Troubleshooting Powered Trailer Jack That Does Not Extend or Retract  

Question:

Expert Reply:

The problem you describe does sound like a case of insufficient power to the jack motor. The fact that you found corrosion built up inside the fuse holder suggest that there could be similar issues elsewhere, with the battery cables, ground connection or other electrical junctures. You could also have a battery that simply does not any longer have the necessary power to operate the jack motor when it is under load.

When the battery that powers a jack is weak, either not fully charged up or perhaps past its prime in terms of age, it may deliver enough power to make a light operate but have nowhere near the juice required for the current-hungry motor. Sometimes in this situation the motor may get enough power to retract but not to extend/lift, which naturally requires more power since the jack is lifting the trailer weight.

You can test your battery and motor by routing the battery positive and negative leads directly to the motor terminals, bypassing the switch and most of the wiring. If the jack motor operates this way then you know the motor is okay, but that you have some issue with the wiring between the battery and motor. If the motor will not operate at all when directly powered by a battery known to be in good shape and fully charged then the motor is likely to be bad. You may also need a new battery.

Sometimes something as simple as a bad ground connection will cause this problem. Again, with corrosion being a known factor on the trailer, you may need to make new clean ground and power connections, and possibly replace the cables too since they too can develop corrosion internally. If the jack mounts to the trailer a-frame like part # LC285318 you can remove it and clean the two mating metal surfaces to ensure a solid, clean metal-on-metal connection which is essential for any powered jack to operate at full capacity.

expert reply by: Adam R

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