Slide out not working, only clicking

[Country Campers]

Dave27

So I did a little with your slide actuator and using a 3/4" spade bit in my cordless drill I was able to operate the slide tube with very little effort, I could even use my hand to turn the screw. When it was fully extended here is a picture of the outside of the actuator tube,


It is not rust but dust and dirt and was damp but not dripping wet , it took a little hard scrubbing to get it cleaned off. I wonder if this could cause enough friction to stop the motor from moving the slide?

I have not ground the crimps at the drive end to fully disassemble this yet and not sure if it is needed, the slide moves very easily.

Here is a picture of the nylon bushing that helps keep the actuator rod centered in the main tube, and after I cleaned it,


And the bit I used to actuate the slide.

The drive end has some crimps on it that will have to be ground out to totally get all of the parts out to inspect, probably what I will do at some point thru the winter. This is definitely not a serviceable item as it is built.

I would suggest to all to keep the actuator portion, the part that you can see when the slide is out, clean of all debris. There is another post here Where does this rubber ring belong? - Grand Design Owners Forums (gdrvowners.com) where Vivian has found that the nylon bushing has come out rom its home spot, not good for the slide out actuator.

Brian

[Dave27]

Country Campers Hi Brian, The problem was when it was fully closed, the electric motor could not open it. If I moved it manually about an inch, the motor could open it the rest of the way. Thanks for looking into this.
Dave

[Country Campers]

Dave27

Dave,

I finally got the chance to get this slide mechanism apart,



The "screw" is actually a ball screw, pretty impressive as I was expecting a acme threaded rod and nut. The small tube on the left held on by the 2 screws is the place where the ball bearings are inserted, trust me as I removed the tube and had tiny little ball bearings all over the place. They are well greased so there was not sticking there. Before I tore this apart I was running it in and out and did get it stuck a couple times. The surfaces between the rod end and the nut part will come together and bind, these are 2 flat surfaces. The "can" on the other end that comes in contact with the frame rail stops this from happening. If the "can" does not contact the frame rail before the nut and rod end get together then that would be when the "stuck" part comes in to play. The actuator tube that rides inside the outer tube is a pretty close fit, maybe 1/16" play overall between the two, I did not measure this. In my previous post where I showed the "dirt" on the actuator tube this could also cause some strain on the slide actuator. I would guess that the "can" on your actuator must have not been adjusted right or had moved allowing the actuator to retract too far causing the "stuck" issue, there is nothing else that I can see or had tried that produced the same issue that you had. I would also like to reiterate again , as before in another post, keep these actuator tubes clean to allow for better movement between the 2 tubes.

Sorry for the bad news but I think if you adjusted your "can" you may not have had to replace this part.

Brian

[Dave27]

Dave27

Dave,

I finally got the chance to get this slide mechanism apart,



The "screw" is actually a ball screw, pretty impressive as I was expecting a acme threaded rod and nut. The small tube on the left held on by the 2 screws is the place where the ball bearings are inserted, trust me as I removed the tube and had tiny little ball bearings all over the place. They are well greased so there was not sticking there. Before I tore this apart I was running it in and out and did get it stuck a couple times. The surfaces between the rod end and the nut part will come together and bind, these are 2 flat surfaces. The "can" on the other end that comes in contact with the frame rail stops this from happening. If the "can" does not contact the frame rail before the nut and rod end get together then that would be when the "stuck" part comes in to play. The actuator tube that rides inside the outer tube is a pretty close fit, maybe 1/16" play overall between the two, I did not measure this. In my previous post where I showed the "dirt" on the actuator tube this could also cause some strain on the slide actuator. I would guess that the "can" on your actuator must have not been adjusted right or had moved allowing the actuator to retract too far causing the "stuck" issue, there is nothing else that I can see or had tried that produced the same issue that you had. I would also like to reiterate again , as before in another post, keep these actuator tubes clean to allow for better movement between the 2 tubes.

Sorry for the bad news but I think if you adjusted your "can" you may not have had to replace this part.

Brian

Thanks Brian Country Campers ,
this is very interesting. It is amazing how small the tolerance was to cause the problem. The "can" must have moved, it would have been nice to know at the time that moving it was a possible fix. That would have been a lot easier than everything I tried. Well, I learned a lot on this episode of "life with a camper."
Dave

[rmzmsmith]

Man I am glad this post is here. My brand new 2023 295RL did the same thing. I searched the manuals, YouTube, etc and the Internet, then came across this I couldn't believe it. I had watched all of lipperts videos on adjusting the slides so I was pretty familiar with all of the parts described. So I extended the slide about 6 inches and retracted with the button and stopped when there was a good seal. Looked at the stop can and yup it was about 0.5" out. I adjusted the can and it's working great. No telling how many people you guys helped with this. Thank you!

[Popga]

Dave27

Dave,
Fantastic journey reading your posts and all the contributors. I am going thru an identical issue. IDENTICAL. Have been on phone with Lippert tech for hours adjusting stop can, vertical position and stop can over and over. No solution. Voltage while running motor is 13.51 volts. Tech finally said it must be the actuator or clutch.
I'm ready to order an actuator because that is what fixed yours. Service appointment (and use of my extended service contract) Is late August...
I removed actuator and motor assembly. Motor and all gears look great. Actuator is clean and extends and contracts just fine.
Its camping season so I don't choose to wait until August.
My main question for you, and I won't hold you to it.. Do you think the actuator was the issue? It was suggested that the stop can could have fixed issue, but I believe you tried that route, ya?
I ready to spend $ and go camping.

Thanks,
Erik

[Dave27]

Popga. What I learned from this is to try adjusting the can first. If that didn't work, I would then replace the actuator. So if you are satisfied the problem is not an adjustment, I would replace the actuator. It is straightforward to install it. Good luck with this. Let us know how it goes for you.
Dave

[Jlawles2]

My sofa slide acted up the other day and would not deploy only clicked. I grabbed the manual over ride handle and went to the opposing side, couple of cranks and it went out with no issues after that and several times since.

[Popga]

Dave27

A new actuator solved the problem for me also...
After adjusting everything that could be adjusted including the stop can, and working with the tech crew at Lippert, as well as this forum thread, I went ahead and replaced the actuator ($315 on Amazon, next day delivery).
Worked like a champ!

Erik

[howson]

In case anyone's confused at what the "actuator" is, see the diagram below from Lippert's webinar on the electric thru-frame slide out.



Howard

[BlueDuck]

I have the exact same issue on my 2021 Reflection 295RL kitchen slide. It retracts and ratchets as it should when brought in, and has just recently started to not extend, but ratchet much quieter. To add to the issue, the manual crank assembly (nut welded on tube) has fallen off. So I took the crank assembly pipe off of the left side (the dinette actuator side) and moved it to the right side (kitchen) to crank it out. They are different lengths with the missing one much shorter. But I got it on and cranked it out very easily as stated in this thread. I had talked to Bish's RV tech line on Friday and discussed the question about can adjustment. He said he hadn't heard that, but sounded like a try. So I started to crank it in and found about the right spot of retraction where the seal bulb was fully compressed. The can was about an 1/8" or less from touching. Then I retracted it with the motor and saw it deflect slightly the part the can contacts. So I want to adjust the can in, but wasn't able for other reasons to do it yesterday. My only question is....is it as simple as a double nutted assembly? Is the process...loosen the outside nut, slide the can out and move the inside nut to adjust, then retighten? Only asking as I haven't seen an inside nut shown. (or I just missed it)

I'm so thankful that I found this post as well as others have mentioned. I'll report back my findings. Thank you in advance.

[TucsonJim]

BlueDuck - Yes sir, it really is that simple to adjust the can stop. Please let us know if it resolves the problem for you.

Jim

[Country Campers]

I have the exact same issue on my 2021 Reflection 295RL kitchen slide. It retracts and ratchets as it should when brought in, and has just recently started to not extend, but ratchet much quieter. To add to the issue, the manual crank assembly (nut welded on tube) has fallen off. So I took the crank assembly pipe off of the left side (the dinette actuator side) and moved it to the right side (kitchen) to crank it out. They are different lengths with the missing one much shorter. But I got it on and cranked it out very easily as stated in this thread. I had talked to Bish's RV tech line on Friday and discussed the question about can adjustment. He said he hadn't heard that, but sounded like a try. So I started to crank it in and found about the right spot of retraction where the seal bulb was fully compressed. The can was about an 1/8" or less from touching. Then I retracted it with the motor and saw it deflect slightly the part the can contacts. So I want to adjust the can in, but wasn't able for other reasons to do it yesterday. My only question is....is it as simple as a double nutted assembly? Is the process...loosen the outside nut, slide the can out and move the inside nut to adjust, then retighten? Only asking as I haven't seen an inside nut shown. (or I just missed it)

I'm so thankful that I found this post as well as others have mentioned. I'll report back my findings. Thank you in advance.

I have not seen inside the can yet but I am guessing that there is a nut that needs to be moved. The process you are explaining is how I would do it. Also worth noting to NOT hold the button when retracting or extending this type of slide for too long, one or 2 clicks is all that is needed.

Brian

[Jlawles2]

I have adjusted the Can on my unit. The can is actually threaded so just the one jamb nut to deal with.

NOTE: Started having issues with getting the couch slide to START extending only. Seems the floor may have a slight divot when it retracts fully leading to the slide hanging not being able to break free. If I nudge it out 5 turns on the manual handle it moves on it's own.

[Cate&Rob]

Jlawles2 Hi Joseph,

A solution to getting the slide moving outward might be to use “Slide Slickers”. I have been using these for years. I pull the slide in about 4” and then jam the strips as far as I can, in under the slide ends. The slide then rides on these, protecting the floor . . . but, maybe also covering the divot that you may have ?

Rob