Rant on deploying/bringing in Slides

[twojayhawks]

Originally Posted by knightstorm

Notice they expect a level site before putting out the slides. What happens when the site is NOT level?

Your question is a good one and I wouldn't expect any mfg to come out and say just how level a site is required. Seems like in the last year we have been given some awful unlevel sites. If I saw a crooked reveal after pulling in I would ask for another site, if unavailable I wouldn't open FWS. Hopefully the lousy site is just a one nighter.

[Gonna_Wander]

Originally Posted by Smosher

KWilkins
To explain
what a reveal is the slide on our Newmar's are flush to the sides, there is a gap between the slide and the side. Instead of using a simple word as gap they chose to use reveal which has confused a bunch of us in the beginning. I have found that if I have a level site the gap up and down seem to be even. If the sides are even the top and bottom should be also. If not you can dump the air and check it then if not level it and check. Only the full wall will give you much trouble getting them equal. Hope this helps

Thanks Steve. Your explanation of the steps to go through for leveling make the most sense to me. I always wondered why Newmar would say to put the slides out without the jacks down because the jacks are what will level a coach if you are on an uneven site. If having the coach uneven is the thing that would most likely cause a bad reveal it would seem logical to use the jacks to level so the reveal would become even.

Now I get (I think) that you should level with the coach aired up "if" you are reasonably level and have an even reveal. If not, dump the air, level with jacks to hopefully create an even reveal, and then put the slides out.

Does that order of things sound right?

The one thing that is a bit confusing are a couple posts on this thread saying Newmar has said to "never" put the slides in or out with the jacks down. Can I ask how many of you routinely deploy or retract slides with the jacks down? What are you suppose to do if you can't get a level site and the reveal is uneven, and the only way to get it even is to level with the jacks?

[ptw]

What year and model coach is this? Not all models/years are the same. It is close to the procedure I use but nothing like what is in my manual. I have the hydraulic flat floor full wall slide. The dealer told me one procedure, two techs at Newmar each told me something different, my manual is very vague and Matt Miller told us it really didn't matter as long as the reveal was good at the Tampa show.

This is the procedure I am using until Newmar tells me something different. It has been working well. Perhaps I'll ask again in Sedalia this year.

Slides

Arrival
• Engine off
• Check Reveal
• Connect Electrical Cord to Shore Power
• FWS Slide out with Key off
• Jacks Down, Key in ACC position
• Passenger Slides out with Key off

Departure
• Passenger Slides In
• Jacks up, Key in ACC position
• Start Engine, Air Up
• Turn off Engine
• Retract FWS slide, Key in Off position
• Disconnect and store Shore Electric
• Check Slides have Retracted
• Start engine

Originally Posted by TravelnFolks

Hi Newmar Rv’ers. To add my 2 cents worth in the discussion regarding extending and retracting slideouts; I copied and pasted the instructions below from Newmar’s Owner’s Manual, pages 125-126.

Before Extending the Slideouts
1. Park the coach on a reasonably level campsite.
2. Leave the coach at ride-height with air in the air bags (if equipped with air
suspension) or on normal suspension (coaches without air suspension).
3. Plug the coach into shore power (if available).
4. For a full wall slideout, visually inspect the front vertical trim for adequate
clearance. The spacing should look even from top to bottom.
5. Verify that the path of the slideout is unobstructed and free from any surrounding
objects, both inside and outside of the coach.
6. Once the appropriate conditions are met, follow the operating instructions posted
in your coach to extend the slideouts.
7. Deploy the leveling jacks.

Before Retracting the Slideouts
1. Retract the leveling jacks.
2. Start the coach.
3. Allow the coach air suspension to fill and return to ride height (units without air suspension will return to normal suspension).
4. Turn the engine off.
5. Verify that the path of the slideout is unobstructed and free from any surrounding objects, both inside and outside of the coach. This includes any water or debris that may have collected on the topper awning.
6. Retract the slideouts.
7. Inspect all slideouts for complete retraction.
8. Unplug the coach from shore power when you are ready to depart.

Simply said: Arrival: Slideouts out, levelers down. Leaving: Levelers up, Slideouts in.

[NealC]

Newmar needs to install a placard on the wall that is a checklist for deploying/retracting the slides. Mail them to prior owners and have them install it. If I was Newmar I'd be disappointed to see all this confusion in the field and this has been non stop never ending and people are not clear. Everyone has their opinion, some minion in a local dealer/shop has their opinion. Newmar has their guidance. Contact your point of contact on your windshield and ask them to email the guidance for your coach.

Erica sent me the guidance for mine, I posted it in one of the other threads, have fun finding it. It was outlined above clearly and I concur AND it's common sense.

Park, with air on check the exterior/reveals and extend all slides.

Then LEVEL

This makes "COMMON" sense because you are also throwing torque arms out wide which if you leveled prior to doing this you stand a good chance of no longer being level. Anyone deployed their FWS and feel their coach lean in that direction? That slide is very heavy!

For getting ready to leave, retract jacks, air up, engine off, slides in, fire it up, pop a wheelee and take off for your next campground. You're not going home are you??

If in doubt, ask Newmar. Once they provide you guidance then you have proof of following the directive from them. Stop guessing, ask Newmar!

