Troubleshooting Landing Gear Not Lifting 5th Wheel

Question:

I have a 2010 Grand Junction 340RL, Unloaded weight is advertised as 12417 with a hitch weight of 2528. I dont know the weight on the landing gear. I have seen several posts about this problem. The landing gear will operate until the feet hit the ground and puts a load on the landing gear. The fuse pops or the wiring melts. I have to use hydraulic jacks to raise and lower my trailer. I have the LIppert system with the wireless remote control. The motor is the model 1-065-041012-01. The label on the motor says 3.1A. This seems to be incorrect. A 3A motor shouldnt be popping a 30A fuse. I see you recommend the 141893 motor as a replacement. I am considering replacing the entire system with a LG3 or LG4 I do not know the measurements at this time. I know the motor and possible gear replacement would be a cheaper short term fix, but would you recommend a total replacement with a 6,500 lb. system instead? They seem to build these trailers with minimal components. I want something that will do the job reliably. Thanks.

asked by: Steve B

Expert Reply:

Any powered landing gear or powered tongue jack will draw less power as it legs descend down toward the ground and much more as soon as they make contact and encounter resistance. This is a normal occurrence. In the same way, any jack - even a manual hand-crank type - requires less power (or force) when lowering the trailer than when lifting it.

The cause for your powered landing gear losing steam could be any of several possibilities. These include the trailer's battery not being rated high enough for the amperage demands from the landing gear (or from the battery being past its best days or not being fully charged before you make a trip); it could be from a corroded or loose ground connection either at the battery end or at the landing gear; it could be from the actual weight of the loaded trailer exceeding the capacity of the OEM jacks. RV makers tend to use less than the beefiest available OEM components. Based on your description of the problem my suspicion is the ground.

If you can get access to the actual jack motor terminals and can apply 12V power (from a suitably-rated battery known to be fully charged) and you find the jack lifts properly when directly powered in this way, then you know you have a power supply issue. New cables and new clean connections all around should take care of it.

expert reply by: Adam R

Walter L.

6/12/2020

My jack will not lift off my pickup hitch , unless I use my hand crank ,but the jack will come down on it's own

Chris R.

6/16/2020

I would check a couple of things here. First make sure that the battery you're hooked up to is still completely charged and in good condition. Also check that the wire connections are still secured - both the power and ground attachments. If issues still persist please let me know what model jack you have and we'll go from there.

Glenn W.

3/13/2024

@ChrisR I have this same problem on my 2004 Designer Fifth Wheel Trailer my battery is brand new sealed lead acid optima deep cell. Fuses are all good and I still have no power. How do I know if my DC side is working. When I unplug the camper from my 50amps nothing works. So it seems to me the DC side is not working at all, I have a kill switch next to the battery it on and has 12V on the out bound side.

Lazer S.

3/13/2024

@GlennW You will need to find the positive DC output wire that leads from the converter to your DC fuse block. Gently stick a tester (like # PTW2991 ) into the output port that the wire is coming from with said tester and connect the other end of the tester to your battery. The DC output should light the tester up and display the proper voltage. If it does not, then your converter is bad/malfunctioning and will typically need to be replaced.