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trode · 12-03-2012, 09:36 AM

Have posted here before about our recently acquired 2004 Seabreeze (1341 Ford Chassis). Just completed a big, for us, trip and encountered a few issues. Trip was 1,300 miles roundtrip to Florida from NC. We spent trip down on hwy 17 to SC, then interstate, home was all interstate. Except for a few miles in Jacksonville Fl, southern stretch of SC and some sections of NC was a smooth trip. The condition of some sections of the road are disgraceful, I thought the MH would fall apart in some sections, wonder if the addition of the shocks I keep reading about would help significantly there? It is a joy to drive on smooth highways but a bear on those broken choppy roads. The absolute worst was the entrance to the SC visitor center and rest area on I-95 north. WOW, thought the cabinets would fall on my head!

Also first trip towing TOAD, I bought a 2008 Malibu set up with Blue ox bar and worked great. Amazingly had ZERO impact on handling and virtually no impact on gas mileage.

Problem I am writing about it the drivers side slide out, this model has dinette and sofa on that slide. When I stopped at the first rest area and did walk around I saw that the bottom was open about 1/2 inch. I accused the co-pilot of not closing it completely and when she pushed the button it completely closed, no problem. A few hours later at fuel stop I did walkaround while fueling and, surprisingly the slide was open about 1/2 inch again! My last travel trailer had bars the were installed to avoid unwanted movement of slide, but this came with no such thing and prior owners made no mention of this. One thing to note is that on all prior short trips the MH just contained us. On this trip the couch and dinette were occupied by grandkids and kids, can't help but wonder, but seems unlikely this additional weight would be the issue.

Hoping someone knows what to look for here, do I need some kind of locking mechanism to avoid this from continuing?

DaveG39 · 12-03-2012, 09:39 AM

Look on the motor that drives the slide.There should be a flat blade lever on the end. that is a brake shat should be engaged.sometimes when putting things in the storage bay the lock lever gets hit and unlocks.

Belgian · 12-03-2012, 02:04 PM

Our 2004 Dolphin does the same thing. It has never gone any further than 1/2 inch. I don't worry about it.

tropical36 · 12-04-2012, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Belgian

Our 2004 Dolphin does the same thing. It has never gone any further than 1/2 inch. I don't worry about it.

It shouldn't move at all, and like said, if it's a power gear or like electric motor, it most likely has a lever on the back that's disengaged, thereby releasing the electric brake. This would be required for manual operation of the slide in case of failure, but not for normal operation.

Clayobx · 12-04-2012, 09:08 AM

Yeah, I would worry about it. As mentioned the slide is not locking properly. Contact the manufacturer they will most likely send you a PDF of the slide motors. Some units now are programmed. I know that stretch of I 95 going through SC. Certain counties or state government should be forced to update the pavement. It is a safety hazard especially with 18 wheelers running 75 or 85 mph past you. Koni shocks would most likely help. Google Henderson Drive Line in Oregon. Talk with John, on our past coach his advice and product upgrades made all the difference in comfort and safety. Good luck.

Submustang · 12-04-2012, 03:48 PM

If you engage the lock on the motor do you have to remember to unlock it before you run the slide out?

Richard S. · 12-04-2012, 04:30 PM

No it will unlock when you power it out and lock when you power it in and turn off the power.

Walter5555 · 12-18-2012, 11:51 PM

I was on a trip a few years ago and when we parked for the night we let the slide out but in the morning when we were bringing it in we heard some noise and the slide would not go in or out, it seemed that the pins were sheared off.

I took it to a trailer repair shop where they fixed it.
If any place knows about slide outs it's a fifth wheel repair shop.

Just a thought.

lyle4940 · 01-23-2013, 02:46 PM

I am having the same trouble with my living room slide. I understand abour re-setting the motor brake but where is the motor located?
Thanks in advance
Lyle

wa8yxm · 01-23-2013, 04:28 PM

I agree with the electric brake override lever set to "Release" (The flat blade like lever) as someone else said, this brake is normally released by an electromagnet when you fire up the motor, So you should leave it "On" far as that lever is concerned.

You should also have some kind of secondary slide lock, straps that hook to a ring somewhere, or a rod that goes between the slide out and the wall or some such.

This will make sure it goes no farther than what you see.

If it continues... Have someone check slide alignment.

trode · 01-23-2013, 06:04 PM

I understand what is being said here about a lock, but I too do not know where to look for it. I have been underneath but can not find where the motor is accessible.

tropical36 · 01-23-2013, 06:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by trode

I understand what is being said here about a lock, but I too do not know where to look for it. I have been underneath but can not find where the motor is accessible.

Identifying your coach is sure to bring out someone who has one like it and good that you did so. On my rig, it's in the first basement bay from the front, driver's side. It's very important for everyone to know where and how to crank your slide in manually in an emergency and again the best place for a trial run is in one's driveway. In my case, it couldn't be any easier and even changing out the whole power gear ass'y is a breeze. Just unfortunate that the part is so expensive.

wa8yxm · 01-23-2013, 06:51 PM

If it is a power gear system take a look at one of the two long toothed rails. now where it enters the MH you should see a gear and a square, yes, square, shaft, follow that shaft and you will see a transmission on it's other end, On the other side of the tranny (in most cases) is the shaft to the other rail.. (Exception,, Some units the transmission is on the end and a rail is in the middle).

The motor is attached to the transmission, the brake lever is on the other end of the motor.. There may be a "portal" under the motor to a compartment in the basement. Or you may be able to get to it directly.

WSRG · 01-23-2013, 08:34 PM

You may NOT have a problem. If you notice that when you put the slide in for travel, the last few inches of movement as the slide closes, the floor of the slide moves up about 1 1/2 to 2 inches. The extra weight of people sitting on the sofa and at the table WILL cause the bottom of the slide to move out from the side of the MH. If the side doesn't move out with nobody sitting on the sofa or at the table during a trip then...no problem.

Bill