Hydraulic Jacks - Ugh

Vandelay · 07-31-2020, 05:06 PM

I have a 2002 Adventurer 30 we just picked up. New to RV’ing. The first trip out the jacks worked great no issues. Second trip out with the whole family when we went to leave only 3 jacks would retract. It seems as the front right jack retracted the load went to the front left causing a slight forward lean on the extended jack, (it was not a level site.) I could not get the left front jack to retract. I tried putting all 4 jacks back down. They all went but then the system seemed to freak out and go blank. I eventually got the electronic system back up but it would not retract the jacks. I read the manual and found that I could manually retract them by turning the fitting letting out the hydraulic fluid. I managed to do that and get back on the road for the rest of the week using leveling boards which worked out fine. Obviously I need to trouble shoot the whole system now however my first question is Where do I start? This rig is 18 years old they do not look great, they make all kinds of noise going up and down, springs are loud and not a perfect shape as well. The stems look good for the age and there is not a ton of build up or tar or crap on them. Rebuilding them is probably beyond my capabilities and time constraints. Since this is a new toy for us I don’t have a trusted mechanic yet. Can you share the most common issues in terms of troubleshooting that I can try on my own to try and nail down how “big” of an issue it may be. I don’t want to walk into a repair shop having no clue and letting them steer the whole repair. If I add fluid back to the system tighten up the T connections to the solenoids can I run diagnostics from there? Each time I check the electronic system after I manually retracted the jacks it came on line just fine, of course I didn’t try and use the system at all I was simply curious if I would see any failures on the system side. I should have been more on top of this before venturing out for a longer trip, live and learn. Thanks for any suggestions.

Topsail · 07-31-2020, 05:30 PM

Tell us which hydraulic system that your coach is equipped with and you may get some tips.

Morich · 07-31-2020, 05:42 PM

I would first look at the manual for the correct way to check the fluid, then do some leveling to see if it works as it should, if not looking for the troubleshooting section of the manual is a place for me to start. If no luck and you do find a problem which is not cleared with a good fluid level, then I would start an internet search on the specific brand you have, as there are many details online which are not listed in the manual.
If not able to spot something logical for me to fix, I go for a shop as that is not an area for me to try to learn at this point.

Vandelay · 07-31-2020, 05:53 PM

Thanks for the quick responses and suggestions. Its a HWH system great point on including all specs.

Thanks.

Bones2003 · 07-31-2020, 06:24 PM

There are lots of threads on various forums about hydraulic leveler problems so I'm sure with some searches you will find the answer to your problem. Off the top of my head, common problems with units that are that old are:
1. Poor/corroded electrical connections throughout the system (controller, pump, solenoids, etc). I would start here as it is relatively easy and cheap to fix if it is the problem.
2. Weak solenoids that control the hydraulic valves.
3. Worn out and weak retraction springs.
4. Clogged/dirty hydraulic valves in the pump unit. These can be disassembled, cleaned, and o-rings replaced if you are handy. Sometimes changing the fluid a couple of times after exercising the jacks seems to flush them out - probably depends on luck.

Remember to not use the levelers as jacks to raise your wheels off the ground - not made for that! Also, different systems have different procedures for checking the fluid level. On mine, all jacks had to be retracted.