H340 Wanted - "Update"

[jkbriggs]

Sorry to bring us back to the subject at hand (air pocket door adjustment), but I was unable to figure out what I needed to adjust to increase pressure to the pocket door? I have attached a pdf w/some pics inside LH drivers compt as well as under bathroom. What is the orange thing?

FYI - my aux a/c cuts-off at 42 psi (is that high enough?). Bleeds down to about 38 w/in a few minutes and cycles back on. I hear air escaping for just a few seconds after shut-off (from around pressure switch?) then goes quite until recycling begins. Does this part of the system sound o.k.?

Also, any ideas on how to find a list of fuses/relays for the 12v system located in storage bay above OTR radiator? Fuses appear to be numbered, but I have no description of what the fuse numbers relate to?

Thanks as always - Jody

[Jon Wehrenberg]

Jody,

This is sheer speculation, and you need to call Liberty to find out for real what you need to do.

First, the valves you show are in part from your suspension system. The ones with the red cap in a gang are the solenoid valves that take the electrical commands for leveling the coach and transmit air to the Norgren spool valves as shown in another picture. Those valves in turn open or close to add or exhaust air from the bus air bags. They are unrelated to the pocket doors. They are part of the chassis and not the "house".

The pair of valves shown in an adjacent picture shows more Norgren spool valves, but those are electrically operated. Those are added by Liberty to function as part of the automatic leveling feature on your coach. They are still part of the chassis.

Another picture shows a pair of solenoid valves. I do not know what they control, but they might be used to allow or stop the flow of air to the pocket door. They also could be used to open holding tank valves or to control a bed lift, or other functions. That is a guess and not even an educated one. I am shooting from the lip here.

The last picture is of a time delay relay. I cannot think of anything that requires one mounted like that. You have several time delay relays on your coach for purposes like generator start or a transfer switch, but without understanding where specifically that one is located, and what other devices may be nearby it is hard to say what that controls.

The first picture of the steer compartment does show some components you may wish to study. The device on the top left shows an air pressure gauge on it. That is a pressure regulator. I believe it only controls air pressure to the step cover slide. It is usually set at 60 PSI. You can play with it, but I doubt it will do anything for your pocket doors. I cannot imagine it being part of the pocket door controls.

If I had a door binding, I would certainly not look to increase its closing or opening force. I would attempt to find out what is binding. If the door travels freely part of the way and stops because it is running into something which imposes some kind of drag the key is to eliminate the drag, not use more power to force the door to open or close.

I suggest you talk to Liberty to find out how to access the door track and how to go about verifying it is free to travel. If I am not mistaken you should have (hidden) some device to disable the door travel mechanism and make it a manual operation. Once in that mode you can determine by feel if it has any binding or interference along its travel. On my coach the pocket door emergency system is located at the bottom of a closet for the front door and under a nightstand drawer for the bedroom door. That system is clearly labeled with instructions on how to operate the door manually. It may also contain the means of adjusting the air supply.

The reason for the uncertainty is the H3 and the XL coaches apparently have enough differences to make it hard for those without an H3 to offer solid advice.

[tdelorme]

"If I had a door binding, I would certainly not look to increase its closing or opening force. I would attempt to find out what is binding. If the door travels freely part of the way and stops because it is running into something which imposes some kind of drag the key is to eliminate the drag, not use more power to force the door to open or close."

Jon, Jody stated in an earlier post that he had removed the door and had it freed up. Thus, the suggestion that an increase in air pressure might be in order. Sometimes it just takes a bigger hammer.

So, Jody, are you saying that the aux. compressor is cycling on and off every few minutes?
If so, get a spray bottle of water with a couple of oz. of dish soap in it and start looking for leaks in the compartment shown in your first picture. The system should hold pressure much, much longer than that. I have a slight leak or two, but my compressor only cycles about every three hours. I'm living with it for now, but it needs attention fairly soon.
I have never seen a Prevost electrical compartment that did not have a listing of the fuse numbers and functions somewhere close by. Look on the compartment door and everyplace around that area. Unless someone removed it, it's there somewhere.
Here is a link to the Prevost site that has info on your H3. Dig around in here. There is more info than you will ever need, but it's a good starting point to get a grip on your bus.
http://www.prevostcar.com/cgi-bin/pa...e=publications

[jkbriggs]

Yes, I had taken the door and door slides off the track, cleaned & lubed. But even w/o door on, slide doesn't move very quickly. The lower two pictures are from under the bathroom sink (which is where the "release" valve is for the door - so you dont get locked in). My aux air is cycling every 5-10 minutes. I assume this isn't right? How about the 40 psi on the pressure regulator, is that high enough?

