Jack bottomed out and froze

Sebourn · 08-28-2019, 11:02 PM

We arrived at the campground late Sunday afternoon last week and I began setting up. The site sloped down towards the rear so in leveling front to back, the tongue was going to be very low to the ground. I watched the bubble level on the trailer side and I asked the DW to operate the jack switch. I didn't notice how low the jack was until it ground to a halt. I tried to raise it back up but got nothing. It was dead and my first thought was it just jammed itself tight. DW was very upset thinking the worst and that it was her fault. I told her not to worry and that first thing the next morning, I'd drive back to the town we came thru about 8 miles away where I had seen an RV Shop.

We ate supper still thinking about what to do. Then I remembered reading a post on the Forum awhile back that there was a fuse for the jack. I checked the inside fuse panel but saw nothing. Then I thought the post might have mentioned the fuse was located near the jack. I went outside and sure enough, there was an in-line 30 amp fuse. I checked and it was blown.

I eagerly relayed my finding to DW thinking she would put her guilt feelings away. I told her i'd get a fuse the next morning to which she asked if the WMT we had passed in the town might have one and that they were surely still open at 6 pm on a Sunday. We've been married 50 years so I pretty much knew what was going to be next. So you guessed it, it was off to the town. Like they say, if Mama ain't happy, no one is happy.

As it turned out, WMT did not have the fuse size but across the street was a still open O'Reilly Auto. I bought the box of 25, 30amp fuses and headed back to the campground. It worked!!!

Thank you Forum! I'm so glad I was able to recall the post. DW was happy - I was relieved.

dalford · 08-28-2019, 11:11 PM

Lol.. now you never told us how much that trip to WM cost you to buy a $1 fuse...

SeaDog · 08-28-2019, 11:40 PM

That is the great thing about this forum an RVer can learn through the experiences of others. Thanks for sharing

Sebourn · 08-29-2019, 06:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dalford

Lol.. now you never told us how much that trip to WM cost you to buy a $1 fuse...

The package of fuses was right at $10 and I know I'll probably never use the rest of them. But getting it fixed and DW having a good nights sleep was worth it.

Dave Lyon · 08-29-2019, 06:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebourn

The package of fuses was right at $10 and I know I'll probably never use the rest of them. But getting it fixed and DW having a good nights sleep was worth it.

But....you may be able to pay it forward to another camper in need!

DaGrinch · 08-29-2019, 06:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Lyon

But....you may be able to pay it forward to another camper in need!

X2. ^^^^^^ Good thought!

Sebourn · 08-29-2019, 06:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Lyon

But....you may be able to pay it forward to another camper in need!

Most definitely will do that

Craig and Carol · 08-29-2019, 01:28 PM

Total agreement with SeaDog. People sharing their failures, successes, and Ta Da moments make this forum a Godsend. Thank you from a newbie.

Scrapper · 08-29-2019, 02:24 PM

Just so you know, some tongue jacks have the fuse inside the housing for the motor, my tt has one such jack.

CedarCreekWoody · 08-29-2019, 03:50 PM

Also, just so you know, most jacks have a manual option and come with a tool to manually raise or lower the jack. You should have a tool in your storage area.

oldsmasma · 08-29-2019, 07:55 PM

Nice story! Thanks for sharing. You’re a good hubby.

D W · 08-30-2019, 11:02 AM

Lesson learned here.

Always carry an assortment of spare fuses for your RV, and your TV. I carry a full assortment of ATC, ATM and MAX blade fuses, along with a spare FMX fuse (brake controller), plus a spare fuel pump relay. It's better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it. You could be miles from the nearest Walmart or parts store.

Many times I have been approached by a neighbor in a CG asking if I had a spare fuse they could buy off me. I gladly give them a fuse and refuse to take any money from them. Normally, they return in 15 minutes with a beer and tell me a fuse assortment has been put on their must have list.

Sebourn · 08-30-2019, 11:34 AM

In my case, I ordered one of the nice plastic boxes with the multi fuse assortment as soon as we got back home. Learned my lesson too.

As a funny side note, when we bought the TT, our sales person showed me where the panel was and I asked him to throw in some spare fuses in the deal and he said he would. He gave me a small plastic bag with about 5 loose fuses in it which I put away in a drawer. I never paid that much attention to it.

When this event happened, I pulled the bag out to see if it had the fuse I needed and found he had put a few very odd amperage "mini" blade fuses instead of the "standard" size found in my panel.

Sebourn · 08-30-2019, 05:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CedarCreekWoody

Also, just so you know, most jacks have a manual option and come with a tool to manually raise or lower the jack. You should have a tool in your storage area.

Actually, I did remember this before I thought about a fuse. I found the crank handle under the bunk mattress. I removed the rubber plug on top of the jack housing and tried turning the nut in the housing with force but it didn't seem to want to budge at all. I wondered if you have to have the weight off the jack to manually raise and lower the foot. I had thought about lifting the receiver using my truck jack. Fortunately I thought of the fuse before going further.

For future knowledge, has anyone operated their electric jack manually? Is the nut supposed to be really hard to turn? What about the direction to turn the nut for up or down?

**bikendan** · 08-30-2019, 06:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sebourn

Actually, I did remember this before I thought about a fuse. I found the crank handle under the bunk mattress. I removed the rubber plug on top of the jack housing and tried turning the nut in the housing with force but it didn't seem to want to budge at all. I wondered if you have to have the weight off the jack to manually raise and lower the foot. I had thought about lifting the receiver using my truck jack. Fortunately I thought of the fuse before going further.

For future knowledge, has anyone operated their electric jack manually? Is the nut supposed to be really hard to turn? What about the direction to turn the nut for up or down?

Depends on brand and model.
My old electric jack used a crank handle, while my current one uses a socket.

CedarCreekWoody · 08-30-2019, 06:15 PM

You should be able to turn it under load. That is its only purpose.

Sebourn · 08-30-2019, 08:15 PM

Thanks Bikendan and Cedar Creek Woody. I'll check it out more. BTW, mine is an LCI 3500 lb but not sure of model number.
Thanks again though.

rockfordroo · 08-30-2019, 08:26 PM

Wrap a piece of electrical tape around the jack tube so it meets the jack housing just BEFORE the jack hits the stop. Then you won't blow the fuse next time. My dealer did this on my PDI.

CNYCamper · 08-30-2019, 08:40 PM

When my electric jack froze, I had a good selection of spare fuses on hand - all except the needed 30 amp (didn't realize at the time that the jack had a fuse). I had trouble raising the jack manually until I used my 4 way lug wrench - that gives plenty of leverage.

Sebourn · 08-30-2019, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rockfordroo

Wrap a piece of electrical tape around the jack tube so it meets the jack housing just BEFORE the jack hits the stop. Then you won't blow the fuse next time. My dealer did this on my PDI.

Great tip. I did that as soon as I got home.

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