I had my manual CareFree awning replaced with an electric Care Free awning when the manual one was ripped off while traveling down the road.I really like the electric awning but have noticed two things.One is that it seems to roll in and out jerky, does not roll in/out smoothly. The roller itself seems to rotate smoothly it is the supports that seem to hold up the deployment of the awning. I did spray the tracks with silicone but that seemed to make no difference.Today I noticed that the front support does not seem fully closed.Here is the rear one.Here is the front oneand here is a close up of the top, it looks like the "hook" is stopping the awning from being drawn all the way in??Can anyone shed an light on this or should I e-mail CareFree?

It appears that either the alignment of the awning fabric is off (easy fix) or the mounting brackets aren't aligned (not an easy fix). The fabric alignment should be adjustable.

therink wrote:It appears that either the alignment of the awning fabric is off (easy fix) or the mounting brackets aren't aligned (not an easy fix). The fabric alignment should be adjustable.The mounting brackets and supports appear to be lined up, and no binding as it goes in and out.How do you align the fabric.I really think the "hook" is keeping it from rolling all the way up

GlennLever wrote:therink wrote:It appears that either the alignment of the awning fabric is off (easy fix) or the mounting brackets aren't aligned (not an easy fix). The fabric alignment should be adjustable.The mounting brackets and supports appear to be lined up, and no binding as it goes in and out.How do you align the fabric.I really think the "hook" is keeping it from rolling all the way upIf the fabric is out of alignment, there should be 2 set screws along where the awning fabric meets the wall (the rail that the awning edge bead is inserted into. The set screws hold the awning edge bead from sliding back or forward. Remove the set screws and slide the awning less then one inch forward or backward until the awning arms line up and then reinstall the set screws. Not sure if this is your issue or not, but this worked for me when my awning arms weren't closing all the way.

GlennLever wrote:One is that it seems to roll in and out jerky, does not roll in/out smoothly. The roller itself seems to rotate smoothly it is the supports that seem to hold up the deployment of the awning. I did spray the tracks with silicone but that seemed to make no differeGlenn, I just went through this part of the issue.Check the End Caps on the roller. There should be 2 screws in each one.And watch the motor as it is operating. Does it wobble back and forth?One screw came out of each end of mine, leaving only one screw on the end cap. That let the motor wobble back and forth as it was operating. That made the arms real jerky as it operated. Lubing the tracks had no effect.Once I identified the issue and got new screws, the motor still wobbles slightly. So I think the motor drive is bent.I believe the screws was a #10 self tapping.

That hook is a rubber part, which is meant to kick the awning out from the metal wrap- it's just misaligned. Just rotatie it a bit downward, so it goes past the wrap.It is literally held on by rubber bands (an O ring) and a couple of screws.You can see how to align it (Carefree calls it a "tractioner") on page 6 of their service manual (a pdf file from Carefree).

CareFree Electric Awning / Front support not all the way in

GlennLever
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
dan-nickie wrote:
GlennLever wrote:
You do not want them to tight other wise they get rolled under the Alumiguard.

Glenn, I'm not sure what you mean by 'too tight'?

Maybe you are talking about where the instructions say to leave 1/4 inch clearance?

Correct, 1/4 inch may not be enough gap, I ended up with an inch because with the 1/4 inch gap the instructions wanted the hook ended up under the Alumiguard when it rolled in.
dan-nickie
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
GlennLever wrote:
You do not want them to tight other wise they get rolled under the Alumiguard.

Glenn, I'm not sure what you mean by 'too tight'?

Maybe you are talking about where the instructions say to leave 1/4 inch clearance?
GlennLever
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
You do not want them to tight other wise they get rolled under the Alumiguard.
Chris_Bryant
Explorer II
Oct 26, 2014
There really is a fairly wide range- as long as they kick the roller out from the metal wrap, and don't hit like the OP's problem, they are fine. Adjustment could make them work a bit smoother, if the roller rotates a long way before they engage, but if it works, it's OK.
GlennLever
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
The instructions say that they may have to be adjusted from time to time based on the awning stretching.

It is not a hard job.

See this post over on my build thread for the process.
dan-nickie
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
Well, based on that diagram my Tractioners are way off from the factory.
GlennLever
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
Chris Bryant wrote:
That hook is a rubber part, which is meant to kick the awning out from the metal wrap- it's just misaligned. Just rotatie it a bit downward, so it goes past the wrap.
It is literally held on by rubber bands (an O ring) and a couple of screws.

You can see how to align it (Carefree calls it a "tractioner") on page 6 of their service manual (a pdf file from Carefree).

Thank you, if the weather clears (raining) I will work on this today. I got these from the link you provided.
Chris_Bryant
Explorer II
Oct 26, 2014
That hook is a rubber part, which is meant to kick the awning out from the metal wrap- it's just misaligned. Just rotatie it a bit downward, so it goes past the wrap.
It is literally held on by rubber bands (an O ring) and a couple of screws.

You can see how to align it (Carefree calls it a "tractioner") on page 6 of their service manual (a pdf file from Carefree).
dan-nickie
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
GlennLever wrote:

One is that it seems to roll in and out jerky, does not roll in/out smoothly. The roller itself seems to rotate smoothly it is the supports that seem to hold up the deployment of the awning. I did spray the tracks with silicone but that seemed to make no differe

Glenn, I just went through this part of the issue.
Check the End Caps on the roller. There should be 2 screws in each one.

And watch the motor as it is operating. Does it wobble back and forth?

One screw came out of each end of mine, leaving only one screw on the end cap. That let the motor wobble back and forth as it was operating. That made the arms real jerky as it operated. Lubing the tracks had no effect.

Once I identified the issue and got new screws, the motor still wobbles slightly. So I think the motor drive is bent.

I believe the screws was a #10 self tapping.
therink
Explorer
Oct 26, 2014
GlennLever wrote:
therink wrote:
It appears that either the alignment of the awning fabric is off (easy fix) or the mounting brackets aren't aligned (not an easy fix).
The fabric alignment should be adjustable.

The mounting brackets and supports appear to be lined up, and no binding as it goes in and out.

How do you align the fabric.

I really think the "hook" is keeping it from rolling all the way up

If the fabric is out of alignment, there should be 2 set screws along where the awning fabric meets the wall (the rail that the awning edge bead is inserted into. The set screws hold the awning edge bead from sliding back or forward. Remove the set screws and slide the awning less then one inch forward or backward until the awning arms line up and then reinstall the set screws. Not sure if this is your issue or not, but this worked for me when my awning arms weren't closing all the way.

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CareFree Electric Awning / Front support not all the way in

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