Ready to call a mechanic....

[Zanderof]

I've posted a few times on here about our 1997 National RV Dolphin having a slide & jack issue. We found out the reason our jacks are currently not functioning (and engaged in a way that is making the RV rather unlevel), and the reason the living room slide has stopped working (with the slide out)is because even though we took our original 6 volt house batteries in to replace them, pep boys sold us 2 12 volt batteries... we will never make the mistake of not checking voltage again!

We have no manual and haven't been able to find one close enough to a 97. SO we have found it impossible to find all of the fuses and breakers.

We don't know enough about the systems to know how to release the pressure off of the jacks ourselves and with no manual, aren't sure we are comfortable doing it blind! However, with the jacks engaged we can't take it to a mechanic.

Any advice on where to find the fuses or breakers?

We live on a Naval Base in California as my husband is active duty, and are having a hard time finding a mechanic to come all the way out to base. Any advice on how to find a "will travel" mechanic?

Thanks everyone.

[Bird_Freak]

Sad thing now days is most parts counter people are not mechanics. They look at a computer and pull the part for the model and year of vehicle. This makes me wonder if he just pulled to chassis batteries off the shelf. Most will take any battery for a core. I noticed deltamaster says he is a pretty fair mechanic but refers to others as a grease monkey. I have no clue what the difference is.

[deltamaster]

Zanderof wrote:
we had a mechanic out at the rv today and he got the jacks released and the slide back in and diagnosed the problems for us! We have a messed up circuit modular for the jacks and a completely fired circuit modular for the slide out. So while we still need to finish getting it repaired, it's at least on the ground, has the slide in, and we know what needs fixed! I want to thank everyone for their advice and help! You all were right about the issues, we just didn't know enough of what we were looking at to figure it out!

Well. That is great. You are on the road to recovery. It will be a bit expensive to repair but in the end you will have learned something and be better off for it.

Believe me we have ALL made blunders with our own rigs so you are not alone.

Do not let that deter you from working on your own rig, though. Just remember to do your research and familiarize yourself with the job before you grab the tools.

There are tons of resources online as well as a world of knowledge right here on the forums. Most folks really enjoy sharing their knowledge and expertise here. It is most rewarding to help out a fellow RVer so do not be afraid to ask anything no matter how dumb you may think it is.

Who knows, someone else may come across your situation and be able to learn from it as well. Someone else may have your same question and find their answers as well.

I will admit I was a blame fool idiot when I bought my RV, having never owned one before. Thanks to the membership of RV.net I found many helpful people that showed me how my experiences in house construction and maintenance and vehicle maintenance matched very well with RV ownership. The things I did not know I found the answers to right here on these threads and through Google searches.

I consider myself an adequate mechanic capable of most any job but I have even found helpful maintenance tips and advice on these forums and on Youtube as well!

If you are not sure about posting your issues in the open forums please feel free to take them to a member in PM as well! Heck, I will be more than happy to address your concerns that way if you like.

I guess what I am saying is to not be afraid to do stuff in spite of this little mistake. So what You made a mistake It is what you take away from it that matters.

You now know not to fully trust the guy behind the counter unless he has proven himself trustworthy.

You now know to research your parts before you buy just so you go in with knowledge as knowledge IS power!

You now know your limitations, liabilities and strengths. You have a baseline to work from. You can establish your expectations as well as your capabilities so that you can best utilize your time and funds.

And most important you now know there is a very large community of people dedicated to being your friend no matter where you go or what you do while you are out there in the wilderness of RVing! You are never alone. As long as you can get to the internet you have support!



Mae sure you slip back in here after all the repairs are made and let us know how things worked out!

[Zanderof]

we had a mechanic out at the rv today and he got the jacks released and the slide back in and diagnosed the problems for us! We have a messed up circuit modular for the jacks and a completely fired circuit modular for the slide out. So while we still need to finish getting it repaired, it's at least on the ground, has the slide in, and we know what needs fixed! I want to thank everyone for their advice and help! You all were right about the issues, we just didn't know enough of what we were looking at to figure it out!

