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Topic: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation (Read 1099 times) previous topic - next topic

New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

New Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Our entry door and bay doors can be locked or unlocked using the key fob or the driver's side panel switch. However, I often found myself standing in front of a locked bay door with the key fob inside the coach, forcing me to head back in and use the switch on the driver's panel just to unlock it.

I seem to recall that our 2003 model had a lock/unlock switch on the passenger side panel, unless I'm imagining it, but it's a memory that sticks with me.

Currently, the passenger-side panel features three switches: Porch, Step, and Interior:

    • Porch: Turns on the exterior yellow entry light, similar to tapping the entry handle (Touchlite), but persistent.
    • Step: Turns on the entry step light, plus the toe kick lights in the kitchen and bathroom.
    • Interior: Controls one of the front ceiling lights.

The Step switch struck me as an odd place for controlling the toe kick lights, which made it a candidate for a redo.

The Plan
We decided to replace the Step switch with a more useful function: controlling the door and bay locks. Having this function on the passenger panel makes it far more convenient to lock or unlock the bays without needing to retrieve the key fob or head to the driver's side.

To support the change:

    • The entry step light was rewired to come on with the Porch switch (or Touchlite), so a single action now lights up the entryway.
    • The toe kick lights were relocated to a switch in the kitchen, grouped with the other ambient lighting (under-cabinet, valance, etc.).

We had a Generator Auto/Manual switch near the Aqua-Hot (is this standard ?? - it wasn't labeled), water pump, and lighting controls, so I repurposed it for the toe kick lights. This felt like a more logical placement among the "mood" lighting controls and I did not need a second auto/manual switch for the genset.  We still have a (also unlabeled) generator "on/off" switch and "generator running" indicator light at that location in the kitchen.

Lock/Unlock Switch Wiring
lokcunlock.jpg Schematic A-6209 outlines the power lock system. It shows a momentary SPDT switch (the one on the driver's console) that briefly grounds either the lock or unlock wire to trigger the action.

20250531_134112.jpg The wires in question are 194 and 195  They were easy to find, since they run to the keyless entry module located behind the panel in front of the passenger seat.

20250531_134057.jpg Adding a second switch was straightforward: I tapped into the above two wires and connected them to a new momentary rocker switch with the center tap connected to ground.

20250531_140033.jpg Our coach uses Carling R-Series Curvette switches, but I couldn't find one in the configuration needed (momentary on - Off - momentary on.)  Instead, I went with an S341 from RV Designer. It's a close match, just slightly more angular, and required opening up the panel cutout about 0.050 inches, which can be accomplished with a few passes of a file.  Yes it says step but is really lock, anyone know where to get stenciled panels made?

This is getting long, so I'll cover how we adjusted the toe kick lighting in a another post.
2000 / 36' / U320 / WTFE
WildEBeest / "Striving to put right what once went wrong"

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #1 –
Is there something i am missing?  In viewing the panel you have which is exactly like mine, the momentary switch with the green light does nothing in my coach. Are you saying that if i left an i interior light in the on position ( found by trial and error i guess...) i could turn interior lights on?  Have asked before in the forum and have not got a correct/positive response...
Peter
Peter    Alberta Canada
'98 U320 40'  Build 5359 M11 450 HP, Aqua hot, Blu Ox

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #2 –
Peter,

To answer your basic question Yes that momentary switch should operate one of the florescent light fixture in the kitchen. Most coaches of that age it is the fixture over the fridge.  If that don't work you most likely have a bad latching relay as that light fixture shouldn't have a switch on the fixture. The second switch that is tied to this relay should be over the sink.

Mike
Pamela & Mike 97 U 320

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #3 –
Steve,

For future reference that switch should be a carling-technologies/rd221-mb-b-0-n unless Foretravel changed at some point.

Mike
Pamela & Mike 97 U 320

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #4 –
Quote from: steve –
New Lock/Unlock Switch Installation


  • The entry step light was rewired to come on with the Porch switch (or Touchlite), so a single action now lights up the entryway.


This is a tiny part of your upgrade but this makes so much sense.  Even though I probably will not do all of the rewiring that you are doing, I do plan to make this small change in my coach.  Thanks for bringing it up. 
Jan & Richard Witt
1999 U-320  36ft WTFE
Build Number: 5478 Motorcade: 16599
2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited w/Air Force One
Jan: NO5U, Richard:KA5RIW
The selected media item is not currently available.

