Slowww... Awing Retraction Hot vs. Cold Weather

[Terry S]

Slow awing retraction on both our awnings has been an issue for us since we picked up the unit two years ago. Was on the one year inspection list but the dealer didn't get to it. Like many others I suspected voltage drop and there are several threads on the forum discussing this, e.g. tried re-crimping wire terminal ends on all switches. Seemed like a slight improvement but no fix, especially when the warmer weather came. When the Fall came the awnings both worked better but still hang up on the initial retraction, e.g. need to assist by pulling down on the vertical bar on the side of the trailer. Awning retraction is therefore a two person job.

For us the problem is worse during hot weather especially above 80 degrees. I am wondering if anyone else with slow awning retraction has observed this?

I'm thinking that this awning retraction may be a two part problem:

1) Temperature Issue: The only thing that I can think of here is that the gas struts provide much more lift / resistance when they are warm. If you look at the orientation of the struts you will see that their is maximum resistance to rewinding is when the awnings are fully extended. My hypothesis is that this is why there is no issue on extension but becomes a big issue on the first 50% of the retraction, e.g the strut resistance is too great for the motors to overcome at full extension with the voltage supplied. This issue is aggravated with warmer weather. Ever notice how the lift struts on your car hood or lift gate work better in warmer weather... If more of you have the same observation we may be onto something. The answer might lie in a slightly weaker gas strut as well as heaver gauge wiring to the motors. See below.

2) Voltage drop: I concur the wiring looks light for the distance that is needed to run to those DC motors. I'd lke to see Redwood chime in here with their electrical calculations. They know the distance of wire, gauge used, and voltage/amp requirements of the awnings to easially make the calculations. At any rate the voltage drop issue should be easy to diagnose by running a 10 ga wire bypass circuit directly to the awing. I'm snowed in now and can't do this. Would love to hear from either Redwood or someone else who could try this.

[atom ant]

That very well could be on the temperature issue being the struts.

I also noticed on flat pitch vs steep pitch; when in flat pitch, my awning on the slide won't come in at all. I have to get up on the picnic table and help it in, or drop the pitch. I think on Flat pitch, the scissor arms need more push to be overcome from the full extended position than when in the steep pitch.

[Loving Life]

Same thing is happening to us. Here adds to the frustration... the awning manufacturer (Carefree) replaced the motor. It worked for a week or so (long enough for us to have moved on). We also think heat may be the issue. It was tested in the shade on a cool day. If it is in the sun or a hot day, it takes 2 people to make it retract. Because it is now past the one year Carefree warranty, they are sending us to Redwood. Although we have gotten warranty work done previously, it really is a royal pain--so we haven't gotten this taken care of.

[atom ant]

Unfortunatetly, I don't think its the awning or the motor, I really believe it is voltage drop.

[Terry S]

Well as soon as this ##$% snow melts I'm going to go at it with a heavy gauge wire by pass circuit. If I remember correctly there's a plug up on the awning. That will show real quickly if voltage drop is the culprit.

[mhs4771]

I wonder if you could put a meter on the external lugs (used for emergency power retraction) and measure the voltage when the switch was activated.

[atom ant]

Probably a great idea. Let me know if that works.

[Terry S]

I'll remember to try that, but the real test will be seeing how the motor performs when it receives between 11.5 - 13 Volts. The volt meter should be useful for determining at what voltage the performance diminishes. That will be important for making the correct wire gauge calculations. However from the sound of things I'm wondering if there is a design or QA/QC issue with the motors. It costs a lot more money to manufacture a motor that has a wider voltage requirement. When they're made in China it's an obvious place to cut corners. We'll see

[johnboytoo]

Do what Tim would do !!!

Connect a 24 volt battery directly to the motor and see what happens

then you can

grunt

!

[atom ant]

That's actually not too far off. I've used a 16v on several Carefree's to install them, and to help others out that lost power. I use the 16V off my drill with alligator clips to the motor head. Works fine.