Help! Two questions about my brand new Keystone

[beeryboats]

I went to show my new fifth wheel to a friend and the slides went out normally. However one hung up on the way in. I hope we caught it in time before it damaged anything. Is this due to cold weather, not broken in, or faulty workmanship?

As it is so cold, down to zero tonight they say, should I put a small electric heater inside? I have one of those oil filled electric radiant heaters.

Thanks,
Jay

[WhitehouseLV]

Is your slide hydraulic? Hydraulic fluid doesn't work well in cold weather.

I had a bedroom slide that the glue on the moisture barrier (black plastic) failed dropping the plastic down & binding up but that was pretty noticeable.

Also had my main slide would go out fine but coming in would stop. Replaced circuit breaker with larger one & never had a problem.

[beeryboats]

Smart advice. I'll take it in soon.

[Vulcaneer]

Based on your last post, you should schedule a service appointment with your dealer. Do not wait.

There is visible evidence that there is something caught up in the system. Might be a screw (or something) that fell into the rack...and easily removed. But something is causing the problem. It has repeated. And is consistent. Get it checked out.

I think this because the slide ONLY hangs up coming in. When the slide goes out, the pinion engages on ONE side of the gear teeth on the rack. When it comes in the pinion engages on the other side of the gear teeth on the rack.

[beeryboats]

It's just at freezing so I had to try the slide again. I ran it out and back twice and it hung up both times. When I could see it start to tilt, the top hung up, I would stop the pump. then I bumped the pump button and it would jump up and retract normally. Now that I can see what's happening I can keep an eye on that slide as it comes in. If it continues to do this******come spring, I'm taking it back to the dealer for sure!

[Vulcaneer]

You had a slide hang up? One time? No problem. Try the slide out a dozen more times. See if it repeats. Be sure to let it sit a few minutes (5 to 10) before moving it back and forth. Otherwise it will over-heat the breakers, and it will quit until it cools down.. If it repeats 5 times out of 10, you might want to have it looked at. If it quits 3 times, just go camping and see if it gives you trouble in real life operation. If it become inconvenient, the it is needing service. Don't kill yourself worrying about it. And certainly do not panic over it.

BBB? Really??? OMG.

[beeryboats]

I was going to mess with it tonight, but it's so darn cold and it got dark before I got home. Maybe I'll get a chance tomorrow. I did talk to the dealer today and told the salesman about the issue. He said the cold could have something to do with it and I tend to agree. Things made of metal can really change shape when cold. I am upset that it seems like they dropped the ball on a new leather couch cushion. Keystone used a patched piece of leather on the largest piece of material in the trailer!!! It just jumps out at you as soon as you step inside.

[Bombfixer]

Is the Unit level? More often than not, priblenscith slides can be traced to an unlevel unit. Some brands or models are more suseptable to this than others. But always check level before looking for other causes for erratic operation. Sometimes it really can be that easy.

[Atom_Ant]

Which model Keystone do you have? I believe they use 3 different slides mechanisms - hydraulic, cable, and schwintek.

I'm not trying to lob some fixes for you from a keyboard, the Dealer needs to fix it, but just trying to picture in my mind what might have happened.

[Shepherd]

The slide tubes have ware tabs. On my 2005 Denali one slide was missing a ware tab which caused alignment issues. I corrected it by adding materail to the sidewall of tube.:)

[GON2SKI]

Regarding slide operation……..Measure the gap between both the right and left side of slide and the body opening when retracted (should be close to same spacing). Then do the same thing when it is extended. If it is aligned properly it will track keeping sufficient uniform gap to avoid binding and grinding. Our 2001 Cougar came mis-aligned from the factory and would get stuck when extended. I allowed the dealer three repair periods (considerable downtime) and ended up fixing it myself after no improvement from the dealer during the warrantee period.

[Dave_H_M]

So do we still have a problem? :h

[Old-Biscuit]

OP.....

Slide was out for 15mins tops?
Not enough time for enough ice to accumulate to interfere with slide operation...unless it was liken to the end of days ice storm:

Have you operated it since?

And the BBB.
All I have found out about BBB is it's a joke.
If business doesn't acknowledge/respond to complaint it times out and is posted as 'resolved'
Course I had already used all other methods (with same result....no action) before filing with BBB and then 2 months later get 'resolved' notification HAhahaha

[Atom_Ant]

Wow - how did we go from a problem with the slide to the BBB complaint! That will get you nothing but animosity with the manufacturer and dealer by being that quick on the trigger to bring in the BBB. Give the Dealer a chance to fix it.

I've abruptly ended two relationships by going to the BBB. One with the biggest RV wheel manufacturer out there, and the other with my roofer. To get any warranty now if I have a problem will require a lawyer.

[hhoffman]

One thing most manufacturers really understand is a letter to the Better Business Bureau in the city where the manufacturer is located. It's amazing how fast they will respond to pressure.