Hydraulic Issues Winnebago Adventurer

[4 Barrel]

2001 Winnebago Adventurer 35 U. We having issues with the drivers side jack retracting. Have put 3 quarts of the special fluid. There appears to be oil around the hatch were the butane tank is. All the rest of the Jack’s work well but the last time I had them down I had to disconnect the line at the unit and use a jack to help it come in up. I have sprayed all the jacks and springs and it’s in service now and they can’t find the leak. Anyone else had issues with this and how did you find the leak. There is no oil where it’s parked under the cover. Thanks in advance for an help

4 barrel

[FIRE UP]

Originally Posted by 4 Barrel

2001 Winnebago Adventurer 35 U. We having issues with the drivers side jack retracting. Have put 3 quarts of the special fluid. There appears to be oil around the hatch were the butane tank is. All the rest of the Jack’s work well but the last time I had them down I had to disconnect the line at the unit and use a jack to help it come in up. I have sprayed all the jacks and springs and it’s in service now and they can’t find the leak. Anyone else had issues with this and how did you find the leak. There is no oil where it’s parked under the cover. Thanks in advance for an help

4 barrel

Well,
I don't know if I can help much but, there's some things that need to be, well, sort-a cleared up first.

1. "Drivers side Jack".
WHICH drivers side jack, the front or the rear?

2. "Have put 3 quarts of *special* fluid".
WHAT kind of "special" fluid? Did you use HWH specific fluid or, did you put some ATF or, hydraulic jack oil, or Hydraulic oil used in tractors, what?

3. "3 quarts" is A TON OF OIL to be adding to an HWH system if, yours is an HWH. Heck, even if it's not, and it's a Power Gear or any other brand, a need for that amount would surely indicate a leak SOMEWHERE! And, while I'm certainly no expert, needing three quarts of oil for any jack system I would think, that the system would cavitate due to lack of sufficient oil to send to all the lines and jacks, to operate correctly, just a thought.

4. "Oil around the *hatch* where the butane tank is.
Not exactly sure what you mean by "around the hatch"? On a compartment floor, framing, all over the propane tank, what?

5. You state all the jacks worked well in a previous use but, the last time you went to use them, you had to disconnect "A line" at the "unit" to get "it" to come up.

Well, first off, you don't say much about what model or brand of jack system you have but, if it's an HWH, there should be FOUR jacks, one for each corner. And, being that there are FOUR, there will be FOUR hydraulic lines, one from each jack, back to the pump/reservoir. By disconnecting ONE line, you might get ONE JACK to retract but, not the others. And, there's an easier way to help a jack retract. And that is to loosen the valve control nut or, T-handle on the solenoid end, of the jack in question.

Finally, you state "it's in service now" and they can't find a leak. Does "in service" mean all four jacks are extending and retracting without any help or pressure relief? IF so, that would indicate all solenoids are acting as designed. If so, then it's rather hard to find any issues with a system that is working *correctly*. Hope you get it straightened all out.
Scott

[Winemaker2]

4 Barrel
I've had / have HWH systems and they provide very good troubleshooting guides online. Look them up and run through the steps to help identify your problem.
I was a bit confused by your original post and basically ignored it.
Butane? (Ptopane?) And drivers side? I had an Adventurer so have some familiarity but I dont think there are any MHs made with propane bays on driver side?
Disconnecting hose at jack is one way to ID where the problem is. If the jack was still hard to retract with hose off the jack IS a /the problem and needs to be rebuilt or replaced before attempting to find out if there are any additional problems.
Search threads to find AZPete as he is very knowledgeable and helpful re HWH issues... but best to do some homework and be clear with your explanations to get good advice. JMHO

[stew1]

I had one also would not retract replaced the springs fixed it

[Cooperhawk]

Originally Posted by stew1

I had one also would not retract replaced the springs fixed it

That will work sometimes but we've done that and still had to have the jack rebuilt. HWH will do it but they are usually backed up. Great folks, just too much work to keep up with.


I have on two occasions found shops locally that will rebuild them for me. You need to pop them out and take them there. It usually takes a couple of days and runs somewhere around $300.00. Just look for hydraulic shops in the yellow pages.



Hope this helps.

