HWH Won't retract

[Vacation_Bound]

Disclaimer: My husband and myself are not mechanically inclined.

We have a 2011 Tiffin Allegro Red and are having problems with one of the HWH jacks. It will extend no problem, when we try to retract the jacks, the front one only comes up part way. We have tried using silicone spray and that worked for a while. My son in law told us to use a portable jack under this one to give it a nudge. It will go up this way. Are we making the problem worse by doing this. We will have this jack serviced when we are in Fl for the winter.

On our old MH we had this same problem and had the solenoids, springs etc replaced. This fix only lasted for a little while as well.

Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks

[Vacation_Bound]

Thanks for your info. We will keep doing what we have been doing until we can get to a repair shop in Tampa. The seals is one thing we have never had replaced.

Thanks again

[dougrainer]

NO lubrication is needed. They have internal seals that stick sometimes. The Silver piston is IMMERSED in Fluid when retracted, so other than keeping the Silver piston free of dirt and grime, you just wash with soap and water, no lube is needed. Spraying silicone or any other type lube is just a band aid for the real problem. It just helps for a few days/weeks, then the real problem, which is still there, comes back. New Springs will NOT fix a sticking jack. To tell if you need new springs, if you can push the jack up with your hand, then new springs are needed. Doug

[Fishinghat]

I have a 1993 HR Navigator with the HWH jack system, all with original springs, solenoids, etc. When I bought the coach in 2003, the jacks were very slow to retract and sometimes wouldn't retract completely. I lubricated the shafts with silicone spray every time I went to store the jacks and that speeded up the processes considerably. I also changed the fluid (MD 3 transmission fluid) as a preventive measure, but I don't know if that made a significant difference.

This slow retraction problem seems to be a common complaint here on the forum. I can only assume it relates to the lack of lubrication on the shinny shaft part of the jack. Use silicone spray or wipe with transmission fluid. My jacks retract completely within 15 seconds. Apparently no one else has jacks that retract that quickly.

Finally, I would check the emergency release valves on top of the pump to make sure they haven't accidently been partially turned on. They need to be completely turned out or off.

Good luck.

[Pangaea_Ron]

Do you have the tapered springs, which seem to work better than the older straight ones.

The HWH manual says to clean the extended jacks with soap and water. An RV tech told me to wipe the extended jacks with automatic transmission fluid, taking special care around the upper seals. This has significantly improved retract times.

Before maintenance, I have had to use a 2x4 to pry/retract one jack, and rocking the MH with the jacks partially retracted will speed retraction.

But, Doug is probably right.

[dougrainer]

Your problem is simple---You have bad seals internally on that jack. It needs replaced or rebuilt. The fact that you can retract it with a pry bar or floor jacks tells me that. Your springs and solenoids are OK. Doug