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Hembrough · 08-23-2021, 07:12 PM

Recently purchased a 2005 PA and the Atwood levelegs system has been working fine. Went out yesterday to raise the front end to change plugs and wires and the system would not respond. The control panel turns on and light up like normal but will not do anything when I push any buttons. When I push ext all or auto nothing happens. Has anyone had a problem like this? Thanks in advance!

jim58 · 08-23-2021, 07:19 PM

I have a 2005 as well with the Atwoods. Are you talking electric Levelegs?

Jim58

Hembrough · 08-23-2021, 07:59 PM

Yes

mrboyer · 08-24-2021, 06:02 AM

Save your money for repair parts and replace with HWH. Wish I had before replacing 4 power control boards and 1 whole jack.

rffowler55 · 08-24-2021, 06:31 AM

My Atwood control unit will do the same and I have had good luck turning off the coach, releasing the emergency brake, then reengaging the emergency brake and restarting the coach and it will normally start working. I have also have needed to turn the controller on and off several times before it would start working. Have never been able to identify what is causing the issue but the above has worked so far. I would imagine our control unit is approaching it's terminal end.

BransonM · 08-24-2021, 07:18 AM

You might try taking the face of the control panel off and cleaning the button contacts. It worked for me

fatsurf · 08-25-2021, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BransonM

You might try taking the face of the control panel off and cleaning the button contacts. It worked for me

My 2007 has the same issue. Sometimes have to play with the buttons. Are you in park with parking brake engaged and the engine running?

trx430ex · 08-25-2021, 07:35 PM

Have run into the same things, and to me it seems like poorly written firmware that does not like odd moves. Like the system on, then just turn the key off, it does not like that.

Have found that if you stick to strict procedures, like.

Start rig, turn unit on, extend/retract, then turn legs off, then turn rig key off, everything works fine.

It is "procedure", in each step, and doing each step in the exact same order that makes the unit work fine.

The firmware freaks out like an old Windows 95 rig if you just cut it off at the legs, (no pun intended) and turn the key off first.

Since applying these procedures, the system has worked fine 15 plus times.

I believe the defective firmware needs to be "sandboxed' for it's own protection, Other than that it can not find "0" and reset to default.

Upon Restart.

Hembrough · 08-25-2021, 08:08 PM

Thanks for the replies guys. Went out yesterday and tried the levelers and they worked perfectly. I have no idea why but I’m not complaining!!

DGBPokes · 08-25-2021, 08:12 PM

Start saving your bucks. When it finally gives up the ghost, replace it with HWH. As said above, don’t waste your money trying to fix it.
Not only did I pay to fix it several times, I also paid to replace it with a new Atwood system (right before they obsoleted them). Call me stupid.

trx430ex · 08-26-2021, 07:26 PM

There is also a emergency up "all jacks" trick I suggest when all else fails.

Rig running
E Brake on
All, green lights on

But one jack not coming up flashing red.

Put foot on brake, Shift trans to Drive, "Do not move!", and the unit will go into emergency all legs up mode. Wait for all jacks to get to the full up position. Then put rig back in park.

Turn off leg control
Turn off key.

PS
Also all jack motors have 9/16 nut on the bottom of every motor, that can be retracted with a cordless impact.

Just like the old manual jacks you hated in lesser rigs.

Even if the entire system fails, one can retract/extend all jacks with a cordless impact & a 9/16 socket.

MEC57 · 08-31-2021, 02:08 PM

Hembrough, before you go crazy with this, I have had intermittent issues with the same system in a 2006 Southwind. I am happy to save you some grief and frustration. Two simple things you need to do first:

1. Look for the chassis grounding lug underneath the front of the coach. If you follow the negative cables from the battery, it's easy to find. Also easy to get at from underneath the front.

Before doing anything, disconnect the negative terminal from the battery. Then get to that ground bolt, remove it, get a small drill-attachable wire brush wheel and clean the terminals and frame where the bolt goes in down to clean metal. If the bolt is rusted, just spend $2 and get a new one. Then replace the lugs, washers and bolt exactly as you removed them and coat the whole thing with any silicone grease.

The reason for this is that the Atwood controller requires 13 volts to activate. When you turn on the panel, it needs to see that the RV is in park, that the e-brake is on and that there is 13 volts at the panel. I had this exact issue caused by a on old, corroded grounding lug. Once cleaned and coated, all problems stopped.

2. If your computer controller is under the dash on the left kick panel, it is right below a wiring access hole for the driver side view mirror. If that mirror is not properly sealed (silicone all around where it mounts to the coach except for the drain slot at the bottom of the mirror which needs to remain clear), it will allow water to follow the mirror electrical wires into the cab which will drip right into the Atwood computer. Then there is another issue which can also be addressed, but best to avoid it by keeping the water out.

I have WAY more information to share about this Atwood journey and some good resources as well. Replacing the system, if properly maintained, is just an unnecessary and large expense.

Both of these issues can be easily and cheaply fixed. Send me a PM if you want more details.

trx430ex · 09-06-2021, 08:09 PM

Had the same ground issues on the Tioga, but affected other things.

Amazing what one can discover just crawling underneath.

Also look for loose cables just flapping in the wind and not pull tied down, they can create havoc destroying their connections.

Secure all cables, no cable should be aloud to flop around on the road.