[encantotom]

hi all,

i have been noticing my compressor coming on a lot more than it used to. i have looked for leaks till the cows come home and have not found any. used the fancy leak detector and all.

les posted about the air door can get stuck of the pin isnt lubricated.

so i thought i would go out and lube mine. i took the cover off and was sitting there with the door open on the steps inside. so i closed the door for some reason still sitting there. and i heard a hiss. i thought it was just finishing its close cycle so i sat a little longer. kept hissing. so...out comes the ultrasonic leak detector and i put earbuds in. it was leaking out the exhaust port of the MAC valve. only leaks when the door is closed. when open, nothing.

i called BODE and talked to their tech guy. the door is a BODE 3324.00

he talked to another tech and they both agreed that 95% of the time it is the mac valve that is bad or has something stuck in it.

the part number of the MAC valve is 45A-AA2-DDBJ-1JM 12v 5.4watts. i used my inspection camera to get in there and see the part number for the valve. the valve is the distinctive MAC Blue color with the white relay on it.

i found a new one on ebay for 25 bucks shipped (they wanted 35 and i offered 25 and they accepted).

i called and talked to Jim at Newell (their bode air door expert) and he confirmed that most of the time it is the valve. he asked if mine was a race coach and said that it could be the cylinder needs a rebuild kit if it had been opened and closed alot. the rebuild kit is 200 bucks so i will try the valve first.

both the valve and the cylinder can be done without taking the door off.

i will get the valve in the next week and try it. if not, i will get a rebuild kit.

les helped me to find the leak by getting me to go lube that pin.

tom

[encantotom]

ok, got the new mac valve today. changed it. it didnt fix it. now it leaks air through the exhaust when the door is open rather than closed. pretty sure the main cylinder needs to be rebuilt with new seals. i will have mr bare pick the kit up next week when he is at newell.

besides that, in getting that valve out, one of the fittings went kaput so i need a few fittings and some new air hose. so one of them leaks at the tubing that didnt before...oh well.

i will have steve get those to since they are metric and not sure i can find them easily.

tom

[encantotom]

the reason i think the seals inside the main cylinder are bad is from experience i had repairing the air ram for the bay freezer/fridge. i changed the valve like i did on this one. but then i noticed that it was leaking air out the exhaust port when it was in, then as i opened and closed it, it would change to the opposite position. the seals inside the cylinder were leaking by and rather than holding pressure, it went in one side and out the other.

i think the same thing is happening with the bode air door cylinder. both bode and newell thought there was a high change the solenoid had something in it, a piece of dirt or something that made it leak, but jim at newell asked me if it had been a race coach and said they were the ones that sometimes had to be rebuilt.

you can take the cylinder off by taking the 4 long bolts off the bottom of the cylinder and pull it off the main assembly without taking the door off etc.

hey, i am learning

tom

[rheavn]

Just in case Newell doesn't have some of the fittings, here is a company in Fort Wayne, IN that carries metric fittings.

http://www.hoseandfittings.com/metricfit...MgodBwsAlA

This is the closest company to you I could find:

http://www.smcpneumatics.com/metric-inst...tings.html

[encantotom]

thanks steve. i looked online too. my bigger problem is that i dont know the metric sizing of the threaded end of the fitting. after all these years i am just finally figuring out NPT sizing, i have no idea on metric.

tom

[Chester Stone]

If you look at Tom's photos above, you will see a grease zert on the swing shaft. Some may not be aware that this should be greased each year.

[encantotom]

just a few fyi's.

to get at the valve, it is plumbed in with a number of fittings and tubings. there are 4 ports on the blue small mac valve that is on the left side of the entire assembly. it also has 3 blade connections that a relay goes on top of and is held on with a little screw.

the 4 ports are this

IN this is for incoming air
EX this is the exhaust port and has a small muffler on it that looks like a stone fuel filter
A door opening line
B door closing line

screw for the A this is how you adjust the rate/speed/force the door opening.
screw for the B this is how you adjust the rate/speed/force of the door closing


A and B has small flat head screwdriver set screws that you adjust the rate and force of the door opening and closing. ........important note is to turn both of them 3 complete turns to the right (clockwise) before you try opening the door after re-installation........ clockwise slows the door down and counterclockwise speeds it up. you want to have it slow to start out with or the door will open too hard the first time. it could be the door wouldnt open or close after doing this. no worries. just open the door manually by releasing the air on the manual relief air valve in the bay next to the door, open the door and adjust the closing door screw a turn CCW and try again. keep doing it till the door opens as gently as you desire. then do the same thing with the door close screw adjustment. mine at first didnt work after i did them all the way almost CW. dont fret, once you spend a few minutes adjusting them it will be just fine.

to take it out....

