When I went to extend my jacks to load my 2005 Lance 1121 camper, all jacks were dead. What seems to be happening is that the system is not arming. By arming, I mean when I pressed the momentary switch near the floor by the door, the switch did not light up as it normally does.More information: The camper battery is dead, so I was jumping it with my Jeep's battery. The slide-out worked fine with that arrangement, but the jacks (arming switch) still didn't. I looked at the breakers and fuses that I know of but didn't see anything that said "jacks."Is there a breaker or fuse for the jacking system that isn't in the breaker/fuse box with all the others? Is there a solenoid somewhere that might be malfunctioning? Replacing the battery wouldn't hurt, of course, but would it make a difference, considering that I had the Jeep powering the camper anyway?Of course, I can crank by hand, so I'm not completely dead in the water, but that's a full day's hot and sweaty work!Any hints that you kind souls can come up with would be greatly appreciated.Peter

Charge the battery to full , then try it.Jumping the dead battery might not work . If you disconnect the dead camper battery then use the good battery to try it...that might work . Lance 2003 Owner's Manual, page 8 reads: "Do not use the electric jacks to raise or lower the camper using only 120-volt power. The converter's charger will be damaged if the jacks are operated with 120-volt power through the 12-volt converter without an automotive battery or with a low battery. A well charged battery in good condition is required."http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/26724768.cfm

The amount of current those motors pull is quite high. Charge or replace the battery. If the battery was completely dead as you described you will probably have to replace it.The other question is - what killed the battery? There is a chance (small - but possible) the jack controller failed and killed the battery.The fuse for the jacks will not be with the other fuses. The current for the jacks is very high so it will be in line with the wire going from the battery to the jack controller. I dont know what they use in the Lance, so it could be a fuse, a fuseable link, a self resetting circuit breaker or a manual circuit breaker. Someone else on the forum could answer that. One thing you want to check is to find the terminal on the jack controller that is connected to the battery and using your voltmeter see if you have 12 volts. If you have 12 volts you just might have a bad jack controller (which is a bummer!) If you dont have power, start tracing the wire back and find where the problem is.

Charge the battery and if it still has no power check the ground. I had mine stop working and it was a loose ground at the board under the sink.

Make sure the ground is tight. Silly as it sounds, in my first MH with electric jacks the jacks came down, resulting in upward pressure which cut the ground wire. Just a thought.

Can't get my electric jacks to work! | Good Sam Community

11 Replies

wintersun
Explorer II
Jun 16, 2013
The power jacks work through the camper's battery. Try using AC power only with the battery switch in the OFF position. Jacks will not work. The battery switch needs to be ON. Dead battery = OFF.
JumboJet
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
Touch the two prongs of the Atwood Jack wire to the contacts circled in Red. Reverse wires to change direction of jack.
James_
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
How I fixed mine: Clicky
jimh406
Explorer III
Jun 14, 2013
If it was working before, it's unlikely that the ground just came off. Sure, it is possible, but try the new battery first.
famousperson
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
All the tips are appreciated. I'm picking up a battery tonight. If that doesn't do it, I'll crawl under the sink to see what I can see.

Jumbo: Touch the jack cable to the battery? What battery? Do you mean the drill?

Thanks.

Peter
JumboJet
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
Instead of manually cranking the jacks, get yourself a 14 volt Dewalt cordless tool battery (or equivalent), unplug the jack cable from the camper and touch it to the contacts on the battery. You can raise and lower the jacks one at a time using this method. I have.
kalynzoo
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
Make sure the ground is tight. Silly as it sounds, in my first MH with electric jacks the jacks came down, resulting in upward pressure which cut the ground wire. Just a thought.
stuckinthesand
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
Charge the battery and if it still has no power check the ground. I had mine stop working and it was a loose ground at the board under the sink.
portscanner
Explorer
Jun 14, 2013
The amount of current those motors pull is quite high. Charge or replace the battery. If the battery was completely dead as you described you will probably have to replace it.

The other question is - what killed the battery? There is a chance (small - but possible) the jack controller failed and killed the battery.

The fuse for the jacks will not be with the other fuses. The current for the jacks is very high so it will be in line with the wire going from the battery to the jack controller. I dont know what they use in the Lance, so it could be a fuse, a fuseable link, a self resetting circuit breaker or a manual circuit breaker. Someone else on the forum could answer that.

One thing you want to check is to find the terminal on the jack controller that is connected to the battery and using your voltmeter see if you have 12 volts. If you have 12 volts you just might have a bad jack controller (which is a bummer!) If you dont have power, start tracing the wire back and find where the problem is.
jimh406
Explorer III
Jun 14, 2013
I agree charge the battery.

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Can't get my electric jacks to work!

11 Replies

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