Mobile RV Repair in Stuart, Florida
Salt air on the exposed steel of a hydraulic system, where the part that looks scruffy is the part doing the sealing.
The polished rod that extends out of a hydraulic jack is not a leg, it is a sealing surface. The seal in the cylinder head rides directly on it, so surface corrosion there is not a cosmetic problem - a pitted rod cuts the seal every time it retracts, and the jack starts weeping fluid and settling.
We are mobile - we come to your RV in Stuart. Call 772-677-9471.
Owners look at a rusty jack leg and see something scruffy. The seal inside the cylinder sees something quite different.
This page is about that distinction, because it decides whether a corroded jack is a cleaning job or a rebuild.
Why does corrosion on a jack rod matter so much?
Because the rod is half of a sealing pair. A hydraulic cylinder keeps its fluid in with a seal in the head that rides on the polished surface of the rod as it moves in and out, and that seal depends on the rod being smooth. Corrosion changes the surface. Pitting gives the seal edges to run over, raised corrosion products act like sandpaper, and every extension and retraction drags the seal across them. The result is a seal that loses its lip, then weeps, then lets the jack bleed down under load - which is felt as a coach that will not stay level or a jack that extends unevenly. There is a second consequence people miss: whatever is on the rod gets pulled back into the cylinder past the wiper, so external corrosion becomes internal contamination in the fluid over time.
The Jonathan Dickinson job: a DRV with a corroded jack leg
A 2020 DRV Luxury Suites fifth wheel at Jonathan Dickinson State Park with a hydraulic jack leg showing corrosion and extending inconsistently. We cleaned it, wire-brushed the affected area and treated it with a zinc-based rust inhibitor, and it extended and retracted fully afterwards. That job needs an honest caveat, because it is the most misused piece of advice on this page. Abrasive work on a hydraulic rod is a judgment call about how far the corrosion has gone, and it is appropriate for surface corrosion that has not pitted the sealing surface. Where a rod is genuinely pitted, cleaning it up will not restore the surface and taking anything coarse to it makes the seal damage permanent. In that case the honest answer is a rod or cylinder replacement, not a tidy-up that looks better and seals worse.
What should I never do to a corroded hydraulic rod?
Three things, and each one is common. Do not take coarse abrasive to it - sandpaper, a grinder or an aggressive wire wheel removes the surface finish the seal relies on and leaves a rod that looks clean and destroys seals faster than before. Do not paint it, ever: paint on the working surface of a rod is scraped off by the seal, and the flakes end up inside the cylinder in the fluid. And do not grease the exposed rod. It sounds protective and it is the opposite, because grease holds grit and salt against the rod and carries the mixture back past the wiper into the cylinder on every retraction. What is appropriate is gentle cleaning, a corrosion inhibitor suitable for a hydraulic rod, and above all keeping the jacks retracted when they are not in use so the rod is inside the cylinder rather than out in the salt air.
How do I tell a hydraulic fault from the ground giving way?
Mark the rods, and it takes ten seconds. Before you turn in, mark each jack rod where it emerges from the cylinder with a pencil or a piece of tape, then look in the morning. If the rods have retracted into the cylinders, the hydraulic system let the coach down - a seal, a valve or a hose - and that is a repair. If the rods have not moved but the coach is lower, the ground gave way under the feet, which no hydraulic repair will fix and which a wider, more rigid pad under each foot will. That distinction matters because the two produce an identical complaint and lead to completely different conversations. On soft or sandy ground the second is at least as common as the first, and it is the cheaper of the two to solve.
What does living on the Treasure Coast do to the rest of the system?
It attacks every exposed metal surface, and the hydraulic components are simply the ones where the damage has consequences beyond appearance. Salt air reaches the jack rods, the slide-out mechanisms, the hitch, the frame and every fastener underneath the coach. The single most effective habit is a fresh water rinse after time near the water that reaches the underside and the mechanisms rather than just the panels. After that: keep jacks and slides retracted when not in use so their working surfaces are protected inside their housings, look at the hydraulic hoses and fittings twice a year for weeping or staining, and check the fluid reservoir level, since a slow leak announces itself there long before a jack visibly fails. None of that is difficult and all of it is far cheaper than a cylinder.
Where do people camp in Martin County?