[deltamaster]

PHE wrote:

deltamaster wrote:

Zanderof wrote:
Our 6volts where huge batteries. And ancient interstate batteries. Easily 60lb batteries. We said "these are our old batteries. This is the first time we have had to replace them. They are the coach batteries for our Motorhome what's the closest thing you have." The guy spent about a half an hour talking with us and comparing batteries but never once mentioned voltage just everything else about them so we figured he knew what he was talking about and never thought to ask about voltage

Well there you go. As I said. OP/buyer was unaware of what they needed and deferred to those that represent themselves as professional.

Professional "Counter Clerks" at PBs

phe

My sentiment exactly!

BUT they REPRESENT themselves that way and the unsuspecting public believes them. They also CLAIM that all their mechanics are ASE certified.

[PHE]

deltamaster wrote:

Zanderof wrote:
Our 6volts where huge batteries. And ancient interstate batteries. Easily 60lb batteries. We said "these are our old batteries. This is the first time we have had to replace them. They are the coach batteries for our Motorhome what's the closest thing you have." The guy spent about a half an hour talking with us and comparing batteries but never once mentioned voltage just everything else about them so we figured he knew what he was talking about and never thought to ask about voltage

Well there you go. As I said. OP/buyer was unaware of what they needed and deferred to those that represent themselves as professional.

Professional "Counter Clerks" at PBs

phe

[deltamaster]

Zanderof wrote:
Our 6volts where huge batteries. And ancient interstate batteries. Easily 60lb batteries. We said "these are our old batteries. This is the first time we have had to replace them. They are the coach batteries for our Motorhome what's the closest thing you have." The guy spent about a half an hour talking with us and comparing batteries but never once mentioned voltage just everything else about them so we figured he knew what he was talking about and never thought to ask about voltage

Well there you go. As I said. OP/buyer was unaware of what they needed and deferred to those that represent themselves as professional.

[Zanderof]

deltamaster wrote:
Is your jack system a Power GearSystem?

If so the above link is to the PDF of the manual. I ran your make/model of RV in google and came up with this on the jacks.

Yes I believe they are power gear. Thanks for the help!

[Zanderof]

garry1p wrote:
Might check with your insurance company as there could be significant cost with some of the system boards. If they get involved they may go back on Pep Boys.

The fuses in the fuse box are actually there to protect the wiring and prevent fires not to protect the equipment and may not be blown.

Hopefully the fuses on the devices themselves protected things.

Best of luck getting it all sorted out seems like a lot of us wish we were closer so we cold help.

Since we have cheap inop insurance on it I never thought to check that, but it's worth a shot

[Zanderof]

Our 6volts where huge batteries. And ancient interstate batteries. Easily 60lb batteries. We said "these are our old batteries. This is the first time we have had to replace them. They are the coach batteries for our Motorhome what's the closest thing you have." The guy spent about a half an hour talking with us and comparing batteries but never once mentioned voltage just everything else about them so we figured he knew what he was talking about and never thought to ask about voltage

[wolfe10]

Nothing wrong with a house battery bank of 6 VDC batteries in SERIES

OR, 12 VDC batteries in PARALLEL.

We have no idea what conversation went on at the parts house. As long as the person buying and installing knows the difference and how to wire them, no problem.

[deltamaster]

garry1p wrote:

The fuses in the fuse box are actually there to protect the wiring and prevent fires not to protect the equipment and may not be blown.

Yeah... that is right... they pop for amps not necessarily for volts!

[garry1p]

Might check with your insurance company as there could be significant cost with some of the system boards. If they get involved they may go back on Pep Boys.

The fuses in the fuse box are actually there to protect the wiring and prevent fires not to protect the equipment and may not be blown.

Hopefully the fuses on the devices themselves protected things.

Best of luck getting it all sorted out seems like a lot of us wish we were closer so we cold help.

[wildmanbaker]

I'm afraid that you are going to need a mobile RV tech, as all the 12 volt systems have been exposed to 24 volts, and you need someone who will know what to look for. Most of the boards may have a fuse that has popped, but finding them and changing them will be a challenge. If you have to replace the boards, it is going to be expensive. Some of the things that may be affected are; fridge, hot water heater, TV antenna amp, slide out controls, if you have any, converter/charger, and the leveling system. Best of luck, and please let us know how things turn out.

[deltamaster]

Is your jack system a Power GearSystem?

If so the above link is to the PDF of the manual. I ran your make/model of RV in google and came up with this on the jacks.