Community Forums

wagonmaster2 · 11-06-2015, 02:44 PM

I've read several threads where the poster was concerned about the terrible noise the FWS makes going in/out and sometimes the concern was warranted and other times was told the noise was normal.
Ours has always made more noise than I've ever heard on any other of my previous coaches so was wondering how and when to be concerned with the pops and cracks during operation.

CapuTech · 11-06-2015, 03:30 PM

The only time our FWS makes any significant noise is when it moves down the ramp on the way out. On ours, that is due to a slight drop from the tile to the metal roller guides over the wood ramp. Coming in is no problem.

We don't have any other noise than the whrrr of the motors. The kitchen and bedroom slide sound just the same.

I'd only expect pop/cracks if the slide is not perfectly aligned while moving. This is why it's important to follow the procedure of only moving the FWS while aired up.

srrobe · 11-06-2015, 05:01 PM

We get a few squeaks going out but no cracks. Just as a thought......have you looked under the slide with it partially extended? Our ramp had dust and several shall wood chips left over from construction that caused some noise. Cleaned and solved the problem. Also our slide when transitioning to the ramp did sound a little unnerving but the metal shims cured that as well. The FWS has always worked perfectly.

PDR John · 11-06-2015, 06:54 PM

Mine has always made noise, I'd only worry if it stops now.

wagonmaster2 · 11-06-2015, 08:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by srrobe

We get a few squeaks going out but no cracks. Just as a thought......have you looked under the slide with it partially extended? Our ramp had dust and several shall wood chips left over from construction that caused some noise. Cleaned and solved the problem. Also our slide when transitioning to the ramp did sound a little unnerving but the metal shims cured that as well. The FWS has always worked perfectly.

Are you looking under the slide from inside the coach or from outside? I've watched the rollers come up on the floor protector pads or drop off but never thought about watching anything else.

srrobe · 11-07-2015, 02:31 AM

From the outside. Extend your FWS and stop before the rollers hit the ramp. You can see under the slide. I used a compressor to blow off the ramp from the inside.

newmarpusher · 11-07-2015, 03:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CapuTech

The only time our FWS makes any significant noise is when it moves down the ramp on the way out. On ours, that is due to a slight drop from the tile to the metal roller guides over the wood ramp. Coming in is no problem.

We don't have any other noise than the whrrr of the motors. The kitchen and bedroom slide sound just the same.

I'd only expect pop/cracks if the slide is not perfectly aligned while moving. This is why it's important to follow the procedure of only moving the FWS while aired up.

I'd agree with that assessment. The only time mine made a disturbing noise, I wasn't level and aired up on retraction. Tore the rubber molding off the upper side of the FWS.

Bill0828 · 11-08-2015, 07:16 PM

One possible source for noise on the movement of the slide can be attributed to the slide out motor mounting bolts. Both my '04 KountryStar and our recently acquired '09 Dutch Aire had loose mounting bolts on all the motor mounting points. It's an item that is often overlooked. Those motors create a good amount of torque when they activate. If the bolts are loose then there may be a "popping" sound or other noise that is easily checked and corrected. There are usually 4, 9/16 bolts per motor. It's well worth taking a look at or having them checked by a qualified tech. If the bolts loosen up far enough the motor can twist and create bigger problems.

Just a maintenance item worth checking.

zrobotman · 11-09-2015, 06:30 PM

If you are in a Newmar the slide motors work with torque bushings on each side of each motor. My slide was making a lot of noise until the loose torque bushing actually fell out. Have your mechanic check the bushings on all motors. They are tightened to about 180 ft/lbs. This fix made a world of difference on my RV

hfritsche · 12-07-2015, 07:39 AM

From a previous post...
This is why it's important to follow the procedure of only moving the FWS while aired up.
First, I'm not sure what FWS means, but I think they're talking about the drivers-side living room slide. That said, "while aired up" puzzles me. My procedure has always been to extend and retract my slides only after I have leveled, which means the air bags are dumped. What am I not understanding here?