Mostly at one very large park, with two other options either side. Jonathan Dickinson State Park is north of Hobe Sound and is one of the biggest parks on this coast, with the Loxahatchee River running through it. Savannas Preserve State Park runs north from here into St. Lucie County and protects one of the last freshwater savannas on Florida's east coast. KOA Palm Beach / Stuart is the commercial option. Florida State Parks publish that their full-facility campsites include water, electricity and a dump station as part of the campground, which covers the state park sites. Book ahead for the winter months - Florida residents can reserve eleven months out and non-residents ten - because Martin County sits squarely in the snowbird belt and Jonathan Dickinson fills early. It is also the only county on this stretch where a single park dominates that completely, so if Jonathan Dickinson is full the alternatives are a drive.
Camping around Martin County
Martin County has one of the largest state parks on this coast, a preserve running north into St. Lucie, and a commercial site near the water.
What a visit costs in Stuart
The service call is $299 and covers the trip out to your RV and the first hour on site. Work past that first hour is quoted to you once our technician has found the fault, before we carry on. Written estimates are free and you approve one before any work starts. Call 772-677-9471.
Sources for the Stuart detail
- Lippert - leveling and stabilization manual - the manufacturer's own procedure for jack operation, pads and maintenance
- Jonathan Dickinson State Park - the state's page for the park where the job above took place
- Savannas Preserve State Park - the freshwater savanna preserve running north from here
- Florida State Parks - RV camping - confirms full-facility campsites include water, electricity and a dump station
What Martin County owners book most
- RV leveling systems - jacks, cylinders, seals and hydraulic faults
- RV slide-out repair - the other hydraulic system in salt air
- RV inspections - the twice-yearly hose, fitting and corrosion check
- RV locks and security - exterior hardware on the same coast
Apex RV Repair Stuart Office
Apex RV Repair - Stuart
900 SE Ocean Blvd suite 253
Stuart, FL 34994
772-677-9471
Our Stuart office is located at the address above, and visits are welcome by appointment. Apex RV Repair is primarily a mobile service - our technicians come to your RV wherever it is parked, at home, at a campground or on the road, so most customers are looked after without ever needing to travel to us.
Call 772-677-9471 to book a visit to the office or, more usually, to have a technician come to you.
Stuart and Martin County RV questions
My jack leg is rusty. Is that just cosmetic?
No. The polished rod is the surface the cylinder seal rides on, so corrosion there is a sealing problem rather than an appearance one. Pitting gives the seal edges to run over and raised corrosion acts as an abrasive, which is how a rusty jack becomes a leaking one.
Can I sand the rust off the jack rod?
Only very gently, and only for light surface corrosion that has not pitted the sealing surface. Coarse abrasive removes the finish the seal depends on and leaves a rod that looks clean and destroys seals faster. Where a rod is genuinely pitted, the honest answer is replacement rather than a tidy-up.
Should I paint or grease the jack rods to protect them?
Neither. Paint on a working rod is scraped off by the seal and ends up in the fluid. Grease holds grit and salt against the rod and carries the mixture back inside on every retraction. A corrosion inhibitor suitable for a hydraulic rod is the right product, and keeping the jacks retracted is better than any product.
My coach settles overnight. Jacks or ground?
Mark each rod where it leaves the cylinder before bed and look in the morning. Rods retracted means the hydraulic system let it down, which is a repair. Rods unmoved but the coach lower means the ground gave way, which a wider and stiffer pad under each foot fixes and no repair will.
One jack extends more slowly than the others. What is that?
Often corrosion or a damaged seal on that leg creating drag or an internal leak, sometimes air in the system or a valve issue. It is worth acting on rather than living with, because a jack working against a damaged seal is contaminating the fluid the rest of the system shares.
How do I stop this happening on the Treasure Coast?
Rinse the underside and the mechanisms with fresh water after time near the water rather than just the panels, keep jacks and slides retracted when they are not in use, and check the hoses, fittings and reservoir level twice a year. A slow leak shows up at the reservoir long before a jack visibly fails.
Do you cover Hobe Sound, Palm City and Jensen Beach?
Yes, across Martin County - Stuart, Palm City, Jensen Beach, Hobe Sound, Indiantown and the state park sites. Travel is inside the service call rather than billed separately, so a park site and a residential driveway cost the same to reach.
Can hydraulic work be done on site or does it need a shop?
Most of it can be done where the coach stands - seals, hoses, fittings, fluid and diagnosis. Tell us which jack, what it does and whether there is fluid visible on the ground when you book, because that description is usually enough to bring the right parts and keep it to one visit.