Electric Tongue Jack

[Frenchy]

I decided not to install a breakaway switch on my electric tongue jack. It came with a 30 amp fuse (spade type). I just remove the fuse immediately after leveling the TM front to back and place it in my TV. I then reinstall the fuse after disconnecting shore power when I'm ready to hook up.

Frenchy

[jbeletti]

Hi Frenchy,

Thanks for the update.

Today I ordered a BEP Marine (out of New Zealand) 4-way Battery Switch. I'll wire it as Trailer/Jack/Both/Off. I won't plan to use the Both position. When stored (in-season), I'll switch it to Off. Should work fine and didn't break the bank ($28.78+s/h).

I'll install the switch when it arrives early next week, before I take off from Chicago for the Great Smoky Mountains! I'll post pics here: http://www.beletti.com/travel/trailmanor/battery.shtml

Jim

[Caver]

Marty Redd at Parallax is a wealth of knowledge on the application of their products and spends a lot of time at RV shows helping train dealers. I'll try to pass along some of the information he has provided.

If you have the 7345 converter then you should not have a problem with an electric jack damaging the converter. If you do have a problem - please call Marty and not me!

The older 6300 or analog controller included a 6 to 12A thermal circuit breaker which would trip if the current to the battery was exceeded. A problem would occur when this part failed and the contacts welded. This would explain why the current limiting resistor would burn out after repeated use of the electric jack. If you have one of these converters you might want to consider upgrading to the 7345 electronics. They have a retrofit kit for less than $180 at Camping World. Trailmanor switched over to the 7345 during model year 2004. I'm not on commission but the new models can put out 45A to run appliances or charge batteries. It doesn't care since the battery and 12 volt circuits are all connected in parallel. This was not apparent to me and it may contradict the TM literature. The other advantage of the 7345 is that it is better filtered which helps reduce radio interference. If you operate amateur radios like I do this is a big deal.

You can tell if you have the Timer option on the 7345 because the T will appear under options in the center of the panel. What the T option does is to put out 14.0 to 14.1 volts for a number of hours before reverting back to the nominal 13.6 - 13.8 volts. I've attached a photo of the 7345 on my 2004 1/2 TM and you can see no options are listed. This option would have been good if you need to charge your battery rapidly but at the cost of having to check the water level in the batteries more often. This option cannot be added later.

Using the Parallax controller he recommends the best thing to do is to keep the proper water level in the batteries. Check the level once a month at 70 degrees or twice a month at 80 degrees. I keep a gallon of distilled water in the garage for this purpose. Do this safely - wear goggles and rubber gloves and try to keep the acid in the battery.

Ray

[jbeletti]

Hi Ray,

I agree, Parallax is great to deal with. Worked with the same guy when I was having electrical problems that were not caused by the converter or AC section.

Anyway, my 2004 3023 built in December of 2003 came with the older converters I need to protect it.

Take care,

Jim

[jbeletti]

I installed my electric tongue jack and 4-way battery switch tonight. Took about 15 minutes to install the jack and set the limit on it. Took another 30 minutes or so to remove by battery disconnect switch, wire in the electric jack and install the new 4-way battery switch.

The jack and switch work great. I'll post pics when we get back from the Smoky Mountains.

Jim

Originally Posted by rtcassel

[quote author=Hal link=board=1;threadid=1598;start=msg11279#msg11279 date=1073424573]
Another thing, by changing to a power jack, you will be giving up a tongue dolly. The power lifts come with a flat plate and have eliminated the wheel. I tried replacing the flat plate with a wheel. It was unusable because it raised the trailer tongue too high to be lowered onto the ball hitch on my tow vehicle.

I would like to install an electric tongue jack, but need to have the tongue dolly wheel option in order to push the TM into the garage with the tongue going in first. When you replaced the flat plate with a wheel, did you end up with a stable situation that would tolerate the trailer being pushed? Is changing the flat plate to the wheel as easy a job as it is to take off and put the wheel on a manual jack? Thanks. Tim[/QUOTE]

[jbeletti]

Hi Bill,

I've never tried to replace the plate that comes with the electric jack with the factory wheel from the manual jack. My TM is in storage for the winter so I can't check it out for you but I think others on this forum have posted more details on doing what you are looking for. I will tell you that I love that electric jack. It's a back saver when hitching/unhitching as I used it to raise the TM/TV so I can swing the bars of my Equal-i-zer on/off. Best of luck.

[rtcassel]

I asked Barker a question related to this thread and received the short reply below:

In a message dated 2/13/2004 2:27:55 PM Eastern Standard Time, [email protected] writes:

NOT RECOMMENDED FOR SAFETY REASONS

----- Original Message -----
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2004 9:46 AM
Subject: Question re Hi-Power 3000 Acme Jack

I would like to purchase one of your power jacks for a pop-up camping trailer with a tongue weight of 450-500 pounds. I need to have a dolly wheel on the post when I store my trailer. I push the trailer by hand into the garage, with the tongue going in first, because the ceiling of the garage is too low to accomodate the air conditioner that is near the back of the trailer.

In the owner's instructions it says that dolly wheels are not recommended.

Why is a dolly wheel not recommended?

Is it because of potential damage to the jack itself, or is it actually physically impossible to put on a dolly wheel when you might want to use one?

Is it physically possible to put a dolly wheel on the end of the post while the trailer is attached to the tow vehicle? (The coupler is 20 inches from the ground in my situation.)

Thank you for your help.

[fcatwo]

You might consider buying or making a heavy-duty, low-profile, 3 or 4 wheel caster like those used on pianos that will serve the same purpose as the one big wheel. I saw some 4" wheels for $3.00 each in the surplus section of http://www.handyindustries.com yesterday. I paid $11.00 each for similar 3" wheels a while back.

Frank

Originally Posted by fcatwo

You might consider buying or making a heavy-duty, low-profile, 3 or 4 wheel caster like those used on pianos that will serve the same purpose as the one big wheel. I saw some 4" wheels for $3.00 each in the surplus section of http://www.handyindustries.com yesterday. I paid $11.00 each for similar 3" wheels a while back.

Frank

please see my experiment electric tongue jack (wheel addition)...
UNDER MODIFICATIONs and bill s