Relax Zip Dee Awning

[stevejones]

You may want to check to see if the arms are retracted to the correct point. It looks like from the picture that they probably are but worth checking. There is a scribe mark on each arm that marks the point where they are to be retracted into the main arm housing before the awning is completely rolled up. If you can't see the scribe marks perhaps the arms are retracted too far and that is keeping the awning from being able to roll all the way up? The arms should be retracted just to the point where the scribe mark is even with the opening on the main arm housing. You can retract or extend the arms manually using the flex driver and hex head driver bit that should have been in the same plastic bag the wire you hook up to the motor came in. There is a hex head fitting at the bottom of the shaft in the main arm housing. You can extend or retract the arms using this.

If you can't retract the awning fully using the motor and cable, try using the hex shaft provided in your awning kit. You should have a hex shaped metal shaft that is about 5 inches long. There is a hole in the motor assemble you insert the shaft into and you can turn the shaft with a socket wrench or perhaps your drill to finish retracting the awning.

You will need to completely roll up the awning before you tow the trailer anywhere.

On Monday call Zip Dee and get Randy in tech support on the phone. Hopefully he can help you figure out how to get the awning in all the way.

We had to have our circuit board replaced twice on our awning. When we would press the close button instead of closing the awning would just keep going down... It actually trapped us inside our trailer! It would not retract at all.

When you get to JC see if you can have Vern assigned to work on your awning. He was able to fix ours.

Good luck.

Steve

[thewarden]

The scribe marks on both of my awing arms are in the wrong place. When I used them as a guide when running the arms in/out manually, the awning stuck up in the air when it was rolled back up. I had to run the arms close to another inch into the arm enclosures before the awning would be in the proper closed position.

[GettinAway]

Just subscribing to this thread. I’ve been through three fairly recent threads on the powered awnings. I thought I had seen more through the years. I almost didn’t get this GT because of the powered awning and stabilizers. I prefer manual for both.
So far mine (which I’ve owned for 4.5 weeks, and have lived in for 3.5 weeks) has stopped twice when I was trying to close it. Both times at about 12” from fully closed. Both times when I had previously dropped one corner for rain runoff. I did not see the “leave the power on” warning anywhere. My GT is a 2020 the panel says to make sure it’s off when traveling. So I’ve been shutting it off all the time. I didn’t want it to get bumped. I really don’t want it to be a power drain when boondocking.
The last time I closed it I hit the tilt button again and it came up level, then I hit close and it closed completely. Maybe I hadn’t turned off the power though. If there are future fixes I want to be aware of them. I’m using WD 40 Silicone Lubricant, but I don’t see many places to apply it.
Thx

[JonDNC]

Have one as well, when we picked up trailer tech was very clear, if power is interrupted to the awning it needs to relearn settings/limits. If it doesn’t close all the way just hit close again. Bigger frustration for me is sometimes does,not want to open find I need to open & close it a couple of times. I.e hit open when it stops,hit close, rinse and repeat. Once it fully cycles seems to be fine

[thewarden]

I wish that mine would do at least that. When I hit the open switch I just blow the fuse so clearly a short. I have an appointment with my local AS dealer in the Spring to fix. I was told they will not disassemble the arms, they will just replace them. Apparently, there is no such thing as repairing things, just remove and replace.

[dpyates]

An update on the original post-

Our awning still stops short from closing. We’ve tried everything to correct. It does do the rest of its activities - we think anyway and we are hopeful.

I can tell you we are now very good at manually rolling in the last 12 inches with the help of a battery screwdriver.

This is not a good long term fix obviously, so if anyone gets any updates or possible solutions - we would love to hear.

Thank you!

[djb75]

Ours was prone to sticking until I gave it a couple of shots of white lithium grease and cycled it a couple of times to distribute the grease. After that, it seemed much happier - but that may have just been a coincidence. Once winter goes away and we pull Gladys out of storage, we'll see how it goes.

[GettinAway]

Originally Posted by djb75

Ours was prone to sticking until I gave it a couple of shots of white lithium grease and cycled it a couple of times to distribute the grease. After that, it seemed much happier - but that may have just been a coincidence. Once winter goes away and we pull Gladys out of storage, we'll see how it goes.

