Community Forums

woodlash · 03-15-2010, 12:09 PM

I have a 1993 Gulfstream Scenic Cruiser and I'm using it today for the first time since last fall. When I tried to move the slide, the pump motor started humming. It would not turn off. It finally tripped my shore power breaker. When I reset the breaker, It started humming again even with the switch off. It did the same thing again. This time, when I reset the breaker, it didn't hum or buzz may be the better word. So I tried moving the slide. It moved very slowly. It has always worked fine until today. It has two switches, one at the wall where we move the slide and one underneath at the pump/motor. Can anyone shed a bit of light on this problem? Even with the coach and chassis switch in the "store" position, it still has power to it. What's making it buzz? Do I have two bad swithces? Thanks in advance.

Kevin

EngineerMike · 03-15-2010, 12:38 PM

Kevin- don't know what brand of slide mechanism you have; could be PowerGear, or HWH or ???
Most of these setups use a low wattage switch to engage a solenoid that will pass the high amp level of the pump motor. On my HWH the pump runs maybe 70A on the usual high end w/a 125A momentary inrush. Solenoid contacts can & do arc, and occasionally they weld themselves together (at which point the solenoid needs replacing). Could be your problem. Not sure how that would translate to shore power breaker shutting down; I suspect that could be resolved with sufficient info on your rig's systems, so if you post what your charging/shore-power setup consists of, and some more on the slide machinery you will probably get more and better help.

woodlash · 03-15-2010, 12:51 PM

I read in the manual where the power doesn't come through the inverter. It either comes straight from the battery or shore power. I know the batterys were dead so I thought that the buzzing from the motor tripped the breaker. As you can see, I know very little about this but I'm usually a do-it-yourself guy. I removed the negetive battery cable from the pump motor. then when I went to reconnect it, it would arc. It's very confusing to me. Thanks. I'll try to get more info.

Kevin

DAN L · 03-16-2010, 02:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodlash

I have a 1993 Gulfstream Scenic Cruiser and I'm using it today for the first time since last fall. When I tried to move the slide, the pump motor started humming. It would not turn off. It finally tripped my shore power breaker. When I reset the breaker, It started humming again even with the switch off. It did the same thing again. This time, when I reset the breaker, it didn't hum or buzz may be the better word. So I tried moving the slide. It moved very slowly. It has always worked fine until today. It has two switches, one at the wall where we move the slide and one underneath at the pump/motor. Can anyone shed a bit of light on this problem? Even with the coach and chassis switch in the "store" position, it still has power to it. What's making it buzz? Do I have two bad swithces? Thanks in advance.

Kevin

if you have an hwh system, you must have good battery voltage to operate the jacks and slides, 12.5v or better. less voltage can cause many problems. i burnt a set of brushes in my hwh motor while learning this. the relays and solenoids may not return to resting position. i had to release the parking brake once to turn the slide motor off. it is best to run the engine while operating the hwh system for more voltage.

RV Mech Tech · 03-16-2010, 06:10 AM

Kevin - hello! new member here! - Gulf Stream usually uses Power Gear equipment and their website www.powergearus.com has excellent technical troublshooting information as well as manuals - HWH does as well - one thing you can try is to get another battery with booster cables and disconnect the coach battery(s) ( and the connection at the motor) and try the other battery - if you have one switch to control the slidout the motor will be a reversable motor so try the red cable on the terminal on the motor and the black to ground (motor case) and see what happens and then reverse the cables and see what happens- if you get a spark and the motor doesn't move then the motor may be defective - if you have two switches to control the slidout then put the red/positive on the battery cable terminal on the motor ONLY and the black to ground ONLY since it will not be a reversable motor- the reason I suggest this procedure is there may be an electronic control module in the control circuit ( they can cost upwards of $500.00 ) and if you disconnect and by-pass the coach system you can see if the motor is at fault and not damage the coach control system - if the motor is defective check to see what the replacement part is worth then check with any local motor repair shops for a repair price since this will be the cheaper way to go - this is a hydraulic/electric motor and easily repaired - also you can identify your system usually by the control pad for the slidout/jacks- it will have a part number and both Power Gear and HWH will have a picture guide as well even if the jack and slidout control pads are seperate as I have seen on some Gulf Stream products of those years- hope this helps!

woodlash · 03-16-2010, 01:13 PM

Thanks guys. My problem was the lack of voltage. After my batteries charged for a couple hours or so, everything worked fine. I have another question though:

How many DC amps should I be showing on my panel when plugged to shore power? I show 13 volts but low amps.

hamguy · 03-17-2010, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by woodlash

Thanks guys. My problem was the lack of voltage. After my batteries charged for a couple hours or so, everything worked fine. I have another question though:

How many DC amps should I be showing on my panel when plugged to shore power? I show 13 volts but low amps.

Display amps it totally dependent on the loads that are active at the time. What ever it reads is ok. Turn on all the lights and the current will rise.