Changing Out Lippert Hydraulic Hoses

[Exposed]

We have a 2016 38RSB3 DRV that is 5 years old this month. About a year or so ago, we noticed on a trip the kitchen slide started to creep out going down the road. This was very alarming and concern. We pulled over and reseated the slide and was fine. A couple trips later this happened again and actually several travel days on our vacation. This year on our September vacation, it happened again every day or so. Stopped into the DRV dealer in Logan, UT. Tech looked at it and said most likely a solenoid valve. After some research and testing I feel pretty comfortable it is a seal inside the slide cylinder that is not holding. After talking with DRV at the factory, I decided to just replace the cylinder. I have ordered again and hopefully will get this week. The first cylinder they sent was the wrong length and actually ended up being the one for the dinette slide. Anyway, opening up the area in the belly around the cylinder, I see that the hose on the cylinder is also leaking where the crimps are made. I have read many blogs on these cheap China hoses that Lippert is using on our RV's. This hose of course is the extend side which comes from the pump area off the main distribution block in the front. To replace this hose, you have to do a bunch of work on the belly just to get access. I am familiar with these hoses since I had two of the stabilizing jacks leaking where they connected same deal. I had Napa make up two replacement hoses couple months ago. We had another trip planned so I elected to replace and just tie wrap above to the frame above the suspension and would put back inside in the future.

So now I decided to tackle this beast and just replace all of these crappy hoses with good quality hoses. Since we have another trip planned middle of January, I can't tear all the underbelly out right now. I see a lot of users just take it back to the Lippert factory service center in IA. This time of the year and since I am just outside Houston, not practical to make that trip.
I have figured out the schematic on how DRV ran the hoses and estimated lengths for each one. Looks like 16 hoses (2 already replaced) totaling about 210 feet of hydraulic hose. Not for sure on cost (shopping around right now) of hose, fittings, and labor to build but estimate about $1200-$1500.
Will post as this progresses.

[porkchop]

Lippert factory is in Goshen, Indiana, not Iowa. Still not a good choice this time of year. I have never heard of anyone going there to have all their hoses changed, but I have heard of several people changing one hose before. Usually made by a local shop. The hoses are made at the DRV factory for each specific unit.. Have no idea which country the hose or fittings come from. Good luck

Bill

[Exposed]

My bad on the state initials, I knew it was in Indiana. I may be mistaken thinking that the hoses are supplied from Lippert. I made the assumption that since all these blogs on people having issues, related to the orange and black thin walled hoses. I figured Lippert supplies all of the components. If DRV is making the hoses, then I am really disappointed in them since we paying top dollar for these RV's and using cheaper hoses and fittings. Your operating pressures are up around 2500# and using 3000# rated hoses. I would think to upgrade the quality of hoses and fittings to 6000# would be peanuts in cost of these units. I have five so far that are seeping at the fittings with two ballooned in the hose. Being only 5 years I feel like this is totally unacceptable.

[Exposed]

Well I pulled the trigger yesterday and went to Katy Hydraulic here in Katy, TX. I estimated lengths of all the hoses and then added 3' for error. The new hoses are rated at #6200 working pressure with matching fittings. It is double braided steel wire reinforced. The replacement hoses should hold up much better. 14 hoses, fittings, and labor was $802. This was much cheaper than going to Napa as the 2 I replaced last month. Weather pending, will try to get started this weekend on the front landing jacks. I can do them without removing the belly covering..

[Cummins12V98]

Independent Hydraulic Hose Company is the best place to go. YES the fittings DRV supplies are CHICOM JUNK.

I really doubt your ram is defective. Most likely a solenoid.

[joleyred]

I have a 2016 36RSSB3, I had the exact issue you are describing with the same slide. It's a little unnerving whe you look in the mirror and see the slide hanging out. I have found that if I operate that slide last in the breakdown mode, it doesn't move. So when we are breaking down, we pull all slides in, all stabilizers in and then I run the kitchen slide out a few inches and back in and it stays in. I can't find the problem and have talked to several people, never Lippert, but what we are doing solves the issue. I don't think it's the solenoid valve because it either works or it doesn't. I tend to think there might be a check valve not holding. Whatever it is, if I do as described, problem is solved. It's cheap and easy.
Tim

[RLopez]

2016 39RESB3 having same problem! Anyway we can talk?

[joleyred]

Lopez,
Who do you want to talk to, OP?

[RLopez]

Joleyred,
Thank you for your help i was needing to get in touch with Exposed if at all possible.

[Notanlines]

Rlopez, I sent a PM for you to Exposed.

[Exposed]

Sorry, was out of town this weekend and just getting caught up. Glad to see I am not the only one with this problem. I can be reached at calvin.brown@ccb-design.com. I would be happy to talk to anyone on what I have figured out and my plans on redoing the hoses.

[Exposed]

Planning on starting the work on replacing hoses probably next weekend. I need to put RV back in the barn and elevate on some blocks to give me more working room under it. I have been researching all the information I can find on replacing and bleeding air out of the system when opening up. I also have worked up a schematic on the system so I can label all the new hoses since they are mostly different lengths. Also made a chart I took to the hydraulic hose guy for him to use in lengths of each hose. I will attach both if someone is interested. Will update as project continues...

[porthole]

Nice layout chart

[clev]

Thank you, Exposed; I printed out both pages. I'm sure this will assist all of us that may have future problems. Would you post, please, where you downloaded the schematic? Even though your's is probably similar, I would like to get the exact schematic for my 2017 36RSSB3.

[Exposed]

I talked to DRV and Lippert to come up the schematic. I created it with their information and my physically figuring out the layout. Since I changed out two of the hoses already I saw how they had ran the hoses. Since I have not completely removed the belly, my dinette slide is the only one I have not verified how it is tied in. I feel pretty comfortable since I traced out that side when replacing hoses. I actually had also downloaded a couple of schematics I found on the Lippert site reference from Greg at DRV. I will find those and post later today.

[Cummins12V98]

Nice job, thanks!

[Exposed]

Well today is a successful day in preparation of the work on the hydraulic system. Spend most of the day cleaning my trailer bay in the shop so would have room and clean floor to work from. DRV is in the shop now and also cut a couple 2"x6"'s to pull up on to for another 1 1/2" clearance underneath. I also decided to post a couple more documents on what information I had found between Lipper and DRV. The 6 point jacks pdf show how to install the system. On page 17 there is a good diagram showing the plumbing on the hydraulic. My system is pretty much like this except the main extend valve block has two more taps with hoses and solenoid valves for both slides. One for each slide. The slide retracts are tied into the leveling jack returns.
The cylinder test pdf shows how to trouble shoot the slide cylinder for internal bleeding. I figure to gather two high pressure gauges and misc. hydraulic fittings, I would just replace the cylinder and be sure. If it showed internal leaking I would replace anyway. That is all for today... After trying to attach the Lippert document it was too large (6 megs) for upload. I snapped a PDF of just the page 17 instead. If anyone wants the complete PDF, just email me your address and I will send to you..

[Exposed]

Clev, sorry I missed your request. If you go to lci1.com, that is the root of their stuff. On the left there is a tab for Products and Capabilities. If you go there, you look for product like Leveling Systems. Then at the bottom there generally is a download PDF with information in it. You have to look at individual products and may find what you are needing. The PDF I could not attach because of size is location in one of those areas. Would have to go back through to find. I think all these RV manufactures use that document as the go by to install the 6 jack system like we have. Since the slides are a different product, there is probably one but could not find. They don't have information (PDF's) on all there products or at least I did not find.. Hope this helps...

[clev]

Thank you, Exposed.

[Exposed]

I went out to the shop this morning to evaluate where to place jack stands under the front of the DRV so can take load off the landing jacks. I also decided to do a test on the slide cylinder. I noticed yesterday when retracting the leveling jacks, the slides were already in. By the time I was complete in retracting, the slide had came out almost completely. Thinking about this last night, I came up with this conclusion. When the slide is in, the solenoid valve is closed. So the extend portion of the cylinder is blocked in. Since the retract side is all tied together, if you retract any cylinder (jacks/slides), pressure is applied to the retract side of the hydraulics. Normally, if the solenoid remains closed, no flow is allowed since it is blocked in from the solenoid. However, if any cylinder is allowed pressure to bleed over internally in the cylinder, that pressure will take the path of least resistance and apply pressure to the opposite side of the cylinder until both sides equalize then it will stop moving. So as a test this morning after looking for jack stand placement, I closed off the slide. Then I extended leveling jacks down. Once down, there was no movement of the slide. The solenoid held pressure and did not allow to pass to the slide cylinder. So then, I retracted the leveling jacks, immediately, the slide started to extend. When finished retracting leveling jacks, the slide was already completely extended. From this observation, I feel pretty comfortable that I have a cylinder that is allowing internal bypass of pressure when applied to the cylinder. If someone has another theory, please let me know. At this point, I feel pretty good that my issue here is with the cylinder and not the solenoid coil or valve. If the valve was not completely closing, it would start going out when any button to extend would be pressed.

[RLopez]

Thank you, Exposed.

[USA in a Chevrolet]

I had the same problem of a slide out creeping out 10 years ago when I purchased my 2010 DRV Select Suites on my very first trip. I called Lippert & was told they would look at it but suggested I try the following. First when extending slides start with bedroom then kitchen then dining room. When retracting slides go in opposite order. Now the important thing. After you have hooked up to your truck & retracted landing gear & levelers, go inside & bump each slide switch to the in position. When I did that the slide would go in a fraction of an inch. Lippert said that by doing this it equalizes pressure on all cylinders. Since that first day I have always done this & never had a creeping problem again. We still have our Select Suites & travel at least 12000 miles each year. Of course I’ve made lots of improvements such as the forever roof & many others. Try this if you still have the problem after your repairs. As for construction materials my fiver was made by DRV when it was still owned by David Fought. And yes it’s 10 years old but looks brand new.

[terry and jo]

Like USA in a Chevrolet, our Mobile Suites is also a 2010 model. At one of the regional rallies back then, we found out about the sequence that he mentioned on the slide operation. What I didn't know about was the "bumping" of the slides after hooking up, but then, we've not had an issue with slides coming out.

Terry

[Exposed]

Interesting information. I would probably agree as long as the last button you pushed was for the slide having the issue. It seems retracting any of the other hydraulic cylinders after the troubled slide is in, it will come back out. For the first couple trips, we could just reset that slide (bring in/out) and it would be fine. But later, the current solution showed that did not work anymore fixing the issue. Thanks for the information..

[terry and jo]

As it was explained to us, by operating the slides in the "correct" order, it caused the system to purge any air in the lines back to the reservoir. That is why the order was front to back and back to front.


That said, I have NO CLUE as to whether air in the lines had/have any relationship to a slide slipping back out. The only other thing that "might" have a bearing is having the "additive" added to the hydraulic fluid. That has supposedly had a positive effect by helping to keep the jack cylinders from leaking down. I can't speak to that personally because we've never had issues with our hydraulics. (We've also not been frequent movers, thus our slides and jacks don't get much of a workout.)


Terry

[RLopez]

Thank you, Terry and Jo
Good luck Today Exposed if you happen to work on your unit.

[Exposed]

Today, I was going to start on the hose/cylinder project but I hate to start a new project when I already have another project going. I am posting another one of my projects on a different post here in the DRV section. I want to finish building my jack pads I started prior to this blog... I hope to start on this tomorrow...

[Exposed]

Well it was a long weekend here at the Brown's DRV Repair Shop. I had to do a brake job on the granddaughter’s Hyundai Friday afternoon so did not get back to the DRV hose replacement job until Saturday morning. I decided to call my brother to come over to help. Honestly, it is definitely a two-man job. I did go back after getting all the hoses pulled and took some pictures but most of the work is inside the belly so hard to get any decent shots.

We started out by putting jacks under the front of the RV to be able to up/down the landing jacks without having the truck hooked up. This gave us space to work in on the hydraulic pump/manifold area being open to the front. Looking at the existing lines we decided to do the front landing jacks first. This was a total of 4 new lines. After getting the load off the front-end jacks, we raised the jacks just off the ground. We were thinking this would minimize fluid dumping when disconnecting. Was pretty easy except having a wire tie screwed into the frame above the generator and no way to access. Ended up with some long dikes and barely getting your hand in across from the pump area and snipped loose. We connected the new hoses to the existing hoses and pulled through over the generator housing. Once pulled, reconnected new hoses. With all four lines replaced, figured would cycle couple of times to see if working okay. Made some noise when first stared up then seem to get all the air out and started working. I would say this was the easiest part of the upgrade.

Looking at the routing from the pump/manifold area, lines run down the backside of the loading jack down to the bottom just outside the frame in the rolled part of the side skin. It is rolled and then screwed into the bottom of the frame. I could also see a wire tie to the landing jack at the top where lines head down. This was a bad deal to start. Seeing this, my next move was to get access to that area and best option was to remove the control panel that operates the landing jacks. I removed the mounting screws this gave me access to that area and could see where lines were wire tied several spots going down the land jack housing (see picture Hose-3). From the bottom, I realized that I would not need to cut into the belly covering since the lines were outside the frame and actually inside the area covered by the skin where it rolls under the RV (see picture Hose-2). First issues were jack stands to support the front needed to be on the frame and that would cover up a big chuck of the rolled skin that needed to be removed. I decided to just cut back just enough to place a 2x4 block for support and still allow me to remove all the screws holding the skin to the frame. Once I did that, I could loosen the skin and let it drop down. Sure enough our great guys at the factory wire tied all the lines (hydraulic, cable, telephone, electrical) together and then screwed to the floor. No way to just pull out the old ones. So, had to remove all the wire ties and then could separate the hydraulic lines. The next issue was the cut out in the floor from the top was barely large enough for all those lines. The new lines have larger connections so I knew that would be an issue fishing the lines down through there. I decided to cut out an area in the bottom of the butane box which gives me access to work around the hole at the floor level (see picture Hose-5). After doing this, I could stick my hand through the cut out (about 4”x6” opening) and manage to feed each line down through the area. After removing all 5 lines from the manifold, I took the 5 new lines and pulled through one at a time. Then, I tie wrapped to the land jack housing for now.

This was a good start, but the fun had just begun. It was easy pulling the old lines back to where the lines disappear when you get to where your water line access opens to the bottom of the RV. At that point, that opening is a big bowl which covers out to the edge of the from under. Apparently, the factory cut a hole in the frame about 4”-5” past where the hoses disappear (see picture Hose-1). About 4’ past this point is where the kitchen slide cylinder and mid landing jacks are located. Moving to that area, there was a partial area that was cut out and then foamed sprayed to seal off area. I removed all the foam and then opened up the area that was already cut. By bending back I could see a partial wood frame mounted that allowed to attach the belly covering. I went ahead and cut along the wood frame all the way across to the other side. I could then bend back and push the insulation back and could see the cylinder and also where the 5 lines show up on the inside of the frame now. I decided to cut another section of the belly covering about a foot from where I though it was passing through the frame. From this access I could then pull each existing line through the frame. I connected the new line and tapped to the old line and pulled from back toward the cylinder. It took awhile wiggling and twisting hoses but got all 5 pulled out and new ones pulled in. I would consider this the hardest part in replacing all the lines. Once we had all 5 lines pulled, we started working on cylinder replacement on the kitchen slide. This is where all this got started. We had followed the Lippert directions on replacing cylinder, so slide was extended prior to starting. Since cylinder was pretty easy to get to once open on the bottom and insulation pulled back, took about 30 minutes to swap out with new cylinder. At this point, we opened up some areas at each leveling jack. We were fortunate DRV had not tied anymore hoses down with tie wraps so we would just pull old hoses out and tape new hoses to old ones. We replaced all but the hoses to one leveling jack and the dinette cylinder Saturday. It was about 3:30 and decided to call it a day. We are not spring chickens anymore and decided to finish up Sunday morning.

We got started back Sunday morning and when we opened up the area at the dinette cylinder, the insulation was wet around the end of the cylinder. Sure enough, seal on the shaft is leaking. So now will have to replace the other cylinder even though it has not been any issues in operating. We went ahead and pulled the remaining new hoses and connected.

So now all the new hoses are installed and all that is needed it connecting the 5 at the manifold. With all things going on when doing the replacement of lines, the sequence of where the 4 extend lines (kitchen and dinette slide, right and left leveling jacks) got switched. The schematic I had downloaded ended up being not correct. After connecting all the new lines and putting pressure on them, I decided to just switch power connectors on the solenoids instead of disconnecting and reconnecting the hoses. Once you break these connections or have a leak, it can make a mess pretty quick in the compartment. It took awhile to figure out the new order of the lines but finally got everything working the correct device. Starting at the rear and moving forward, opened and closed everything to the front several times to get all the air out of the system. Now, all the hydraulics are working okay. I also can now bring in the kitchen slide and then bring up jacks and other slide and it is not moving. Before it would creep back out. The final test will be on our next road trip to make sure but feel comfortable replacing the cylinder was the issue.

Got off the phone with DRV awhile ago and got the dinette slide cylinder ordered. And of course, not in stock so will probably take couple of weeks to get the replacement cylinder. I also ordered replacement stainless screws and flat washers to replace all the screws I removed. There were several different sizes and flavor. Guess they just grab whatever is close when using these since they would be the same you would think. Once get the new screws can button all the bottom up except at the rear cylinder.
I meant to take a picture of the 16 old hoses replaced. It was quiet a pile and about 250’ feet of hoses. I spent about $1000 on new hoses, $145 for new kitchen cylinder, and now $256 for dinette slide. $30 for transmission fluid. I don’t know what the dealer would get for this job, but I am sure a lot more than this. I will probably do some searching around Houston for someone to rebuild both of my original cylinders and have on hand if I have another one quit functioning or starts leaking.

One other thing I would like to mention is you can see in the pictures, the propane line that runs under the RV, is rusted big time. I am sure it is probably okay but looks like it is 20 years old and set outside in the weather forever. This is alarming to me since this DRV has not been parked outside and never been on roads where salt was used (except maybe delivery to Kansas). Another project will be to replace this black iron pipe in the near future.

To end this, I would say this was a success and anyone planning on tackling this, be prepared for some work. It is not hard but definitely time consuming. Anyone needing more information can contact me via email and will be happy to talk about this venture… I will update post once I get the dinette cylinder to close the blog.

[porthole]

Some job!

Seeing that it would be nice if you could order a "conduit upgrade" when ordering a new trailer, allowing the pulling of replacement hydraulic hoses. The wires and H2O lines would be less of a concern, if you really had to you could just one new hoses and wires.

[Cummins12V98]

If they put QUALITY lines in the first place most would never need replacing. While at MORryde the tech adding my risers accidentally burned a hole thru one of my lines. He took the line to a local hydraulic shop and was back in a few minutes with a MUCH higher quality hose. He said yea DRV puts junk on these.

[Exposed]

You would think for what our DRV's cost, the extra cost would be a no brainer for complimenting your quality of your unit. Running steel tubing inside the frame and connect short flexible hoses outside like your car is for brake lines. All hoses would be accessible from outside the frame. And then on the hoses inside the frame (like slide cylinders) were installed with steel braided hoses to minimize ever having any issues. Another pet peeve I have is the final delivery where the workers on the line don't police there trash when they complete their task. It is like they don't take pride in the work. It would be like a complete house where they throw all the trash in closets and attic. You see saw dust, shavings, pieces of plastic, wire, tape, screws, normal trash when doing a project. They just leave it behind like we are living in Mexico. Anyway enough of the complaining... :p

[Cummins12V98]

Nice job!!!

[RLopez]

Thank You, Exposed for all your help with pictures,infor. and the time it took you to post everything. My turn to work on my DRV.

[Exposed]

RLopez, if you decide to tackle this, give me a call and couple things I can tell that might make it little easier since been down that road.

[Exposed]

I have been away from the forum for a couple of weeks due to our Texas weather last week. We had lots of electrical outages and eventually broken water pipes in the house and shop. I have been here off/on since 1960 here in the Houston/Katy area. Don't think I have seen these cold temperatures for such a long period of time. Anyway due to availability of water replacement parts here since so many had broken water pipes, we still don't have water in my shop but capped off lines that burst in the house. Hopefully get some parts this next week to repair. Tomorrow, I plan on replacing the dinette slide cylinder that has a leaking seal. The replacement cylinder came in right before the cold weather hit. Once this is done, I will start buttoning up the removed sections of skin on the bottom of the DRV. Hopefully this ordeal with hydraulic hoses will be in the rear view mirror. I did order replacement SS screws and washers to button up the bottom since most of the ones I removed were rusted up. I am probably going to replace the gas header on the bottom too since it looks terrible all rusted up. Will post progress once I get there....

[Cummins12V98]

Good luck with the SS screws if trying to attach to steel as they are too soft. Wood backing that's softwood or pre drilling hardwood they will be fine.

[RLopez]

Exposed any way you can take pictures of the belly where you cut out the holes. Again a BIG THANK YOU for all your help.

[Exposed]

Sometimes I wonder if buying the DRV was the right decision. I can't seem to get a break... Will explain at bottom..

Will start off with got the DRV buttoned back up on the belly. I was going to use the expanding foam on all the cracks in the Coroplast to seal up. This stuff goes everywhere and is not good on the bottom since gravity takes control of where it goes. When sealing up looks a cave with stalactites coming down everywhere. Decided wait till harden then taka a cutter and cut off. I think this work okay. Since the shop was so cold from the artic front, we have really warm temps this past week so everything in the shop was sweating with moisture. The Coroplast was dripping with moisture. So thought I would hold off till Sunday before continuing. I had only a couple of my cutouts that needed some kind of internal support to make a joint to seal up. The area around the slide cylinders have some internal wood framing that worked good to just re-screw and button up. I went to HD and picked up some aluminum flat bar (1/8"x2"). Cut some strips the length of the cut out area that needed support. Drilled and tapped screws into the aluminum. Then slid behind the cut line and screwed in new screws where had tapped out. This seems to be good now and then just apply the sealer to seal the crack.

I know RLopez had requested pictures but it is kind of difficult to show really what you might want. So decided to throw together a sketch showing where I cut the Coroplast. Where I could I would basically make 3 cuts and leave the last side and fold back. This keeps everything in line with matching joint and makes it easier to reconnect. The Coroplast goes out to the edge of the frame rails and uses a C-channel to keep it closed. By removing the C-channel, you have one side access already. I did have to cut a rectangle section out in front of the Kitchen slide up front. About a foot going forward the hydraulic lines pass from the inside of the frame to the outside under the skin where the siding rolls under and attaches to the bottom of the frame rails. We changed out the Dinette slide and now have all hooked back up. New cylinder is working good and no leaks. I also noticed when cycling the Dinette slide in and out, no movement on the Kitchen slide. This was a guaranteed movement before. I feel good about all the hoses and now slide cylinders are replaced as well. After completing the sealing up, hopefully put this issue to bed.

When I went out to start Sunday morning, I had water on the floor. Thinking it was still wet from Saturday when lot of the concrete was sweating, did not think much about it. Started working and noticed out corner of my eye a drip from bracket that hold gas line to the Coroplast. Stopped and sure enough had water dripping about every 45-60 seconds. This is right below where the water heater is. My immediate thought was something froze during the bad weather. The DRV never got that cold and I had the furnace on 45 degrees to keep the water system from having any issues. So got up and went into the access opening where everything in the DRV comes together. After watching I finally saw where water was coming from. It was coming from the water manifold from the Anderson Kantleak valving. What a name, Kantleak and it is leaking in two spots on the manifold. So now after research, another problem that shows up in the DRV. Maybe I have a lemon or something. I will start another topic and track this issue. I enjoy working on stuff but these issues seem to be getting old to me....

[porthole]

Yeah, kantleak water manifolds, never fail bearings etc.
Those early kantleaks, made by the anderson brass company were almost all plastic.

If it helps, this is the foam Lippert uses when they do repairs.
And I got this dispenser along with the spray cleaner.

I find it easier to let the foam do its thing and then use a hacksaw blade to trim. I'll use 2" blue painters tape for any location I want no residue.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Touch-N-Seal-7565029813-Gun-Foam-24-Oz-Size-Black-/383892155004?hash=item5961c16a7c

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JVLSN11/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[Cummins12V98]

I tightened all my fittings a couple years ago on the "KANT LEAK" and have been fine since.

Note! Be sure to turn off water to RV when changing KL valve settings and also receive pressure first. I think that is why most units fail by just turning the valve lets say to fill fresh tank without receiving the pressure.

[Exposed]

I just spoke with Anderson on the valve after watching a video from a DRV owner in swapping out. Looks like two versions of the valve and of course the one I have is back ordered and expected in about a month. I went ahead and ordered and will try to tighten up connections some more. I think it is leaking on the body side and not a hose connection side. It also started leaking on the city water fill connection when we disconnected from city hookup on the last trip out. I ended up just putting a ball valve on the connection and closing when not hooked up to stop leaking. We don't have any trips planned for the next month so should be okay till new manifold gets in.

[terry and jo]

I tightened all my fittings a couple years ago on the "KANT LEAK" and have been fine since.

Note! Be sure to turn off water to RV when changing KL valve settings and also receive pressure first. I think that is why most units fail by just turning the valve lets say to fill fresh tank without receiving the pressure.


Cummins,


Did you mean to type "relieve" and "relieving?"


Terry

[Cummins12V98]

Cummins,


Did you mean to type "relieve" and "relieving?"


Terry

Yes, thanks! corrected.

Tried but for some reason there is no "edit" option on that post.

[Notanlines]

For some reason known only by the site owners this item is only available until five minutes before the OP realizes there is an error. Who knows why?

[RLopez]

Once again thank you for your help I will be shopping for some jack stands today and maybe I can start working on my RV sometime this week. PLEASE tell me WHY we pay so much for our RV’s and yet we still have to come back and repair what DRV should have done RIGHT AT THE FACTORY!

[Exposed]

Supposed to get the replacement for the KantLeak manifold. I did get the water heater drained last weekend in preparing to remove. I also noticed there was two different gaskets that are used. I ended up ordered both since they were cheap and figured one would be the correct one. They are also supposed to be here today as well. I will tackle this issue this weekend and get swapped out. Hopefully this will finish the immediate work on the DRV. I am ready for a trip and getting the itch to go somewhere for a get away. Both wife and I got the second Covid shot couple weeks ago and hopefully are somewhat protected now...

One other thing on the hydraulic hose replacement. I was topping off the reservoir and dawned on me that the front landing jacks were down. So I am about 3/4" from top of the reservoir now and wonder if I need to remove some fluid since the front jacks are not retracted. I guess I will just watch when retracting on next hookup. Hopefully will not burp out when all are retracted.

[Cummins12V98]

I would have someone hit the retract while you look at the fluid level. I am thinking it would come very close to overflowing.

[Exposed]

I received the new replacement for the KantLeak manifold. Looks pretty much the same except the heater bypass connections are backward to what is currently hooked up. I saw one DRV owner had commented on this when he changed out his. It is definitely different so hope have enough slack in the lines to do the swap. Went to Ace Hardware and they did not have the gaskets used on the screw in connections on the manifold. Got out on the Internet and looks like there were two options so ordered both. Watts Aqualock/Seatech and Flair-it 06435. I attached some pictures showing the difference. One is closer but think both would work. Both are same ID and OD but just the shape and height is different. I previewed and noticed the pictures are upside down. Not for sure why.. I will tackle this Saturday morning.

On the reservoir being too full, I am thinking I will remove one of the jack lines and let fluid drain out of the cylinder. This will bring the level down some and be easier than trying to remove from the reservoir. In my DRV, the fill location on the reservoir is hard to get to with all the lines in front of it.

[Exposed]

I know this is a little off subject but relates to the hydraulic jacks. I know on our farm tractor, the hydraulic lift extends and retracts just like our jacks/cylinder slides. The cylinder has equal volume on each side of the cylinder internal. So the amount of fluid required to extend/retract is the same. Maybe all hydraulic cylinders are not created equal. Since they say that the jacks/cylinders need to be retracted to set the level of the reservoir. Why would it matter if the jacks/cylinders were extended/retracted in the reservoir? Looks like either direction would require the same amount of fluid. The only thing I can think is the extend side of the cylinder has a larger volume than the retract side. The landing jacks require less resistance to raise than lower. The slide cylinder would require the same I would think since in/out would be probably the same resistance. Maybe someone has some experience in this and can explain...

[anijet]

The extend side is the total volume of the cylinder. The retract side is the cylinder volume minus the volume consumed by the ram. That is why it has more power in extend mode than retract. The extend pressure acts on the whole area of the piston. The retract pressure acts on the exposed area of the piston (piston area minus the area used by the ram).

[Campingnut]

I received the new replacement for the KantLeak manifold. Looks pretty much the same except the heater bypass connections are backward to what is currently hooked up. I saw one DRV owner had commented on this when he changed out his. It is definitely different so hope have enough slack in the lines to do the swap. Went to Ace Hardware and they did not have the gaskets used on the screw in connections on the manifold. Got out on the Internet and looks like there were two options so ordered both. Watts Aqualock/Seatech and Flair-it 06435. I attached some pictures showing the difference. One is closer but think both would work. Both are same ID and OD but just the shape and height is different. I previewed and noticed the pictures are upside down. Not for sure why.. I will tackle this Saturday morning.

On the reservoir being too full, I am thinking I will remove one of the jack lines and let fluid drain out of the cylinder. This will bring the level down some and be easier than trying to remove from the reservoir. In my DRV, the fill location on the reservoir is hard to get to with all the lines in front of it.