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #5 –
Quote from: Pamela & Mike –
Steve,

For future reference that switch should be a carling-technologies/rd221-mb-b-0-n unless Foretravel changed at some point.

Mike
Thanks Mike, for some reason I could just not find the (on)-off-(on) configuration that I wanted when I went looking.
Quote from: Jan & Richard –
This is a tiny part of your upgrade but this makes so much sense.  Even though I probably will not do all of the rewiring that you are doing, I do plan to make this small change in my coach.  Thanks for bringing it up.
Glad I could give you a project :)
2000 / 36' / U320 / WTFE
WildEBeest / "Striving to put right what once went wrong"

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #6 –
Steve
So tiu know wheee the latching relay is for that momentary switch?
Peter    Alberta Canada
'98 U320 40'  Build 5359 M11 450 HP, Aqua hot, Blu Ox

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #7 –
2003 U320

Dan - Full timing since 2009
2003 U320 40' Tag 2 slide

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #8 –
Peter,

First place to look is above the micro. in that thin cabinet. There should be a removable wall panel that hides some of the electronics. Look there first

Mike
Pamela & Mike 97 U 320

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #9 –
A sign company should be able to make a new switch panel. 
2014 ih45  (4th Foretravel owned)
 1997 36' U295 Sold in 2020, owned for 19 years
  U240 36' Sold to insurance company after melting in garage fire
    33' Foretravel on Dodge Chassis  Sold very long time ago

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #10 –
Steve - your write ups are fantastic!

But I'm incredibly disappointed that you haven't yet etched a new label on the switch.  ;)
Steve and Cassi
2007 Foretravel Nimbus 42'

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #11 –
Quote from: stevej –
But I'm incredibly disappointed that you haven't yet etched a new label on the switch.  ;)
LOL ... I'm working on something !
2000 / 36' / U320 / WTFE
WildEBeest / "Striving to put right what once went wrong"

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #12 –
Did you make it or does FT have it?
1999 40 ft. U-320 wtfe build 5563 Chuck & Lynda's "Rollin' Inn"  2030 watts solar
prev. mh's 71 GMC 5 yrs. 73 Pace Setter 1 yr. 78 Vogue 5 yrs 81 FTX 40ft all electric 18 yrs. 1996 Monaco Signature 3 yrs.
2014 Grand Cherokee Overland
Dream as if you will live forever. Live as if you will die today.  James Dean

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #14 –
Great idea with the extra switch. While your doing that add another switch that is waterproof and outside the coach so you dont even have to go inside to activate. Nobody but you will know about it and you'll never get locked out.

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #15 –
Quote from: craneman –
Did you make it or does FT have it?
Now it has been fabricated, above was just my CAD rendering.  I never checked with FT, last I knew they only had blank plates but ??

20250617_150136.jpg Old vs New.  As I looked at the existing plates, in our coach there were several variations.  Different gold color, letter sizing, letter positioning, even the Foretravel font was different from plate to place.  I chose a common ground that worked on 1,2,3,4 position switch plates.  Now that its been fabricated I'll make a few adjustments for some others that I need to replace (some with no labels, some with labels worn off) 

20250617_154433.jpg New plate in place :D  I did the LED bulb after the fact, just needs a 1/4" drill bit.  All in all I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.  Since someone will ask ~$60 including tax/shipping.  Modeled it in Freecad and did the graphics in Photoshop.
2000 / 36' / U320 / WTFE
WildEBeest / "Striving to put right what once went wrong"

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #16 –
Quote from: Peter –
Steve
So tiu know wheee the latching relay is for that momentary switch?
I know this is an old question, and Pamela & Mike already gave the specifics, but I was doing some other work in that area and a picture is always useful, so here you go!  Its the thin cabinet above the microwave, left hand "wall"
2000 / 36' / U320 / WTFE
WildEBeest / "Striving to put right what once went wrong"

Re: New Door Lock/Unlock Switch Installation

Reply #17 –
Looks like you have the upgraded Finder relay rather than the old cube style LR-35. For those replacing the LR35 the Finder can be used but you will have to cut off the connectors for to make the change.

Thanks for the pic. as I never think about taking pics.

Mike
Pamela & Mike 97 U 320

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters."