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Old 06-08-2012, 03:55 AM   #1
ugh
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Problem with retracting the slides.

I have a 2006 3500RL, which comes with 4 slides. When I press the button to retract the slides, it will retract and then stop. I will then have to let go the button for few minutes, and try it again. This happens if RV is plugged into shore power or not. This process repeats until I am to retract all slides. Why is it working intermittently? Also, is there a way to retract it manually if the system fails?
 
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Old 06-08-2012, 04:17 AM   #2
BB_TX
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This is a common problem frequently discussed here. It is the auto reset circuit breaker. If you look in the front compartment in the wiring between the battery and the slide pump, you will see a small metal box with two terminals on it. That is the breaker. Easy to replace.
It is a 50 amp breaker. Some have had success simply replacing it with a new one. But that also sometimes begins to fail again after some time. (a year in my case) Many of us have replaced it with an 80 amp breaker, or two 40 amp breakers in parallel. If you do a search for slide stop or slide stall or similar you should find some discussions about it with pictures.
.
Edit: I tried a search and could not find any of the discussions with pictures. So,
Here is a picture before my modification. The one on the left is the slide breaker.
Picture 1
.

Here is a piture after I paralleled two 40 amp breakers.
I got the breakers at NAPA. I bought two short buss bars and some heat shrink tubing at Lowe's.Picture 2

Some have just used wire and lugs to connect the two together. Some others have bought a single 80 amp breaker to replace the single 50 amp. And as I mentioned, some have had success just replacing the old 50 amp with a new 50 amp breaker.
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Old 06-08-2012, 09:19 AM   #3
DQDick
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Check with Keystone before you put a bigger breaker in. The newer models can take an 80amp breaker, but the older models may not. Most folks with rigs your age do what Bill is suggesting.
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Old 06-08-2012, 12:43 PM   #4
ugh
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Thank you! Does it have to be 80amp or anything over 50amp, but no higher than 80 amp?
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Old 06-08-2012, 01:23 PM   #5
mainer
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We are also having that problem. When Jim looked in the compartment there was some fluid there, so we do have a leak. It's still under warranty so it is going to a dealership next week.

Maybe you might have a leak too. Lots of luck, hope you resolve it soon.
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Old 06-08-2012, 03:28 PM   #6
8.1al
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The 80 amp fix is an approved fix for the older models too
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Old 06-11-2012, 03:56 PM   #7
lmccallister
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I too had the same problem with my 2011 3400rl big sky...repaced oem breaker a but that did not fix the problem...had to replace the remote control board on the control unit (dont ask me much more than that...I just know it took a month or longer to get the parts because dealer and keystoned couldn't get the right part numbers together...All works just fine now.
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Old 06-11-2012, 07:49 PM   #8
Art-n-Marge
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ugh... I have the same year and model of rig. I had this problem and found several causes:

1 - battery should be at best charger. A weak battery can cause this. Either connect to shore power (use the 12v converter or connect to the TV and use its battery.

2 - Fluid level. When the slides are in, the fluid level in the reservoir should be 1/2" from the top of the reservoir (I measured and marked this with a permanent marker so it's easy to see). Use the cheapest ATF fluid or acceptable alternative (ask if you don't know) that you can find.

3. Level and stabilized - The rig must be level and the jacks engaged to keep rig movement to a minimum. Apparently any unnecessary movement caused by the slides being extracted or retracted can cause undue stress and cause the motor work harder and get this problem.

Since we don't have the remote in a 2006 3500RL the most probably problem is:

4. Underrated CBs - If all the above looks good and you are getting this start/stop problem then the amps are exceeding the currently installed automatic resetting breaker and it shuts down the circuit waits a few seconds, then resets itself until it shuts down once again, causing the start and stop motion you describe. The CBs need to be upgraded. There are documents from the manufacturing stating that the auto resetting Circuit breakers should be rated between 80 and 100 amps. The factory often installs 40 or 50 amp CBs and this is where the problem can occur when the system is used with too many slides on the rig like our 3500RLs. The solution is to REMOVE the existing auto resetting circuit breaker and replace with a higher rated (or parallel combination) of circuit breakers. A single 100 amp, or single 80 amp, or dual 50 amp or dual 40 amp.

Per the instructions it is recommended you use new matching circuit breakers if you are using a dual set up (this is what I did) but it is more work because additional shunts are needed to construct a parallel circuit breaker solution (I could not locate discrete 80 or 100 amp auto resetting types). The new dual circuit breakers should be the same rating (both 40s or both 50s, not a 40 and a 50). It is not recommended to add to the existing one since the existing one is "old" and therefore should not be used with a fresh one. Or the easy replacement is to install a single 80 or 100amp breaker.

Here's the end result of my dual autoresetting breaker solution:



Note: the shunts don't have to be red or black, I just did it that way so I could spot the BAT side versus the AUX side. In my picture the red shunt is the BAT side.

If you need detailed instructions on how to do this, PM me and I'll email the specs and documentation.
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