Power Gear 140-1226 Troubleshooting: What To Do?

Recreational vehicles have come a long way from bulky, modified muscle trucks to fully furnished super-rigs. After decades of experimentation and updating, there’s barely anything these road beasts cannot do anymore.

Whether expanding their floor space to sleeping more people, most modern RVs are now the next-generation mobile homes their manufacturers envisioned.

However, they still have a long way to go in the leveling arena. While almost all RV brands and models released since the early 2000s already have some leveling mechanism, it hasn’t improved much in height and stability. Still, our current technology is instrumental, except they are only suitable for terrains on existing campgrounds.

Leveling systems advancing to conquer more terrains

We are yet to see RVs with leveling systems that can extend higher than 5 degrees to conquer more unchartered terrains. We still have to customize to achieve that. Let’s be honest—some of the best camping spots are often too steep or soft to park an RV. A custom-built leveling system is needed to level out and stabilize a rig.

Then again, leveling systems like the Power Gear are advanced enough to make RV camping convenient and comfortable.

But like any other technology involving intricate electronics and wiring, advanced leveling systems are unsafe from errors and malfunctions. While you must know how to deal with malfunctions, most are simply errors with immediate solutions prepared and recommended by the manufacturers.

If your RV has the Power Gear leveling system with the 140-1226 touchpad, there are specific error codes that you should watch out for and learn how to troubleshoot. This article will discuss some of the issues you may encounter with the Power Gear 140-1226 touchpad and what to do.

We’ll also touch on the different LED signal lights and their meaning.

How to calibrate your Power Gear leveling system

Have you ever confidently assumed that your RV is level because it feels flat, but when you checked the bubble level, the bubble isn’t centered? Or you did calibrate the leveling system, but when you opened the door to your bathroom, it closed by itself.

There’s only one explanation for that—your RV isn’t level. Therefore, your Power Gear leveling system needs recalibration.

Here’s what you should do. First, you need to start the engine to enter calibration mode. Some of the LED lights on the control panel will temporarily come on, but it doesn’t mean the leveling system is already working. Wait for all the LED lights to go out, then turn on the system.

You’ll see the “wait” LED light blink after this. Wait for it to go out, then press “FRONT” and “REAR” five times within ten seconds of each other. This should let the system enter calibration mode, which is indicated by all LED lights coming on.

Use LevelMate Pro to calibrate your leveling system more accurately. It’s a Bluetooth RV leveling tool that guides you in adjusting the height of the leveling jacks. It works the same way as a guitar tuner, which tells you if the correct tune has been achieved.

You can run this tool on your mobile next to the 140-1226 touchpad. Your goal is to reset the Zero Point on the LevelMate Pro app. The RV isn’t level as long as the numbers you see are red, not green.

Power Gear 140-1226 Troubleshooting: What To Do?

The Power Gear leveling system with 140-1226 touchpad and LevelMate Pro is an absolute game-changer. But it’s not fail-safe. The panel can break down, and you can encounter errors during operation.

Therefore, you must know how to troubleshoot fundamental issues with the 140-1226 touchpad, or you’ll spend the entire camping escapade balancing on a slightly inclined and shaky floor. Below are some of the common issues and how to troubleshoot them.

1. The touchpad isn’t turning on.

There are two possible explanations for why the touchpad won’t turn on. One, you probably didn’t start the engine. Remember that this is the first step in entering calibration mode, and the first thing it does is allow you to turn on the leveling system, which includes the touchpad. Another possible reason is a blown fuse or tripped circuit breaker.

You can fix it simply by replacing the fuse or resetting the circuit breaker.

2. The leveling jack is not extending.

What if you don’t feel your RV rising no matter how many times you press the relevant buttons on the touchpad? Does that mean the touchpad is broken? This isn’t necessarily the case. In most cases, it’s the leveling jacks that are faulty. For example, one of the jacks front, rear, right, or left may have run out of transmission fluid.

Let’s not forget that the leveling jacks (although linked to an electronic control system) are essentially hydraulic jacks. You can make them lift the RV with a push of a button because of the hydraulic lift principle, which is based on Pascal’s law of pressure transmission.

So, if the hydraulic jacks lack transmission fluid, they won’t be able to lift your RV.

3. The pump is running, but the jacks are extending too slowly.

Sometimes, the RV ascends longer than usual, which could mean a number of things. Low transmission fluid levels are the most obvious cause. But it’s also likely there’s an obstruction in the jacks themselves. You can tell if it’s obstruction by the sound the jacks make. This may also be the result of a weak battery.

In that case, turn on the engine and wait for a few minutes until the battery has enough charge. And again, the jacks only work when the engine is running.

4. The leveling jacks are not retracting.

When it’s time to pack up and leave, but the leveling jacks won’t retract, you are a few hose knots away from getting stuck at the campsite and spending another night. But don’t worry because this is usually just related to the hydraulic hose, which ensures the transmission fluid travels within the leveling system unimpeded.

The hydraulic levels won’t be able to retract if the hose gets tangled, pinched, or crimped. You must undo any knots, extend all jacks, and then fully retract them. Repeat this four times at a few minutes intervals.

Interpret the blinking LED lights correctly

There are instances when the 140-1226 touchpad is working, but it’s giving off a strange light signal. These are not indications of damage to the touchpad but of issues in the system that must be addressed. So pay attention the next time you see an LED light blinking when it shouldn’t. Here are some of the faults they represent.

• On/off, jacks down, and park brake LEDs – If the leveling jacks are not responding and these LED lights are blinking, there’s a good chance a wire behind the touchpad was chewed through or disconnected, causing a communication error.

You can check this, but only try to fix any error or damage you find if you have the right tools and know what to do.

• Wait and on/off LEDs – Sometimes, loss of communication is caused by something other than a disconnection under the touchpad, which could lead to a different combination of blinking lights. For example, if the wait and on/off LED lights are flashing, it could mean a transmission error.

It’s either a loss of communication to the transmission or the leveling system isn’t sensing when the transmission is in neutral.

• Left, right, front, rear, and all level LEDs – You will see all these lights inside the diamond. It’s the controller telling you that the ground you’re parking on is too steep for the leveling system to handle. But this could also mean the controller wasn’t appropriately mounted, so it’s reading the data inaccurately.

So before you look for another place to park, confirm if the touchpad is in good working order.

• Low voltage LED – When you see this light blinking while trying to work the leveling system, it means the system is measuring if you have proper voltage from your battery. Low voltage will prevent the system from operating. You must start the RV and wait until the system gets enough voltage.

Conclusion

The Power Gear leveling system is one of Lippert’s most efficient offerings to the RV community. It makes parking and settling down at campsites convenient and safe.

However, like all things electronics, it has room for improvement. By fortifying its network, fault codes will be fewer as the system is more protected against potential damage and errors.

Of course, it is your responsibility as an RV owner to learn how to troubleshoot issues with your Power Gear leveling system 140-1226 touchpad. You want to be independent of professional services whenever you encounter problems, especially with essential components such as the leveling system.

If you know at least the basics, you can spend more time traveling to your desired destination than visiting a service center for repair and tune-ups.