Seismic 4113 leveling issues

[RvEdge]

Anyone else having issues leveling their seismic 4113? First couple of times were fine, now it's miserable reach time. Husband once spent four hours trying to figure it out, while wishing we'd never purchased an RV 😵! First time RV owners and not a welcome feeling to not be able to level the beast. He basically has had to break out the level, manually level it, and then set zero again each time we level it. Anyone else having this issue and/or found a solution?

Other then that loving the seismic 4113!

[farnik78]

There was a another thread on this . Don't know if you have the same issue.

Lippert Ground Control 3

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[Fire_Instructor]

Many folks report that the trailer nose has to manually lowered below level before engaging auto level. Try only lowering the landing gear to about 4" above the ground, then lower the front jacks hydraulically to lift the pin enough to disengage the 5th wheel. After pulling the tow vehicle away, you can then lower the front jacks well below level. NOW you can engage the auto-level.

This has been a continual problem for many with the 377RLBH, especially those that tow a bit nose-up because of hitch height. We've found that when the landing gear is dropped to the ground, and then the hydraulics used to only raise the nose 1" or 2" more, the trailer nose can't be lowered below level, and the rear jacks error-out because they don't have enough stroke to go that high. Make sense?

[TheMcFarlins]

We have a 2017 Seismic 4113 and have had a lot of leveling issues. Last week we were told by the local Jayco authorized dealership to put leveling blocks beneath the middle stabilizer jacks each time to avoid error messages when using the auto-level feature. Someone else with a Seismic told us the same thing, so we decided to give it a try on our next trip. We are camping this week and tried this, and we were able to use the auto-level successfully. Hopefully this continues to work well.

[P25ct]

None of the above will solve your issues. This has been a problem on all Seismic's since their birth in 2013 and larger Pinnacles and NPs. I've had a 2014 and now a 2016 and have same problems. Front jacks will eventually wear out and rear jacks become inefficient and work out due to overloading. The sensors and controller inherently have problems and need to be replaced. Out of stroke more often than not has to do with the motors reaching amp limits at controller trying to lift too much weight. Not stroke. Center jacks come down to stabilize. They don't bear weight. Rear and front do all the work. The rear will be your weak point. Take a look at rated weight limits for Ground a Control 2 per jack. Far less than rated weight of Seismic. The performance of my 2016 depleted over time in two years. Started strong now back to where I was with 2014 which was down right horrible and lost half of a two week vacation due to front jack failure. I run a stronG power source of 3 group 27 AGM batteries always fully charged prior to auto level. During auto level failure battery voltage never drops below 12.3. At worst starts at 12.8 for a half volt drop. Bottom line is these platforms of 20000 pounds and 40 odd feet need hydraulics capable of lifting the weight they are tasked with with a buffer. Every other manufacturer uses hydraulics for their large THs and there's a reason for that. Personally, when warranty runs out or my patience runs out whichever comes first, I'll spring for the Bigfoot Hydraulic system. 5500$ installed and lots of headroom for weight. Until then I'll baby it and use my preschooler big yellow Lego blocks to get it under .5 degrees so it levels it. I have a few pointers learned over the years. You'll find lots of threads on this dating back to 2013 here alone. I found for me worst configuration to level is when the terrain slopes down toward the front of the coach and it's leaning toward curb side. When it lifts the front end, from high or low doesn't matter, it then tries to get the curb side rear to match its height and I'll tell you it will grind away and crank that coach from back there until the amperage from the motor killing itself gets too high. Out of stroke. Not out of physical actuator your out of pushin power. Left low seems a bit better with the weight distribution of my 4112 (heavy stuff on the curb side in mine) and when the terrain is uphill and the coach drops the nose the back is already up in the air (think fulcrum and see saw) so it's got mechanical advantage to lift the rear corners. That's the other thing with these electric systems they don't lift in tandem a lot like hydraulics do, and that puts stress on the frame and structure from twist.

Buy a pallet of actuators and controllers and replace the, every year if you want to keep it. I recommend every Seismic owner purchase a pair of front actuators as spares. Not if but when. Like I said check out the weight ratings of the actuators themselves. I took my 14 to a dealer that specializes in large cargo and horse trailers which are same or less weight and they use 4x4 steel square legs and jacks. He was astounded that this thing had a 2x2 leg.

Oh and put steel hardware in the holes under your release pins just in case the pin breaks. Read other threads here. Catastrophic.

Hope somehow that helps. Not what you wanted to hear but in 2014 neither was it when I read it for the first time, not much has changed.


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[Kmo]

Have you since upgraded to the "BigFoot" jacks? and if so how are they? Cost ? Did you install them yourself or have them installed? Thanks and sorry for all the questions.

[P25ct]

I looked at the cost of upgrading, the cost of a large slide on a scwintek meeding to be rebuilt, my roof that was rebuilt, my cargo door that was replaced, my belt trim that kept coming off, and on and on and decided to trade my 16 Seismic in for a ‘20 Cyclone. The differences in build quality are night and day, the detail in craftmanship is much better, and I will never look back. Did I take a hit? Sure, but I believe this unit will withstand the test of time over 10 years better than my ‘16 4112.

