Leveling hydraulics slowly bleeding

[JBurg]

I'm currently on a spot that isn't terribly level, nothing bad and certainly not the worst I've ever parked in, but now our rear landing legs are slowly bleeding by and the trailer is constantly shifting out of level. I bought some 2X12 boards and placed them under the door side tires to level it out a bit more, and that worked on the first day, but once again the trailer is slowly drifting out of level.

Has anyone else experienced this? Any suggestions for a remedy?

[missourijan]

Do you mean the legs are bleeding or the lines themselves are bleeding? Our lines were "weeping" at the connections close to the tank and our front legs were dropping daily. We found the fluid was 2 quarts low, after we put more fluid in the tank the front didn't drop again. Check your connections for loose fittings.

[dapperdan]

We just experienced something similar not too long ago. Our front legs starting "drifting" and every fifteen minutes.

I called Mr Ed (@DRV) for tips, he referred me to Lippert, after talking to their customer service dude I learned the draw tube on the reservoir only extends to the half way mark on the tank. Lippert told me to put the truck under the trailer and bring everything up and in and I should be within 1/2" of the top of the tank. I was 2" low! After adding almost two full quarts of fluid and running the slides and landing gear in & out and up & down several times we were good to go! Problem solved!

Run everything in and up and check your fluid level, hopefully your problem was as easy as mine!

Dan

[JBurg]

Originally Posted by missourijan

Do you mean the legs are bleeding or the lines themselves are bleeding? Our lines were "weeping" at the connections close to the tank and our front legs were dropping daily. We found the fluid was 2 quarts low, after we put more fluid in the tank the front didn't drop again. Check your connections for loose fittings.

I can't find any signs of a hydraulic leak, so it seems like the fluid is leaking through the hydraulic rams themselves. I'm gonna try the suggestion mentioned and see where hydraulic fluid is.

[JBurg]

Originally Posted by dapperdan

We just experienced something similar not too long ago. Our front legs starting "drifting" and every fifteen minutes.

I called Mr Ed (@DRV) for tips, he referred me to Lippert, after talking to their customer service dude I learned the draw tube on the reservoir only extends to the half way mark on the tank. Lippert told me to put the truck under the trailer and bring everything up and in and I should be within 1/2" of the top of the tank. I was 2" low! After adding almost two full quarts of fluid and running the slides and landing gear in & out and up & down several times we were good to go! Problem solved!

Run everything in and up and check your fluid level, hopefully your problem was as easy as mine!

Dan

Thanks Dan, I'll give this a shot. What fluid is needed if the reservoir is low?

[cloud william]

We haven't had any problems with our system, but the other day when I was doing some maintenance I had all the jacks up and the slides all pulled in so I did my first ever check of the fluid reservoir and it was about a quart and a half low. We have seen no signs of any leakage, so I called Greg at DRV and he said it probably wasn't filled correctly at the factory (!?). He referred me to the Lippert Towable RV Manual which states "Type 'A' Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF) is utilized and will work. ATF with Dexron III or Mercon 5 or a blend of both is recommended by Lippert Components, Inc."

We used Valvoline DEX/MERC to refill ours.

[JBurg]

Originally Posted by cloud william

We haven't had any problems with our system, but the other day when I was doing some maintenance I had all the jacks up and the slides all pulled in so I did my first ever check of the fluid reservoir and it was about a quart and a half low. We have seen no signs of any leakage, so I called Greg at DRV and he said it probably wasn't filled correctly at the factory (!?). He referred me to the Lippert Towable RV Manual which states "Type 'A' Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF) is utilized and will work. ATF with Dexron III or Mercon 5 or a blend of both is recommended by Lippert Components, Inc."

We used Valvoline DEX/MERC to refill ours.

At least he was honest I guess. It's a shame that the people putting these things together care so little about what they do. I've been incredibly disappointed in our rig.

Anyway, thanks for the info. Headed out of town without the rig to look at motorcycles this weekend, so I'll check into this on Monday.

[Cummins12V98]

On our last MS with all slides in and landing gear up I sucked out all the ATF and re filled with AMZ/OIL Universal ATF. I will be doing the same shortly with our 15.

[dapperdan]

I added ATF, I don't think it's too critical what you use. But I see Cummins post so maybe Amzoil is the bomb.

Good luck with your unit. After bringing our fluid level up where it should be we have no problems.

Dan

[JBurg]

Almost took two quarts of fluid to get it appropriately full. Hopefully this solves the issue, I'll report back in a few days.

Thanks for your input everyone.

[JBurg]

She's still creaking her way down. Not as quickly as last time, but enough to be annoying. (I ran all the legs up and down three times to try to get any air out of the system)

[dapperdan]

Jburg,

Give running the hydraulics in and out a couple more "shots". The dude I talked to at Lippert told me "more is better", he told me in - out, up - down at least five times to "burp" (work) the air out of the system. Depending on how low you were on fluid and how long you ran the pump ("sucking air") the greater probability of lots of air being introduced into that system making it necessary for several cycles of your hydraulic system.

I would give it another go and see what happens and cross your fingers.

Dan

[JBurg]

Originally Posted by dapperdan

Jburg,

Give running the hydraulics in and out a couple more "shots". The dude I talked to at Lippert told me "more is better", he told me in - out, up - down at least five times to "burp" (work) the air out of the system. Depending on how low you were on fluid and how long you ran the pump ("sucking air") the greater probability of lots of air being introduced into that system making it necessary for several cycles of your hydraulic system.

I would give it another go and see what happens and cross your fingers.

Dan

Thanks Dan. If it's already unlevel, guess it can't hurt anything. My dog does kinda freak out when the house starts moving under his feet. Which makes me feel bad, as I've moved the hydraulics a few times with him inside but didn't know about him freaking out until my wife was inside this last time and told me about it. He's getting old, so him freaking out doesn't usually end well.

Anyway, I'll just have my old buddy join me and run the hydraulics a few more times.

[dapperdan]

JBurg,

10-4 on spooking your dog! I know how that is, we have a cat and he HATES when the slides are moving with him in the RV!

I'd be willing to bet exercising your hydraulic system a bit more will burb out that air. The Lippert CS guy said the more I cycle it the better the chances of it working properly. Worked for us, no more "sagging". Good luck.

Dan

[Terry and Jo]

Originally Posted by dapperdan

JBurg,

10-4 on spooking your dog! I know how that is, we have a cat and he HATES when the slides are moving with him in the RV!

I'd be willing to bet exercising your hydraulic system a bit more will burb out that air. The Lippert CS guy said the more I cycle it the better the chances of it working properly. Worked for us, no more "sagging". Good luck.

Dan

I agree with exercising the whole system more, and that includes taking the slides in and out.

Terry