Community Forums

kfortner612 · 04-25-2011, 11:52 AM

I just inherited a 2001 Georgie Boy Landau. I am a complete newbie at this. It has the Big Foot Automatic hydraulic levelers. We were trying to level and now the passenger side front will not retract. I have a couple of questions:
1. How and where do you brace the MH to climb under so that it won't retract or fall on you?
2. When the owners manual states right front - is the right the drivers side or passenger side?

RV Wizard · 04-26-2011, 03:05 AM

Hello and

. We are glad to have you join us and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. I am sure you will enjoy the website and forums. Good luck, stay safe and keep us posted.
First off lets find out if you need to climb under the coach. Do you have and know how to use a multimeter to check battery voltage? You want to be sure you always have good voltage for motors and systems to operate properly. What lights on the control panel are lit when this passenger side (right front) jack does not come up? If the "jacks down" light is not lit then the controller thinks all the jacks are up and the motor will not run. This would be a bad or sticking switch the foot of the jack depresses when up. Let us know what you find and we can try to help you figure it out.

H. Miller · 04-26-2011, 05:45 AM

But, to answer your question, brace under the frame and all "directions" are while sitting in the drivers seat. Just like an aircraft.........

JimM68 · 04-26-2011, 06:11 AM

Most gas class A's are plenty high enough to get underneath when they are sitting on thier wheels. It ain't going anywhere.

dsbike · 04-26-2011, 06:32 AM

Every once in a while one of my jacks will not retract after sitting for several months. The first thing I have learned is to spray the chrome part of the cylinder with some sort of oil & wipe the dirt off with a clean rag. This keeps any debri from getting in to the seals & causing a leak of the cylinder. Sometimes all the jack needs is a little movement of the coach. I will stand inside & shift my wieght to make it rock a little with the other jacks retracted. If worse comes to worse I try using a board or steel bar to assist it by prying up on the bottom of the jack, It does not take much pressure to get it moving. If it still fails to retract then I believe you will need to get into the mechanicals of the jack. Make sure the retract springs are not broken.

Winnie 2000 · 04-26-2011, 07:21 AM

Hello, most jacks have a bleeder nut on the bottom of the jack. You will need to have some kind of container to catch the fluid that will come out. Slowly loosen the nut and the fluid should start coming out and the jack should retract. There is also a T handle on the control VALVE for that jack if you can find it, it is normally by the fill tank for the jacks. The only issue with this is you need to know which VALVE for which jack. Turn the T handle on the end on the valve and you can turn it in to release the pressure on the jack. Hope this might help you.

jdoc · 04-26-2011, 09:41 AM

I disagree with dsbike. Do not spray any kind of oil on them. Even though you wipe it off you still will not get all of the oil off. A film will remain and it will attract dirt. I use spray silicone it evaporates and doesn't leave a film, but the ram is still slick. How long has the rig setting up? Did you have the engine running when you operated the leveling jacks? Some motorhomes have to have the engine running. Have you checked the oil level for the leveling jacks? I start with doing the easy things first before I go to the more involved procedures. Sometimes it is something simple. Keep us informed. There is a lot of knowledge on this website.

BadBoy · 04-26-2011, 11:36 AM

Leveller seal blown:

Checking on price for new Power Gear leveller on my 99 Southwind. Yikes, it appears I have a blown seal on mine (fluid drippng down the leg).

My local RV dealer contacted Power Gear and they estimated the new leg will cost me $1065 just for the part. This seems outrageous to me for a simple blown seal. Apparently if I can find someone to change the seal it is only about a $20 part. I'll keep you updated on my hunt.
Prev Discussions: http://www.irv2.com/forums/f84/power...ent-70572.html

My motor, pump and reservoir they say is all 1 part (motor is VERY loud when activated). That comes in at $729 plus 3 hrs labour. I'm gonna try and get another litre of tranny fluid in the reservoir and see if it quiets it. Seems when I paid to have it checked they didnt even try to top up the reservoir to see if it quieted it as a first stage fix. hmmm.

I'm a year into the RV scene but am figurin stuff out. Guess you "gotta pay to go to school" as they say

kfortner612 · 04-27-2011, 12:01 PM

Thanks for all the good ideas. I actually called Big Foot and they had a technical service rep that explained to me and my husband exactly what we needed to check and how to check it. Amazing that a company will offer advice to a customer with a 10 year old product. Life is good!!! Thanks again!!!!!!!

codgerbill · 04-27-2011, 12:51 PM

I have the HWH hydraulic jacks & slides. I am currently replacing one of the hydraulic solenoids and am also having a problem with the right front jack. I have talked to a HWH Technician (Chuck Sturat @Stuarts Service-Elkhart Indiana).Chuck sold me the hydraulic solenoid and we talked about the right front jack being slow to retract and sometimes not retracting. I had been using a 2"X4"X 8' board to push the jack up which is ok to do as long as the jack retracts all the way up. He indicated that there is a hydraulic solenoid inside the jack that might have to be replaced. All that aside, he also mentioned that the shiny part of the jack should not need cleaning. He indicated that the jacks should be excercised at least once a month. When you store for the winter you should run the jacks down (not necessairly all the way)and then restore them in the retracted position. That will lubricate the seals. Once the seals harden up it becomes difficult to operate the jacks (I think he did say it was retracting that has the problem).

dsbike · 04-28-2011, 05:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jdoc

I disagree with dsbike. Do not spray any kind of oil on them. Even though you wipe it off you still will not get all of the oil off. A film will remain and it will attract dirt. I use spray silicone it evaporates and doesn't leave a film, but the ram is still slick. How long has the rig setting up? Did you have the engine running when you operated the leveling jacks? Some motorhomes have to have the engine running. Have you checked the oil level for the leveling jacks? I start with doing the easy things first before I go to the more involved procedures. Sometimes it is something simple. Keep us informed. There is a lot of knowledge on this website.

Not to argue the points of a hyd actuator, but what happens to the piston when it is retracted into the cylinder? Not sure silicon is going to harm or not, use what you like, but do clean the pistons when they have been exposed to the outside elements for extended time.
I also agree that the cylinders should not need cleaned in a perfect environment, throw in sandy ground with wind blowing the the fine sand around under the rv & it will inevitably get attached to the slight film that exists on the piston. The no 1 reason for the wiper seal to leak fluid on any hyd actuator is dirt on the piston when it is retracted. I would love to hear the explanation as to why you never need to clean the piston.