1. turn the air off
2. take the little screw off on the end of the relay then, pull it straight off the valve. be careful as there is a rubber gasket that goes between the valve and the relay. i had to reuse that gasket as there was not a new one with the valve.
3. now take the valve out. easier said than done. if you have hands and fingers that are dinky you will be better off. ok, i struck out there.

i took the tubing out of the push to connect fittings first. then there ended up being one i couldnt reach so i disconnected the compression fitting. it was very hard to get a wrench on. the tubing was stuck in the compression farrel like is so common. as i was pulling on it, the tubing came out of the fitting but left the farrel that usually is on the end of the tubing.

take out the valve and swap over the fittings and muffler to the new one. use some seal on the threaded fittings.

then reinstall. again, easier said than done. and test and adjust . dont forget to turn the screws clockwise 3 turns before you start.

put the air back on and test and adjust.

check for leaks. mine was leaking at the fitting that the tube had pulled out. so i need to change that one.

hope that helps someone sometime.

tom

[encantotom]

steve picked me up the parts to rebuild the air cylinder on the door. i just talked to jim at newell who talked me through the rebuild.

so i think i can get it done now.

thanks steve

tom

[encantotom]

howdy all, success at last.

i got the new mac valve today and some more fittings from newell. (thanks to forest for picking them up for me).

i started my first retirement day off by having a dental implant. but after i got home and slept for 4 hours to wear off the general anethesia, i hopped outside and tackled the door (dont tell darlene, she was gone for the afternoon).

first i made a test jig to test the old valve. (actually, the first new valve i put in). i hooked the air compressor directly to the inlet of the valve. then i put a cap on one side of the valve that would be normally going to the upper plate of the air cylinder. then i rehooked up the solenoid to the door button that opens and closes the door.

there was no air leaking through the valve to come out either the B port or the exhaust port. that is what i saw when it was installed on the door.

then i pressed the door button and it opens the valve and exhausts and sends air to B port. that is what it is supposed to do.

next i switched the cap to the B port. this is the config i had the air leaking out of the exhaust port when it was closed.

so, when i hit the door button to get in that valve position, air came out the A port like it was supposed to and when i pushed the button again it switched the valve to the door closed position and low and behold....air was hissing out of the exhaust port and a little out A port.

it should be holding air and it isnt. that is what i heard inside the coach when the door was closed.

so i had either gotten a bad valve the first time (from ebay) or.....because i changed the valve without taking the cylinder apart and cleaning and resealing it, a bit of water, junk or a piece of the plastic seal that was broke got in the new valve causing EXACTLY the same problem as the original. that really threw me off.

i was a little nervous as to what i would do if the new valve didnt fixt it. but it did. i hooked it up to the test jig first and then when it worked i installed it in the door and it still worked. should cut my compressor cycle time wayyyy down. it was quite a leak.

this all started when les said to lube the pin on the door. if i had not taken the big cover off, i would have never heard it. especially lucky was me sitting in the stairwell when i closed the door and hearing it because that was the only way i would have found it. it is down low in the stairwell and covered very well.

now i just have to button things up (i took the screws out of the various wood pieces in there to get more room for my sasquatch sized hands. )

and i learned that the adjustments for the airdoor opening and closing speeds are NOT the same between valves. so you need to turn it wayyyy slow both ways (clockwise) and then open and close the door and adjust one at a time till you get the opening and closing rate that is optimum.

i wanted to thank jim at newell for talking me through it. i would have been ok if i had not gotten a bad valve as a replacement the first time, but it did cause me to really take the time to understand how it all works and how to adjust it all. plus i rebuilt my air cylinder.

the black rubber round piece in the pictures is the rubber piston inside the cylinder. i replace it and the seals and o rings. cleaned and greased it all up and it is like new again!

you can also see pictures of my test jig. (richard is turning me into a test jig guy)

happy friday!

tom

[folivier]

Jim said the mac valve is very sensitive to trash so any water or particles could have caused the problems with the first valve.