[tdelorme]

Jody, I will check when I get home to be sure, but I believe my aux. compressor pressure is set at 60 lbs. And, I have not adjusted it since I have owned the coach.

Do you not have any manuals from Liberty?

You need a list of questions for them when you call as well as your coach number.

Don't give up on any of this stuff, it can all be fixed, including the air leaks.

If you need help locally, let me know and I will PM you a guy to call.

Don't tell Jon if you get outside help. He gets all worked up when we can't solve our own problems and his BP goes through the roof. Real bad for us old farts, and he for sure falls into that group.

[jkbriggs]

I have some manuals, including wiring diagrams and bus-shell type stuff, but nothing giving practical advice for using the components (like gen, Wabasto, etc.) like would come from Liberty. Where do I find my coach number? I have the VIN of course. Thanks -

[Joe Cannarozzi]

Ted what's the deal with the super secret decoder ring

Been hangin out with your grandchildren a lot lately.

Your aux. compressor is cycling every 3 hrs, how embarrassing

[rfoster]

On My 97 Liberty the aux air cut off at 100psi

Your pocket doors have adjustments for the pressure and speed of operation. I had one set of controls under the bathroom sink, concealed in a compartment with access door held in place via velcro. Start looking for concealed compartments that made hide the controls. Once you locate the solenoids (listen for air) you will see the threaded adjustment valves.

The other one was located under the bedroom vanity in the wall of the coach there again covered by an access panel that was velcroed in place. Worked great - no screws to remove, no rattles.. Good luck

Jon has BP medicene - its called Sour Mash

[Jon Wehrenberg]

I'll stick with my earlier opinion that if something is binding, regardless of whether it is the door or the mechanism, that needs to be identified and possibly corrected before doing anything else.

Sometimes a bigger hammer is not the answer.

However you have more serious problems than a binding door. If the compressor is cycling that frequently its remaining life can be measured in terms of days. There is a leak or a number of leaks. To find them you are about to enter the Twilight Zone. Soapy water, your ears, a stethoscope (Sears, about $5.00) and in some cases an ultrasonic leak detector may all be required to find the leak. The starting point is to isolate the house systems (disconnect the air supply to them and plug it) from the chassis. Then see if there is any difference in the amount of time it takes to cycle the compressor. In the chassis there will be such things as the front door lock, belt tensioners, and the suspension solenoid valves and some Norgren valves (you have an early version so your leak may be in the three port valves located between the tag and drive axles).

If the chassis is not leaking and the compressor does not cycle frequently, then add air to the house circuits (six I think) one at a time and see if they have any effect. If you have a full time job, quit it now. Finding leaks will be all consuming and will cost you every waking moment. Ask any of us how I know these things.

Instead of 40 PSI try 60 at the regulated air supply. Also, if the compressor set point is 100 PSI, try adjusting the pressure switch to 80 PSI and see if that has a big impact on the cycle time. If it does that is easier than chasing leaks, but you still have the problem of finding leaks. Adjusting the pressures just is like taking an aspirin for a brain tumor. You will feel a little better but the problem is still there.

[tdelorme]

Joe, I broke out the SDR thinking it would help Jody fix his problems.

Jody, my aux. air is set on 85 psi, not 60.

If you have any three ring binder with "Liberty" written on it, your coach number will be on the cover page. I think they can cross with your vin number as well, but knowing the coach number will speed things up if/when you call them.

It might be best to flip the aux compressor breaker off until you have time to search for leaks. Won't hurt anything being off and will save the compressor. A spray bottle of soapy water and a flashlight will reveal the big leaks. Start in that lower first bay, drivers side. Since you have the air door issue, I would go there next.

There is more info than you will ever be able to read on air leaks in different areas of POG. Just take on one thing at a time to fix and don't get overwhelmed. But, the air leaks need to be at the top of the list.