Harold

Norm Mac · 12-07-2015, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hfritsche

From a previous post...
This is why it's important to follow the procedure of only moving the FWS while aired up.
First, I'm not sure what FWS means, but I think they're talking about the drivers-side living room slide. That said, "while aired up" puzzles me. My procedure has always been to extend and retract my slides only after I have leveled, which means the air bags are dumped. What am I not understanding here?

Harold

FWS means Full Wall Slide (yes, the drivers side living room slide).

Newmar recommends that this slide be extended and retracted while the vehicle is at normal ride height (not air dumped, not on levelers). however, you may need to use your jacks on occasion if the "reveal" is bad.

What is a reveal? This is the gap between the slideout and the coach when retracted. Look at both the front and rear of the slide.

This is how we do it....
We arrive at the campsite, I get out and connect water and electric and I look at the "reveal" to make sure that there is some space between the slideout and the coach. 90% of the time the gap is perfect.
We then extend the slides and then set the leveling jacks.
Once in a while the reveal is too tight (usually at the top in the front). You can then level the coach first and see if the gap improves. If it does improve, you can now put the slides out.

It is really all about making sure you have a reasonable gap on the front and rear of that slide before moving it out.

When it is time to move it in, make sure you use the same method as when it went out. If you were on air when out, it should be on air coming in.

It sounds technical and difficult but it is super easy and significantly reduces the chance of damage from bad slideout alignment usually caused by an unlevel campsight.

newmarpusher · 12-07-2015, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norm Mac

FWS means Full Wall Slide (yes, the drivers side living room slide).

Newmar recommends that this slide be extended and retracted while the vehicle is at normal ride height (not air dumped, not on levelers). however, you may need to use your jacks on occasion if the "reveal" is bad.

What is a reveal? This is the gap between the slideout and the coach when retracted. Look at both the front and rear of the slide.

This is how we do it....
We arrive at the campsite, I get out and connect water and electric and I look at the "reveal" to make sure that there is some space between the slideout and the coach. 90% of the time the gap is perfect.
We then extend the slides and then set the leveling jacks.
Once in a while the reveal is too tight (usually at the top in the front). You can then level the coach first and see if the gap improves. If it does improve, you can now put the slides out.

It is really all about making sure you have a reasonable gap on the front and rear of that slide before moving it out.

When it is time to move it in, make sure you use the same method as when it went out. If you were on air when out, it should be on air coming in.

It sounds technical and difficult but it is super easy and significantly reduces the chance of damage from bad slideout alignment usually caused by an unlevel campsight.

Couldn't have said it better myself, excellent summary!

hfritsche · 12-08-2015, 07:06 AM

Thanks for the response Norm.

It sounds like the preferred method is to extend the slide while "aired up". Why is that? It would seem that level is always better. Could it be that the leveling process may introduce some frame twist which is inherently not there while the air bags are inflated? That would make sense.

How far out of level are you willing to accept before you level first? Does this only apply to the full-wall slide, or to the others as well?

Please know that I appreciate you sharing your knowledge and I'm not trying to argue with you. I just want to understand.

newmarpusher · 12-08-2015, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hfritsche

Thanks for the response Norm.

It sounds like the preferred method is to extend the slide while "aired up". Why is that? It would seem that level is always better. Could it be that the leveling process may introduce some frame twist which is inherently not there while the air bags are inflated? That would make sense.

How far out of level are you willing to accept before you level first? Does this only apply to the full-wall slide, or to the others as well?

Please know that I appreciate you sharing your knowledge and I'm not trying to argue with you. I just want to understand.

Newmar claims that the slide box and the hole in the side of the MH have the best chance of being not twisted when aired up since that is how they were originally installed.

These procedures only seem to apply to the FWS in my experience. The smaller slides seem to be tolerant of being deployed level/aired up or not.