Where exactly did you give the shots of lithium grease?
Thx

[Camr]

There is a small hole on the lower arm that you can put a couple of short squirts of lithium grease with the small tube that comes with the can of grease. With that being said, the operation of our awning is still a crap shoot....just like the awning, with the emphasis on the word crap!

[GettinAway]

Thanks, I’ll look for the holes. I cross my fingers every time I hit the button. Has anyone ever done a survey regarding the powered awning? I’m wondering what the actual failure rate is. 10%? .01%? Hopefully not too much higher.

[Airhead2018]

GettinAway, WD40 was not recommended by ZipDee at the 2019 International Rally.

dpyates, Our awning stops at the same point when extending. The problem is intermittent so it is hard to troubleshoot. We have the 5/17 version (green sticker) main board. On that main board is a little switch marked CLOSE. I have never hit that switch but might want to take a look and see if you have it and give it a shot.

[GettinAway]

I use the silicone formula. (From WD40). It feels a lot different than regular WD40.

[Mikebrady62]

Originally Posted by GettinAway

Thanks, I’ll look for the holes. I cross my fingers every time I hit the button. Has anyone ever done a survey regarding the powered awning? I’m wondering what the actual failure rate is. 10%? .01%? Hopefully not too much higher.

Mine has only worked once on the first try. I usually have to cycle it in and out about 3 times to get it fully extended. The warmer weather seems to help.

[turk123]

I posted in another thread that the control box for the awning is below the sink in a Classic 30. It seems like other models have it here also.

That is a disaster waiting to happen, and it did.

My wife was doing dishes and the sink dropped out of the countertop. Water splashed over the backside and into the awning controller. The controller has some crudely cut holes in the top for the ethernet cable that allowed the water to get inside. It shorted out the entire awning control.

My inverter is also below the sink with its Czone control box and it failed a day later even though I cleaned all the water up as soon as I could.

I would make some kind of plastic shield for the electronics under the sink to protect them. I would also make sure your sink connection is tight on the drain (plastic hand tightening ring ). I would check your sink from underneath to see if the four "clips" are bending (very soft metal).

When I called JC I could almost see customer support shaking their head from this perfect storm. ZipDee will not cover it (not their problem) but Airstream said they would.

Point is, check to see your sink is not leaking into the controller right below it.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Does plugging into a running TV or SP help any?

Bob
🇺🇸

I'm just thankful we have the little handles to help make ours more automatic.

[dhroberts]

Originally Posted by kdfulsome54

I had a similar issue this past summer. I called zip Dee and their tech person told me to hit the open switch, let the awning open about then hit the open switch again. This will stop the awning from opening. Next hit the close switch to reset and close the awning. Going forward, they said to always hit the close switch before hitting the open switch, and any time the awning is open to leave the power switch ON. This resets the sensors memory so it knows where to close to. This worked for us with no further issues. I hope this helps you.

Very helpful. Thanks.

[rewillia]

Deleted Thread; failed to realize this was a dated thread addressing the issue described in the original post.

[BudClements]

We have a 2019 FB27 with the Relax awning. The awning has been working fine. We have learned to use the CLOSE cycle prior to OPEN cycle which seems good advice. I am seeking maintenance TIPS. Does Silicon or white lithium grease a reliable maintenance solution? Any other ZipDee Relax recommendations?

[stevejones]

Originally Posted by BudClements

We have a 2019 FB27 with the Relax awning. The awning has been working fine. We have learned to use the CLOSE cycle prior to OPEN cycle which seems good advice. I am seeking maintenance TIPS. Does Silicon or white lithium grease a reliable maintenance solution? Any other ZipDee Relax recommendations?

For lubing, with the awning open, use silicon on the main arm bars (the "skinny" arm extension that slides in and out of the main arm), and the hinges where the main arm attaches to the body of the trailer. Spray the silicon on the arm and using a paper towel or something wipe it all over the arm. In the main arm itself, on the side facing the trailer, there is a small hole. Squirt some lithium grease into this hole using the red straw thing that normally comes with the spray grease. Beware that after you do this lithium grease will drip out the bottom of the main arm. Best not to do this on a windy day or the grease will blow onto your steps (don't ask me how I know this). Close and open the awning a few times.

This is as demonstrated by Ron Blue during the Zip Dee session at Alumapaloosa 2019.

Steve