If I was going to have it retrofitted I would have gone with the Equalizer HD 6 point system. They do the OEM now and they are great to work with and have the models already spec’d out.

[Kmo]

Who is that does this retrofit ? Thanks for the info, I am weighing the options of doing the same thing as you did but just not ready to give up yet.

[Kmo]

Sorry I guess if I would have read it a little more closely you do tell me what I was looking for, Thanks again.

[atlantaM3]

I started using the Anderson jack blocks, have not had any issues since. No more out of stroke problems, etc.
Generally levels the first time. Prior to that, lots of issues, errors, etc.

I also added hitch pins to the front legs, just in case, as some noted breakage. Like these - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...0?ie=UTF8&th=1

[Kmo]

So you think the main reason for jack failures is stroke and them not breaking down ? I did have the same problem with levelling added some 12" blocks and it all worked out. The pins 3/8 do they work out allright being that they are a hardened material rather than these miled steel ones they come with?

[atlantaM3]

that has been my experience thus far with levelling issues, many times it failed due to out of stroke errors. I have had a 4113 for a bit over two years now. That said, some people have issues with the front legs failing at the top gear. I now carry a spare front leg and motor with me, just in case. About $250 or so on etrailer for one. good insurance to keep a trip going.

I kept the stock pins in place. I put the hitch pins in the first available hole in the leg at the top, serves as a backup in case the main pins breaks. I suggest keeping an eye on the main pins, and plan to change them periodically, as several people one here have had those pins fail. One of my main pins is already bending, so have some new ones that will be installed on the next trip.

Hope that helps.

[Kmo]

Yea thats good insurance for 250, I had one pin break while camping, so I just took the pin outta the foot and used it for a couple trips till I got a new pin, I now carry a spare, I am going to modify one of the pins with a heavier duty pin and see how that works out.

Any slide issues?

[atlantaM3]

Not thus far. that said, I only open the slides once fully level. I dont open them when hitched up, etc. especially not the big one. Big slide is a bit jerky when opening, always a bit freaked out by it. Big slide has the slim rack, not schwintek, so hoping it is reliable.

[Noblewk]

We have a 2018 4114 and I used to have leveling problems. We found if by pulling / backing on boards getting it close to level helps a lot. Center Jacks are short and always need blocks. In the beginning we always had an out of stroke error until we started using the 2x6’s.

[Kmo]

I guess these leveling systems are for paved campsites, anything with a few dips and hills is get it as level as you can and hope that the leveling system can deal with it.

[P25ct]

If you have time go back and read our kegacy posts going back to the birth of Seismic in 2013-2014. The leveling system is not a leveling system, its a stabilizing system for a coach of this weight (way out of weight spec btw from Lippert Original Design Specs). I used the yellow blocks to get be within 0.2-0.3 degrees L to R. Then it would work. If those rear jacks have to try and lift any weight, game over. Out of Stroke is the controller seeing an amperage that is high enough to replicate the motor amping out when it reaches the full extension, when the jack tries to lift weight its not deaigned for, it has the same resistance and thus amperage and bam, OOS messages.

Atlanta you are doing it all right my friend and others should follow his lead. I did all of those same things, including the spare front jack. I have three in my shed that were shot. Its cheap insurance indeed.

Only other suggestion, is several group 27 batts kept well charged. You want to have enough power source depth to keep the voltage at or near 12v when jacks are lifing weight. Not enough depth of power and you will sag to 11v at the controller and the rear jacks will see probably 9-10 with the small guage wire they run. I ran 6 grouo 27 AGM Dual Purpose Marine Batteries and it helped alot. I worked to keep them fresh and charged but it got me through my final years of Seismic.

Oh and DO NOT ever not install that extra Grade 8 bolt in the front gear. EVER!

I believe I had a price of about 6k$ to replace the Ground Control with the hydraulic. 4 for the system and 2k budgeted for the install. It may of only took maybe 10hrs but it was a safe budget. My local installer is very good and with the help of the vendor’s known specs and brackets it would Im sure be a smooth install.

Again look back at our legacy posts from 2014era and forward, if for anything else you will feel the pain we have felt for 7 years.

[theracqueteer]

Originally Posted by P25ct

Oh and DO NOT ever not install that extra Grade 8 bolt in the front gear. EVER!

Are you talking about putting a grade 8 bolt in the the drop leg of the landing gear as a safety back up? If so, why do you suggest this is a bad idea?

[atlantaM3]

I think he is reinforcing the need to put it on place - dont forget to do it, ever.

[P25ct]

Originally Posted by theracqueteer

Are you talking about putting a grade 8 bolt in the the drop leg of the landing gear as a safety back up? If so, why do you suggest this is a bad idea?

I was using a double negative to say

ALWAYS use them.