kwikee level best levelers

I Have the Kwikee ones on my 08 Sunova but have only used them a couple times maybe don't know the proper way to use them tried couple times they bounced the coach around and raised it off the ground,tried the individual movements but no lites and nothing moved!Afraid of getting stuck somewhere with the jacks down!50 years of motor homes and few trailers I think I found the answer cut bunch of 2X10s as in the past and carry them never had a problem getting off them and no worries about the unreliable jacks!!What a waste of about $4K yet all the ones I see on the lots all seem to have them!

Sorry I didn't mean to discount Doug's reply, I appreciate all responses to my questions. I do think both front and rear levelers are the same. The problem that occurs with the rear levelers being slower than the front is that if I need to raise just one side of the coach, lets say the drivers side, the front leveler will contact the ground first so I can't get even leveling because the front will always be higher than the rear because by the time the rear leveler contacts the ground the front leveler has raised the front at least 4-5 inches. what I have done to kind of compensate for this is lower the rear levelers first to give it that 4-5 inch head start then lower, lets say the drivers side, levelers together and hope they contact the ground together. I guess I could just operate them like that but if I do go to have them worked on "again" I think the more I know about how they are suppose to work will help me. Hope that helps Doug.

Also Doug has a very good point also.

Thanks MountainAir05, I think that solenoid sounds like it could be my problem. you asked about warning lights, well on the control panel the rear drivers side leveler light stays on even when the leveler is up and the rear passenger leveler light blinks occasionally but it doesn't look like a code, its more like its not sure if its up all the way even though it is. Thanks again.

I will bet the front Jack cylinders are smaller(6k or 9k) and the rear are (12k or 16k) cylinders. SMALLER cylinders will indeed extend faster than the larger cylinders. The system puts out about 3000psi. the psi does NOT change at all. The smaller cylinders have a smaller displacement and that causes MORE fluid (faster extension) to enter the cylinder. The rears have a larger displacement and needs more fluid (slower extension). This is true of HWH systems and I will bet it is true of the Kwikee system. Why is this a concern anyway? What is happening that you think it is causing a problem? Doug

Do you have any warning lights on when this happens. They used to use a double solenoid per cylinder. The system uses 8 individual solenoids (2 for each cylinder, 1 for extend, 1 for retract). They use a true double-acting cylinder, not a regenerative cylinder. By this I mean there are two hydraulic lines to each cylinder to reverse fluid flow for extend/retract. The pump does not reverse as in some systems, instead it uses a 4 way valve to shift fluid direction. In other words, the fluid is always running the same direction thru the pump - it's up to the 4 way valve to "shift" the fluid flow to the opposite side of the manifold (retract), and for each cylinders solenoid valve to close on the opposite side. When extending, all the retract solenoids/valves close and the extend solenoids open. Opposite for retract. You can take the two from the front and switch out and if the error goes to the front then one or both solenoids are bad. Ensure the jacks are all up before you start and remove power. Check to see when you remove the solenoid to ensure there is no debris in the ports. If you have manual you can see how this works.