Wish I Knew That About My Schwintek Slide
I receive several service calls per week from stranded RVers with panic in their voice because one of their RV slides will not retract, and I often hear “…and our check-out time at the RV park is in 30 minutes!”
The two most popular types of RV slides take periodic maintenance, but most RV Dealers don’t tell you that, nor how to maintain them. This post is about the most common of those, the Lippert (LCI) In-Wall or Thin-Wall “Schwintek” type. In this photo, you can see the notable Schwintek aluminum gear tracks:
My service calls are not because they are an inferior system (I actually like them best), but because when I repair them, I usually hear “I sure wish I had known that!” Here are 3 tips to reduce service calls:
- Synchronize them
The first issue I see often is the two motors get out of sync and the slide gets misaligned or stuck. There are two motors, one on each of the upper corners in the wall, and you can hear them “hum” when extending or retracting. Those two motors “talk” to each other electronically and try to spin at the same speed, but if they are not properly synchronized, they can get out of alignment, and get progressively worse.
To Sync these motors yourself, hold down the “Retract” or “Extend” button an additional 5 seconds after they reach either end. This will “amp-out” those two motors and reset them to zero which synchronizes them together. When they are in sync, you should hear each of them “hum” together when operating the slide, and hear them stop together at the same time when done.
Now, if this didn’t remedy the problem, your slide motors may need to be coaxed a bit to re-synchronize. To do this, try to bring the slide in about 5 inches, then extend it back out…holding down the button for 5 more seconds after it’s extended. Repeat this 4 or 5 times.
2. Don’t lubricate them
The second issue I see with these “Schwintek” slides is mechanical problems because the gear tracks get dirty, or the owner lubricates them. Do not lubricate the gear tracks! Just keep them clean by washing them with a scrub brush and mild soapy water, or wipe with a rag. The gear mechanisms in the wall that slide along this track are plastic and wear out quickly if the tracks are dirty. Lubrication can attract dirt which can prematurely wear out the plastic. So keep those tracks clean only.
3. Know about your slide controller
Lastly, you should know where your slide controller is, and how to read it. There is one controller per slide, and each controls both motors. This controller has a set of blinking lights to give you error codes, and what the probable cause is. There is also a manual override which is helpful to get a stuck slide moving again.
RVs should be fun, not frustrating, and RV knowledge starts with a Certified NRVIA Inspection and RV School I would love to help you with both! See “Where is Kevin” to the right and contact me if I am near you!
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