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bjlakatos1's avatar
bjlakatos1
Explorer
Mar 06, 2017

Carefree of Colorado Travel'r Awning blows fuse retracting

My awning has been retracting slower and slower over the past year. Last week it began to retract then seemed to get bogged down and blew a fuse. I can extend it fully and have the problem or extend it two feet and have the problem. I have searched the forums for help and listed all the debug/actions taken to this point and need help.

Replaced Motor assembly (Series II)
Replaced Idler wheel assembly
New battery
Verified connections from battery lugs to converter
Confirmed awning mechanical pivot points & brackets/tracks lubed and aligned
--------------------
CONFIRMED MOTOR WORKS:
Direct connect battery to motor head-works as expected

CONFIRMED TRAILER WIRING FROM WALL SWITCH OUTPUT TO AWNING GOOD:
Direct connect battery to switch output-works as expected manually (converter disconnected)

CONFIRMED SWITCH WORKS:
Direct connect battery to wall switch input-works as expected using switch (converter disconnected)

CONFIRMED NEUTRAL WIRE WORKS FROM CONVERTER TO SWITCH:
Direct connect +12 to switch input and use trailer ground wire at converter--works some of the time. I then connected the switch neutral to the adjacent slideout wall switch neutral and had the same results.

CONFIRMED +12 WIRE WORKS FROM CONVERTER TO SWITCH:
Direct connect battery to converter output wire feeding Switch. Switch neutral input connected direct to battery -works as expected.

When i re-attach wall switch input +12 to the converter output the motor starts normally then slows down and blows a fuse. I even had a couple of buddies gently push the rails in towards the trailer to take the load off the motor (ie, awning sagging about 1 inch). Bottom line: Same results when unloaded.

Thanks for reading the lengthy post. Any ideas?
__________________
Brian
2016 3500 6.7L DRW
2011 Starcraft 329BHU TT

7 Replies

  • bjlakatos1's avatar
    bjlakatos1
    Explorer
    Mar 09, 2017
    dougrainer wrote:
    Since you have replaced almost all the parts, one thing remains. When you extend and retract all the switch does is reverse the polarity to the 12 volt motor. Since it ALWAYS works extending and blows when retracting, that points to the wire when retracting that is POSITIVE is shorted someplace between the switch and the motor. REVERSE the 2 motor wires AT the motor. That will extend the awning when pushing retract and retract when pushing extend. See if the failure now happens on extend. If it does, your 2 wire harness is grounded someplace. Doug


    I switched the motor wires at the output of the switch. The problem goes away...I will bypass the wireset from the switch to the awning next to conclusivly prove it is the wire or terminations on the motor-side of the wire.

    While I am glad it appears to be working I am very frustrated not to have found the root cause.

    Thanks again for the tip. It was an excellent debug step that I hadn't thought of.
  • bjlakatos1's avatar
    bjlakatos1
    Explorer
    Mar 06, 2017
    dougrainer wrote:
    ...shorted someplace between the switch and the motor...


    If I direct connect the battery to the awning motor wires at the switch it operates normally.

    If I direct connecct the battery to the power wires of the switch, the Switch operates the awning normally.

    You do bring up a good debug point, to switch the wires at the motor and see if it follows a wire (or the switch).

    Thanks, will keep you posted on my results.
  • bjlakatos1's avatar
    bjlakatos1
    Explorer
    Mar 06, 2017
    dougrainer wrote:
    Some models of Carefree had 2 switches. One INSIDE and one on the bottom of the front Awning Arm. Do you know if you have this model with 2 switches? Doug


    This is the one switch version.
  • dougrainer's avatar
    dougrainer
    Nomad
    Mar 06, 2017
    Since you have replaced almost all the parts, one thing remains. When you extend and retract all the switch does is reverse the polarity to the 12 volt motor. Since it ALWAYS works extending and blows when retracting, that points to the wire when retracting that is POSITIVE is shorted someplace between the switch and the motor. REVERSE the 2 motor wires AT the motor. That will extend the awning when pushing retract and retract when pushing extend. See if the failure now happens on extend. If it does, your 2 wire harness is grounded someplace. Doug
  • dougrainer's avatar
    dougrainer
    Nomad
    Mar 06, 2017
    Some models of Carefree had 2 switches. One INSIDE and one on the bottom of the front Awning Arm. Do you know if you have this model with 2 switches? Doug
  • Mandalay_Parr's avatar
    Mandalay_Parr
    Explorer
    Mar 06, 2017
    How about the flex cable inside the mounting bracket?
    Mine has a torsional spring other end of the tube. Similar function to garage door spring.

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