Before you start operating your slideout, the first thing to check is if there are any obstructions that could get in the way (people, trees, other campers). Besides that, you should always check if your battery has enough juice in it to power your slide-out, or the converter for the 12 volt DC system is working properly.
Operating a slideout (or a pop-out) for a brand new RVer sometimes could be difficult to get accustomed to. There are many dos and don’ts to operating a slide-out, which are important to know before your mess something up.
If you don’t have enough power coming in, you could start overworking your slideout’s motor until it overheats. This is how you will end up being stuck with an open slideout.
Now, let’s get into the details!
So, you found a perfect parking space for your camper and are ready to pull your slide out. Before reading further, I highly recommend that you take out your RV papers and study carefully the instruction manual for your slide-out:
There could be some cases where your manual got lost or you purchased a pre-owned recreational vehicle without one. In this case, I will do my best to inform you on how to operate your slideout trouble-free.
Inside your RV you will have a control panel that looks similar to this:
You may need a key to operate your control panel:
Most slideouts also have a load-sensing capability. This means that when your slideout is fully extended or retracted, the motor will stop.
Before you get all excited and start pressing all the buttons on the panel, please check the following:
Now it’s time to push some buttons!
Once again, even if you are tired from packing and setting things up before you hit the road, don’t just start pressing buttons, to get that slide-out in and get going! Slideout is a mechanism that is strong enough to damage walls, cabinets, and the floor, if not taken care of properly.
Nothing great can be done in a hurry, and this is why you have to make sure that there are NO people near the slide rails when the room starts moving! Injuries could be caused by clothing being caught up in the gear assembly.
So, this is a short “to-do” list before you start retracting the slideout:
Now, we can finally push some buttons and get our slideout back in. Steps are very similar to extending the slideout, only instead of pressing the OUT button, you will need to press the IN button or hold a key in that direction.
After you release the ON/OFF switch, it’s time to crank our slideout motor brake lever. If your motor brake is NOT in the ENGAGED position, the slide-out room will not lock into place.
Engage your motor brake to seal your slideout (which is a must prior to transit):
Now we can install the transit bars (if equipped) and take off!
Our next subject is troubleshooting RV slideouts. Why? Life is not perfect and sometimes “stinks”, meaning that if you press the switch button and your slideout does not respond, you will spend the rest of the night trying to solve a problem or being jammed in a tiny provided space.
Before we get into more complicated details of your problem, let’s make sure that the following is taken care of:
Do you still have a problem? Sorry to hear that, so let’s get to work!
We all like that RV slideouts provide us with a larger living space in the motorhome, but like with anything else where you have electricity and motors involved, things could go wrong and mess the whole experience up!
Here are a few common situations with RV’s slideout system:
Check if your transit bars are removed. If not, remove them.
If the room movement is detected, but it suddenly stops, there could be several issues:
Not enough power supply could be your problem. Check if your battery is discharged and replace it if needed.
If you are in the RV park, make sure your shore power is giving you good voltages or the converter is performing well. If none of these solutions work, we can start inspecting your RV further.
Other troubleshooting methods may have electrical work involved, so before you do anything, please disconnect your power supply and a battery. More complicated problems for slide-outs include:
Typical slideouts are either hydraulic (a larger slide) or electric (a smaller slide):
Hydraulic systems use the principle of hydraulic pressure and it is more common on larger-sized slides. This pressure is activated by a pump and these pumps, however, can malfunction when they are low in fluid.
This person had a problem with a “low fluid” and he made a video on how he fixed it:
Pumps could leak simply because they are being used and this means that they do require regular checkups in order not to be stuck in a situation like that. Also, if any components of the hydraulic line will fail, you will have a problem with your slideout.
Hydraulic line components include actuators that move rams and if they fail, the whole system will not work. Damaged valves could be another reason for pumps to malfunction.
Hydraulic lines may stall or jam, causing the rams and actuator triggers to misfire or not function at all. Not only does this cause a serious malfunction of the slide-out, but it could also be dangerous for the person operating the slide-out.
If there is a problem with a hydraulic line system, only a specialist will be able to determine that and this issue cannot be easily fixed. It would typically involve the disassembly of the slide-out and full replacement of the faulty line.
A variety of electrical issues could cause RV’s slideout to malfunction. They could be anything from faulty writing or weak battery, to system overload that could have tripped your breakers or blown a fuse.
Electric slideout uses an electric motor to drive a slideout gear system in your RV or camper. This motor is powered by a 12-volt system and needs a certain amount of amps to function.
If you have many devices turned on while trying to pull out the slide, you may have a problem with overwhelming the circuit. Don’t forget that:
3o-amp system will give you 3,600 watts
5o-amp system will give you 12,000 watts
One way to avoid this type of power failure is to have your 12-volt battery fully charged and connected, even if you are plugged into the shore power. The reason for this is that battery will take on some of the load if the power problem is detected.
Overloaded motors can also cause significant issues for your RV to slide out. If there is a jam or some kind of mechanical issue, your motor may experience resistance and will try to draw extra energy to complete its task.
If it’s stuck this way long enough, it is just going to break down. In both of these scenarios, it is a good idea to take the RV to a dealership or repair shop as soon as possible and have it fixed.
** Warning! This is NOT a DIY project since working with electric motors is complicated and dangerous!
Some other RV slide-out issues are not only easy to diagnose, but they are usually not complicated to repair. Leaks are a common issue for RV slide-out.
Slideout seals become less and less durable due to weather conditions and general wear and tear. If they stop working, the moisture may get inside causing all kinds of problems, including a possible growth of mold or worse, an electric problem.
Not to mention that who would be happy with a water leak or inability to keep the RV warm on a cold winter day? The solution to leaking can be as simple as replacing a worn-out seal (paid link) or a broken awning.
If your awning is frayed or being held by duct tape, it is a good sign that replacement is needed. I found some replacement toppers (paid link) for you on Amazon.
Maintaining the proper cleaning of the slide-out and protective sealing will prevent all kinds of leak issues.
Feel free to save the infoPin below for your future Reference :
If all else fails and you are stuck with an extended slideout, do not worry, this too shall be solved… Slideout systems are usually equipped with the capability of extending or retracting in the event of power loss.
Please refer to the user manual for the exact location of the nut. Here is a visual of what this process looks like:
