Airstream Chat Room Airstream Links Campground & Product Reviews Airstream Classifieds Airstream Articles Blogs Photo Gallery Forum Listings Portal - Home Page

Go Back   Airstream Forums > Airstream Restoration, Repair & Parts Forums > Electrical - Systems, Generators, Batteries & Solar




Check out our new sister site AirstreamCentral.com. To contribute an article click here.


Quick Links
- Forum Listings
- Register - it's FREE!
- View Member's Map
- Airstream Articles
- "Live" Chat Room
- View Classifieds
- Post a Classified
- Airstream @ eBay
- Upcoming Rallies
   - Add A Rally
- Rally Discussions
- Repair Discussions
- Search Forums
- Member List
- AIR # Directory
- Member Search
- Profile Photos
- Airstream Photo
- Airstream Links
- Fun & Games
- WBCCI Websites
- WBCCI Unit Forums
- Courtesy Parking
- Campgrounds
- Support & FAQs
- Community Policies
- Helpers Needed




Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 04-15-2004, 03:19 PM   #1
Daniel Conroy
New Member
Profile: 
Posts: 4

Power Jack Problems

The power jack on our 1989 29 Excella only works if connected to a vehicle, never when hooked to shore power. Any ideas?
Daniel Conroy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2004, 05:27 PM   #2
john hd
Moderator

john hd's Avatar
Profile:  1992 29' Excella
madison , Wisconsin
Posts: 4,562
Images: 40

dan

welcome to the forum!

do you have a battery installed in the trailer? i believe the jack is powered by the break away circuit. it may not work unless there is a battery present, and in good working order.

john
__________________
you call them ferrets, i call them weasels.
john hd is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2004, 05:31 PM   #3
nickcrowhurst
Rivet Master
Profile: 
Posts: 1,058
Images: 4

Daniel, this is a strange fault. I will assume your wiring is similar to my 1988 Excella 25 foot. Behind the front couch is the 12 volt distribution center, concealed behind a small panel. This 12v distribution center is fed by the battery, the Univolt, and the charge line from the tow vehicle. One of the 12v supply wires from this center travels down through the floor, and through the inside of the driver's side A-frame member to emerge near the front jack. Here it splits, and one live wire goes to the breakaway switch for trailer braking if the trailer becomes detached from the tow vehicle. The other branch of the live wire goes to the power jack. The ground returns are via the frame. To understand better what is going on, you will need a voltmeter applied between the live wire at the jack, and the frame. A couple of questions spring to mind:-
1. The jack works when the tow vehicle is connected, but not on shore power. Does it work when there is neither shore power nor tow vehicle? i.e, on the trailer battery?
2. Has it been like this since you have owned the trailer? If so, it is possible that the wiring has been altered from it's original layout. A wild guess would be that, as in my trailer, the concealed wire had broken in the A-frame. It is difficult to re-thread a new wire, so it would be easier to take power direct from the charge line from the tow vehicle, cutting this line from its connection to the 12 v distribution center.
As the 12v distribution center should be simultaneously supplied by all 3 alternate sources (when present), it's difficult to see how an accidentally broken wire could cause the fault you describe. My knowledge on this is very basic, so let's hope someone more knowledgeable willl come up with some suggestions. It will be interesting to know the final answer. Good luck. Nick.
__________________
Nick Crowhurst, Excella 25 1988, Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins Diesel. England in summer, USA in winter.
"The price of freedom is eternal maintenance."
nickcrowhurst is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2004, 07:47 PM   #4
smily
"Still Working"

smily's Avatar
Profile:  North Charleston , South Carolina
Posts: 1,632
Images: 19

I cant help but think that the ground is the problem. Almost always more often than not, when there are DC problems that dont make sense, there is a problem with the ground.

Have you tried plugging the Univolt in to shore power and try the jack?

As John HD said, there has to be 12 volts supplied by the battery but the Univolt will do the same thing. I have seen Airsteams with no batteries at all, bu there univolt did the same efforts when plugged into the shore power.

Smily
__________________
Ken Smillie

My 1994 36' Classic MH is for sale
See it in the classifieds
smily is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2004, 10:40 PM   #5
RivetED
Rivet Master

RivetED's Avatar
Profile:  2005 25' Safari
Hillsboro , Texas
Posts: 624

Our's was added (before delivery) at the dealer. It is directly wired to the battery with an in-line fuse.
__________________
"I have a new invention, 'Instant Water'. I don't know what to add to it!"
RivetED is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Power Tongue Jack Motor Head for Sale drboyd Parts Archive 2 08-19-2004 10:51 PM
68-69 Electric Power Jack GT1963 Jacks, Stabilizers, Lifting and Leveling 4 04-12-2004 09:23 AM
Best deal on a power jack? drboyd Jacks, Stabilizers, Lifting and Leveling 1 09-10-2003 07:40 PM
power jack Tikihut Jacks, Stabilizers, Lifting and Leveling 3 03-20-2003 06:12 PM
Another Power Jack Question. 68 Suburban Jacks, Stabilizers, Lifting and Leveling 3 10-15-2002 10:23 PM

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.0.1

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:05 PM.

Other Social Knowledge forum communities:
Cooking Forum - Sailing Forum - Early Retirement - Airstream Trailer - Aquarium Forum - Royal Forum - Book Forum - Volkswagen Touareg Forum - Jeep Wrangler Forum - Whitewater Kayaking & Rafting Forum - Fiberglass RV Forum - RV Forum - Truck Conversion - U2 Music Forum
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.7.2
Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Friendly URLs by vBSEO 3.2.0

Airstream is a registered trademark of Airstream Inc. All rights reserved. Airstream trademark used under license to Social Knowledge LLC.

eXTReMe Tracker

Other recommended Airstream sites:
Airstream Forums - Airstream Classifieds - Airstream Articles
Airstream Central - Airstream Photos