Forum Discussion

JimMartin's avatar
JimMartin
Explorer
Sep 13, 2013

When to use the Air system dump button?

my 1998 CruiseMaaster 3590 is on the freightliner cassis with air ride. His four air bags under it. On the Bigfoot leveling system panel there is a Air Dump button. When do I need to use the Air dump button? When ever we park the RV? Or what?

7 Replies

  • Monaco is one of the few that says, deploy slides, dump air, then level... in that order. I asked one of the techs and he said deploying the slides with full air bags prevents the slides from binding. Dumping the air lowers the coach and makes leveling easier and the coach more stable...Dennis
  • I don't normally dump mine when just parking at the grocery store or short term parking like that. But eventually the air does all leak out. One thing I saw happen to a person who did not dump his air bags once was somebody took a chair out of the basement and leaned it on the rear tires of the motorhome. The top of the folded chair was under the fender skirt. As the air leaked from the bag the motorhome lowered and bent the chair and caused some minor scrapes on the fender skirt. Nothing major, but it would have ticked me off.
  • I dump the air when we have found the spot in which I decided to spend some time, then I extend the levelers to level, then I extend the slides out after I have leveled the coach.

    LOL! I know, some say to extend the slides out before leveling, and that is the craziest thing I have ever read. What if the ground is not level and the coach body has a big twist? It could bind the slides, crack the ceramic floors and much more damage.

    But like they say live and learn.
  • Dump the air, then jacks out, then slides out. That's what my manual says. Others (for some strange reason) say to put slides out prior to the jacks. I would not want to put the slides out if the coach was not level.
  • Before leveling or leaving it sit in storage.
  • when you pull into your campsite and before you deploy your stabilizers. It owers the coach so you don't hace to extend to much and makes it easier to get in and out of the coach - lowers the steps.