Squealing Slides

[Charli]

For the past year we have been experiencing squealing slides with increased frequency and volume. It's a loud metal on metal sound which wakes up the neighbourhood and is very embarrassing. I have been using the dry lube made for this purpose and also tried silicon and a graphite spray. I have scraped and cleaned the "Rams" down to clean metal and applied a light dry lub spray again. While I notice a slight improvement for awhile the squealing always returns.
My dealer is now telling me that the Teflon glides that the "Rams" slide on are worn out and need replacing.
I have never heard of the slides having Teflon glides and given that the unit is only 3 years old I am a little disappointed that they are already worn out.
Can anyone tell me if what the dealer is saying is true and is there anything I can do differently to make the replacements last longer.
I am hoping that the cost will be covered by my extended warranty cause if not I'm sure it's going to be expensive.

[Charli]

My unit is a 2015 Mountaineer 331RLT. Seems my info in my signature has disappeared

[LDMoore06]

Think I would call Lippert first and get info from them. I think Lippert is still the manufacture.

[Carl n Susan]

Originally Posted by Charli

My unit is a 2015 Mountaineer 331RLT. Seems my info in my signature has disappeared

Ensure the "Show my signature" box in the quick reply area is still checked.

[Charli]

Thanks. Let's see if that works!

[leasurejf]

I think the dealer is full of it! A friend of our spoke to Lippert and they recommended using CRC Power Lube. We used to have noisy slides, but no more since we started using this product. Works great!
http://www.truevalue.com/assets/prod...rge/160929.jpg

[Carl n Susan]

I would say the dealer is blowing smoke you know where and you should move on. I don't know the Mountaineer that well but on a Montana, the Teflon (actually nylon these days - another cost savings measure) glide runs parallel to the length of the RV and sits on the interior floor next to the slide opening. The bottom of the slide, the black fabric type covering, rides on the glide as the slide moves in or out. There is no noise for this action and most definitely not a metal on metal sound.

The rams normally don't ride on anything. The base is mounted in a fixed position, and the ram connects from it, through the frame, to the bottom of the outside slide frame. If it is making contact with the metal, there would be scoring on the ram and that results in leaks.

LIP Sheet 003 describes the lubrication points on the slides. One spot that many miss, is the the area on the end of the roller where the roll pin goes through the horizontal drive bar on each side of the gear box.

[mlh]

Teflon??? I seriously doubt you have any teflon in your camper unless it came with a skillet. Teflon is extremely expensive. I'm betting it's Delrin. I've been in the machine shop business 50 years. You can look at them and tell the difference. Teflon doesn't have any sheen Delrin does. The real way to tell cut off a slither put it in a Teflon skillet heat it until one melts. If the slither melts first its Delrin or Nylon. Nylon is more expensive than Delrin and has no real advantage in this application and Nylon normally has a slight yellow color Delrin is white.
Lynwood

[Charli]

Teflon / Nylon ! I misspoke. Definitely nylon.
We had the rig out at Clear Lake for a few weeks and experimented with the slides. I sprayed the rams and gears that I could see with silicon and that seemed to help, at least for awhile. If it was worn out nylon sliders, spraying the Rams wouldn't make any difference so I think the dealers explanation is just plain wrong. The next morning I ran the slides in/out again and the sound was back although not as loud. I've got to think something is misaligned.
It's back in the shop now for a few other things. Water heater not working on electric and installing Sailun to replace Trailer Kings. They are going to check out the slides again.
I was hoping to get it all covered under the extended warranty but I am finding that there are so many exceptions and exclusions that the repair bill will probably be on my dime.

[topjustice]

Originally Posted by Charli

For the past year we have been experiencing squealing slides with increased frequency and volume. It's a loud metal on metal sound which wakes up the neighbourhood and is very embarrassing. I have been using the dry lube made for this purpose and also tried silicon and a graphite spray. I have scraped and cleaned the "Rams" down to clean metal and applied a light dry lub spray again. While I notice a slight improvement for awhile the squealing always returns.
My dealer is now telling me that the Teflon glides that the "Rams" slide on are worn out and need replacing.
I have never heard of the slides having Teflon glides and given that the unit is only 3 years old I am a little disappointed that they are already worn out.
Can anyone tell me if what the dealer is saying is true and is there anything I can do differently to make the replacements last longer.
I am hoping that the cost will be covered by my extended warranty cause if not I'm sure it's going to be expensive.

I had the same problem after storing my unit inside an enclosed garage all winter with the slides open. I tried the slide sprays but nothing worked. After taking the unit outside this spring I hosed down the slide mechanisms underneath (both directions) with a pressure nozzle and that solved the problem. It seems that dust accumulating on the underneath hardware can cause the squeaking. Mine was horrible until I washed them off then no more noise since. This year I will hose them down before I put them in the garage.