[4 Barrel]

Originally Posted by HarryStone

4 Barrel;
Don't you realize that if you go to a doctor and tell him "I have a pain", he will want you to get more specific? You came on this forum, stated something that was not specific, very vague, and desire us to get to the bottom of it like that? You aren't paying us for a service, so don't treat us like hired employees. we are here to help each other, offering advice and opinions, and sometimes facts. If you truly want help, be ready to restate the question or problem in a way that we can understand, be ready to clarify if needed, and be patient. Thanks

Ok. It is in the drivers rear side. The oil is appearing in the compartment on passenger side were the the propane is located. Service guy believes there is a break in the line and thinks the line is running around that way instead of down the frame. The jack works very well coming down just won’t retract on its own.

[Cooperhawk]

[Mod Edit]


When jacks are really slow to retract it could be springs, but I've found that the seals inside are worn and jamming making it really difficult to retract. I've had one that was so bad I had to purchase a shovel to get underneath the jack and force it up. In fact I had that happen to two different jacks. I had them rebuilt and now they work perfectly.


When the jacks are going down the hydraulic pressure is very powerful, but retracting is only by spring power.

[Cooperhawk]

Originally Posted by 4 Barrel

Ok. It is in the drivers rear side. The oil is appearing in the compartment on passenger side were the the propane is located. Service guy believes there is a break in the line and thinks the line is running around that way instead of down the frame. The jack works very well coming down just won’t retract on its own.

You didn't say the age of your coach, but I had to replace several hydraulic lines on ours due to age. Yep, they actually wear our and weep oil. I had oil in my storage compartment as well because the lines were routed through there. It could also be a pin hole leak. Correcting that will still not correct the jack problem.

[Unplanned Tourist]

Will the jack hold the weight of the corner when you lift it up?

If the line is leaking, it should slowly come back down.

Simple test would be to raise the back end of the rig, and watch what happens.

Be sure to chalk the front wheels whenever there's a chance either wheel could come off the ground.

[00 Buckshot]

Originally Posted by Unplanned

Will the jack hold the weight of the corner when you lift it up?

If the line is leaking, it should slowly come back down.

Simple test would be to raise the back end of the rig, and watch what happens.

Be sure to chalk the front wheels whenever there's a chance either wheel could come off the ground.

I have always thought that the solenoids on the jacks was what held the pressure. Not trying to be argumentive but trying to learn something myself. I thought you could cut the hose when the jacks were down and it would stay down because the solenoid held the pressure, not that I would do it just my understanding is there would have to be a leak in the jack itself or the solenoid for the pressure to leak off.

[Cooperhawk]

It depends on the seals in the jack itself. If they are worn and leaky the solenoids won't be able to stop it. On ours the solenoids are mounted on the hydraulic pump itself but they also can leak if a bit debris gets lodged in them.

[David 70]

Originally Posted by 00 Buckshot

I have always thought that the solenoids on the jacks was what held the pressure. Not trying to be argumentive but trying to learn something myself. I thought you could cut the hose when the jacks were down and it would stay down because the solenoid held the pressure, not that I would do it just my understanding is there would have to be a leak in the jack itself or the solenoid for the pressure to leak off.

The solenoids hold the pressure like you say but they are on the pump end of the hose so a leaking hose will allow the jacks to retract. There are no safety valves on these HWH systems on the jacks. If they did they would need two way hydraulics to the cylinders to release the safety valve to let it retract.

[Old Scout]

Wow--17 post so far and counting--some are more helpful that others but all are intended to help. So lets take stock of what we know so far:
1- with only 6 posts--I assume the OP is new to the forum and/or perhaps his rig
2- adding 3 quarts of fluid is unusual--is this the first time you filled or is it a repeat issue?
a. if lost all at once, that would be a big leak--hard to overlook.
b. if lost over time, could be a leak at a connection or at pump--still kind of hard to overlook.
c. connections on pump tend to leak over time so some fluid around the pump is quite common [propane tank area?]
d. important: always check add fluid, if appropriate, when jacks are up and slides are in, or you will overfill.
3- believe jack solenoids are on pump manifold for HWH equip.
a. so leaking hose connection or solenoid would allow jack to settle.
b. debris in solenoid is a common reason for jacks to settle.
c. weak springs, dirty seal or bent jack could impact retracting
4- since other three jacks work, focus on jack bent, seal stick/dirty, solenoid debris
5- less likely--two sensors [one to sense pressure when jack hits ground, one to tell if jack extends while driving] not sure how faulty sensor might impact your issue???
6-if jack doesn't settle while extended, there cant be much of a leak.

[Winemaker2]

4 Barrel
Have you looked for / at the HWH troubleshooting guide?