[ptw]

Thank you Neal. This is the first time I saw that write up. I was curious where it came from and what coaches it applies to. I asked Newmar several times in the first few months that I owned my coach and got different answers each time. The slide placard on the wall in my coach and the information in my manual say nothing about jacks or airing up. Sorry if I missed a previous thread explaining this.

[saddlesore]

Originally Posted by 89sandman

I thought Newmar made only the finest quality products

Like most if not all "Price/Point" RV mass producers, the components are purchased from lowest bidder.....

[BBelanger]

FWIW
My coach, maybe not yours.
Air up, then slides in
Air up, then slides out

Jacks , no jacks, doesn't matter.
But... if you put the jacks down before slides, it lets all the air out, so now you have jacks down and have to wait to air up again before slides out. Dumb. Don't ask how I know.

My coach slides were aligned with coach aired up.
I was instructed at factory pickup by a guy who knows.
I doubt they did mine differently than the rest, but maybe.

Again, my coach.

Bill

[reubenray]

Originally Posted by fegans02

Or as our tech told us - "slides don't move with jacks on the ground"

I have only done this a few times (5 nights total), but each time my jacks have been down to get the best reveal before I let the slides out. I do the reverse when I get ready to leave. My tech told me to make to do the exact reverse when bringing in the slides that I did to let the slides out.

[gimlimike]

Originally Posted by Dutch Star Don

Yes, you will always worry about deploying slides, but you cant let it make you crazy. Remember, Newmar has to have a procedure for the guy who takes out a level and measures the campsite to the guy who will deploy slides with one wheel hanging off of a cliff......obviously an exaggeration, but hopefully you get the point. There procedure has to be as close to idiot proof as possible.

Sometimes, making a procedure idiot proof skips over some pretty common sense things that work well too! I've owned my coach for 3.5 years and have about 35K on it with hundreds of nights camping. Since we typically don't stay anywhere more than 2-3 nights, that's a lot of opening and closing the slides. (My coach doesn't have the STAR chassis).

I can simply look at a campsite and tell if it's going to be an issue. If I'm not sure, I'll get out and look at the reveals. If there okay, I'll put out the slides, dump and level. If one is tight, I'll either move the motor home a little or level and then check the reveal again.

To me, there is no perfect procedure for putting out the slides. Simple common sense is the best method. The more you use the coach, the easier it will be to recognize what you need to do in any particular campsite.

In the 3.5 years I've had the coach, I had one occasion (crummy and last site left) that the reveal wouldn't open up. I had to place a ramp under the left front wheel to open up the reveal. This was the most extreme step I ever took to get the coach level.

Don, what is a reveal ? Thanks

[sbahrns]

FWIW I might as well join the group with my comments. we have a Ventana 4041, very similar to what the OP has. We took delivery at the factory and every day the tech would make me repeat after him that slides should always be deployed or retracted when aired up and the jacks retracted. So you should check reveal then deploy slides with the coach aired up, then level with jacks.

His explanation was that even if the coach is not quite level the slide will remain square with the frame and deploy without issue. If you level first there is a possibility that some frame twist could be introduced that would cause the slide to bind. I'm not sure how the hydraulic slides work which may be different.

We have had the Ventana for two years and have 21,000 miles on it and have had 0 problems deploying or retracting the slides. We did have a slide controller go bad but that had nothing to do with leveling.

[NealC]

Click here to read the info Erica sent me for my VENTANA. I put that in all caps as obviously procedures may vary between coaches hence the need for you to get the guidance for your coach from Newmar, not your dealer.

[Dutch Star Don]

"gimlimike"

REVEAL.....When you stand outside your coach, facing your slide, you'll see a vertical gap on both sides of the slide between the main part of the motor home (body) and the slide. That is the REVEAL......hence, "revealing" a gap between the slide and body. Theoretically, when your coach came from the factory, that gap was identical at both ends of the slide. The slide room was built square and the opening was built square, so the slide should sit centered in the opening.

In an out of level situation, your motor home can tweak a little changing the body opening so that it's no longer square. If it's out of square, the square slide may not pass through the opening without catching, usually an upper corner. When it catches, it can tear off trim and do some damage. Also, when the coach is really low in the front or the rear, the slide will want to "walk" (move) toward the low end of the coach. Nothing really holds the slide from moving forward or back a little.

Here is why Newmar has this issue. Next time you're at an RV park, take a look at other brands when their slides are in. Many, you'll never see the gap between the slide and motor home body (reveal). Why.....because they cover that opening with a large piece of flat trim, usually about 2"-3" wide. Since they cover theirs, they can allow the gap (reveal) between the body and slide to be almost an inch or more, because no one will ever see it. Since their gap is so big, there are typically no issues when a slide moves a little or is deployed when the body is tweaked. Even though this is easier to make fit, Newmar makes their coaches look nicer and more aerodynamic because their is no bulky molding.

A lot of your really high end coaches like Newell, actually have rounded corners on their slides that fit perfectly into the opening every time, but your obviously paying a lot more for that perfection.

[JMH]

So, what newmar has said consistently is "make sure your slide is square to the opening and the coach is level". you can do this by examining the revel.

I think everyone here on the forum agrees with this.

What everyone argues about is how do you get your coach in this condition.

Don, I feel your pain .

[Lault]

What travelenfolks wrote from the manual is the same procedure foe Entegra, except for the term Reveal, What is with that wording? Also never saw the gaps change at a unlevel camp ground between slides and body, but we do have lots of body flex.