536, or chat with us on our site.
We greatly appreciate your business!
Sincerely,
Sarah
RV Repair Club Video Membership
I have a 1987 itasca winnebago and the jack buttons the lights on the panel and the light on the dash have not worked since I drove it away I have charged both batteries and changed the fuse. No life. Is there a manual way to lower them?
Hello Victoria,
Here’s what the experts had to say about your question:
There should be a way to manually lower them based on what type of leveling system it is using. If you have a hydraulic system then manual operation will be on the hydraulic pump itself. There are valves that need to be engaged while manually operating the pump so it knows where to push or pull. The pump usually has a port on it to attach a drill bit so a drill can operate the motor. If you have an electronic system, the manual override will be on each jack head separately. Again you will have to use a drill on an attachment at the top of the motor. There are many different systems out there but there should be a way to manually operate them if needed. Since you have no power to the control panel I would make sure to check the connections to the panel itself. A lot of times the wire harness is the issue. On some systems there is a control board behind the operating panel with it’s own fuses as well so make sure to check for this too.
Sincerely,
Dan
RV Repair Club Technical Expert
My 2010 Fleetwood encounter hydraulic stabilizers don’t work. The board shows low voltage
Thank you
What’s the deal? I pay for membership and then you put an advertisement, which I am forced to watch, at the beginning???? Come on man!
Hello Craig!
This is one of our many free videos that we offer to anyone, with or without a membership. In order for these videos to stay free, they do have an ad before you watch. If you’d like to view the videos that are with your membership, please click on Menu from the main page, then click on “Premium” videos. They will not have ads on them as they are paid for with your membership.
Thank you!
Jessica
RV Repair Club Video Membership
I bought a 94 Gulfstream this summer. 34 feet. 3 levelers were working when I got it.. Now I have power to the solenoid, but I get no response from moving the levers under the driver seat. Any thoughts?
Gary,
If you have power to the solenoids but nothing is running it could be the pump. There could be a bad fuse, low battery or bad connection. If the pump does run but nothing is moving then it is the solenoid valve that would be the issue. If things start to move but stop then there could be an issue with the valve still, the fluid or the internal parts of the legs themselves. Really the best thing to do is trace the voltage and test each component one at a time and see which is causing the operation to fail. Typically it is either the pump or the solenoid valve not working properly.
Sincerely,
Dan
RV Repair Club Technical Expert
My Jacks don’t work ,lights work on panel,I added a small amount of transmission fluid, still nothing.
Hello Robert,
To provide more specific troubleshooting information we need the make, model, and year of your rig as well as the jacks. If you added fluid then I believe they are hydraulic. Do you get any noise from the motor trying to work? The most common hydraulic jacks are HWH and Power Gear unless it’s newer and could be a Lippert Components Inc (LCI) system?
Thanks,
David
RV Repair Club Video Membership
We’d love to have you be a part of our community. We are convinced you will enjoy the benefits of becoming a member and having access to the best instructional how to videos and professional tips. We would like to offer you a special promotion for your first year membership.
https://go.rvrepairclub.com/C12157
My neighbor has a travel trailer and the leveling jacks on one side continues to shorten with time. Also the controls often don’t do anything when buttons are pushed. Power is there to the controls. Video doesnt play but a few seconds at a time with a minute break between the few seconds.