I changed just the seals on mine when I did it but found it still leaked I ended up changing all my fittings to these
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Apollo-1-2-in-Brass-PEX-Barb-x-1-2-in-Female-Swivel-90-Degree-Elbow-APXFAE1212/301541107

[Cummins12V98]

"On the reservoir being too full, I am thinking I will remove one of the jack lines and let fluid drain out of the cylinder."


I highly suggest buying one of these, ZERO mess.

ARES 70920 - Fluid Change Syringe - Smooth Suction Action for Easy Fluid Change - Ideal for Power Steering Fluid, Brake Fluid Removal and More - 200cc Max Capacity $24.38 AMAZON

[Exposed]

Thanks for the explanation on the cylinder. Now thinking about it, makes perfect sense.

I thought about a large syringe and should have looked further. I think I will order one of those. That would definitely be handy to have for more than just this issue.

One thing nice about these forums, always a wealth of information to be had...
thanks

[terry and jo]

I changed just the seals on mine when I did it but found it still leaked I ended up changing all my fittings to these
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Apollo-1-2-in-Brass-PEX-Barb-x-1-2-in-Female-Swivel-90-Degree-Elbow-APXFAE1212/301541107


First of all, our Mobile Suites is a 2010 model, and the water lines on it are 3/8" lines instead of 1/2" ones. Do the newer DRV's have 1/2" lines, or is this just something at the Kantleak thing-a-bobbie? (Our 2010 just has an inlet to put a garden hose to fill the fresh water tank.

Terry

[Campingnut]

First of all, our Mobile Suites is a 2010 model, and the water lines on it are 3/8" lines instead of 1/2" ones. Do the newer DRV's have 1/2" lines, or is this just something at the Kantleak thing-a-bobbie? (Our 2010 just has an inlet to put a garden hose to fill the fresh water tank.

Terry

Ours are all 1/2" on the back of the Kantleak valve.

[porkchop]

The newer models use half inch thru out.


Bill

[Exposed]

I got the KantLeak manifold changed out this weekend. Went pretty smooth except for a couple of things. The top and bottom hoses on the heater bypass have to be switched for the new manifold. Normally that might not be a big deal but this pex tubing is almost as rigid as copper tubing. I assume new it is easier to bend but 5 years old is pretty stiff. Also has to roll the connection 180 degrees to connect. Anyway, I was worried about it leaking after I forced connector to roll. With the two different seals I bought, the shorter one (Aqua) was too short. When connected, the screwed connector would bottom out before compressing. So the Flair-It seals were the correct one to use. I also noticed the line going to the pump suction had a check valve installed which made that line about 1" too long. Since it is a straight shot to the pump, I had to cut it off and shorten to get it installed. Once all connected back up, cut the water on and knock on wood, no leaks. Left water on all night and still good so think we are in good shape. It would not be a difficult job to do except the hot/cold water manifolds are right in the front of access. You have only about a 4" square opening to get to the connections on the KantLeak manifold.

Also, the syringe I ordered (thanks to Cummins recommendation) came in Saturday. It worked great in removing about a quart from the reservoir. I would recommend this for also adding to the reservoir since it is hard to get to.

I think RLopez got started on his project on replacing his hydraulic hoses and slide cylinders this weekend. Hopefully will keep us posted on his progress. Also he was looking at having the cylinders rebuilt instead of ordering new ones. I am curious since I would consider having my old ones rebuilt and keep as spares if ever needed again.

[RLopez]

Hello to everyone,
Yes I did start on my hose/slide cylinder project I was able to locate all hoses and both slide cylinders.My luck both slide cylinders and hoses were leaking no wonder my slide kept coming out every time I made a right turn. I guess we were lucky the door side slide never opened up anyway I did order both slide cylinders from Lippert today and went out to our local hydraulic repair shop to have my hoses cut to size they should be ready by Friday per Lippert my cylinders should also be here by Friday. Exposed the plan is to have my cylinders repaired as soon as I take them back to the Hydraulic shop they will have to look at them to see if they can be repaired I will keep everyone posted.

[Cummins12V98]

"Also, the syringe I ordered (thanks to Cummins recommendation) came in Saturday. It worked great in removing about a quart from the reservoir. I would recommend this for also adding to the reservoir since it is hard to get to."

Great, you will find many uses for it!