After a long day of driving, you have finally arrived at your camp site. The chairs are setup, the RV is plugged in, and it’s time to unfurl the awning.
Carefree Awning – Carefree awnings are manufactured by Carefree of Colorado, and the product line includes powered and manually operated awnings for RVs. The powered awnings have a Bluetooth-connected motion sensor located in the leading edge of the awning toward the rear of the RV. The awning will automatically retract when the sensor detects large vertical movements of the awning. The motion sensor is powered by two AA batteries that will need to be changed from time to time.
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LED Lights
The awning has a single strip of dimable white LED lights on the leading edge. It can be controlled by the Firefly touch panel or by the Carefree app on your phone or tablet. NOTE: If you dim the lights using the app, they must be returned to full brightness, or the Firefly cannot adjust them.
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Awning Operation
The Carefree armless awning used in most new Class B RVs uses the Firefly control panel or switches wired to a control module (BT12). The control module powers the awning motor, located toward the rear of the RV, for extending/retracting the awning. The BT12 also controls the power to the LED light strip on the leading edge. The controller monitors the vehicle’s ignition to disable extending the awning when the ignition is on. There is also a relay in the wheel-well electrical box that cuts power to the BT12 when the engine is running. You definitely don’t want your awning unrolling as you fly down the interstate at 60 mph. That’d be a bad day!
TIP#190: The awning cannot be extended or retracted when the engine is running.
TIP#195: Awning Relay Location – There is a relay in the wheel-well electrical box that is supposed to cut power to the awning when the ignition is on. To locate the relay, start/stop engine while an assistant listens for the clicking of the relay.
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Bluetooth
TIP#119: Phone/Tablet App – In addition to the Firefly touch-screen control panels, the BT12 is also Bluetooth-enabled. Downloading the mobile app “Carefree Connects” to your smart phone or tablet provides another easy way to have full control of the awning, along with additional features.
A handheld Bluetooth remote button, similar to a vehicle key fob, is also available for simple wireless control.
Pairing with Bluetooth
When adding the mobile app to your smart phone or tablet, the BT12 control module will need to be paired with your Bluetooth device. To pair the device: Load the mobile app on your phone or tablet.
TIP#049: Oops! – The LED light strip on the awning cannot be dimmed or brightened using the Firefly touch control panel. It’s just an ON/OFF switch. We mistakenly dimmed the brightness of the LED lights all the way down using the phone app “Carefree Connects,” and the LEDs wouldn’t switch on from the firefly. To brighten the light level all the way back up, use the app.
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Wind Sensor
The awning contains a motion sensor module with accelerometers that monitors the movement of the awning in windy conditions. When it senses high wind movement, the awning automatically retracts completely.
Using the mobile app, you can adjust the wind sensitivity. The default is set at 3 on a scale of 1-5.
Beeping
TIP#031: Beeping: What is that beep? It is every 30 seconds, and only my wife can hear it. The Carefree awning has a sensor that will retract the awning automatically in high winds. It uses two standard AA batteries, and when they get low, it will beep and the awning will partially retract. Ours started in the middle of the night with a drop in temperature, which reduces the available battery power. The older model sensor uses two 675 button cell batteries, and if you have the BT Mini Remote, it uses one CR2023 battery.
Pairing The Wind Sensor
When reconnecting or replacing the Bluetooth wind sensor, you will need to pair it with the BT12 control module before installing the sensor.
– Remove the motion sensor from the awning and remove the batteries.
– Extend the awning part way out.
– Retract the awning and continue to hold the retract button for 3 seconds after the awning is fully closed.
– The BT12 is now in Bluetooth pairing mode for 5 minutes.
– Install the batteries in the motion sensor and wait for 30 seconds for it to pair.
Test the pairing:
– Extend the awning.
– While standing near the rear of the van, close to the awning, hold the sensor vertically with the letters facing you and reading right-side up.
– Move the sensor up and down vigorously to trigger the awning to retract.
– If the awning closes, success!
– Mount the motion sensor on the inside of the awning edge with text reading up.
– Job well done!
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Cleaning
The armless awnings used on vans have the disadvantage of being difficult to clean because they are so high up and don’t tilt down so you can sweep them off. Our method is to hop up on the picnic table with a broom and try to get as much debris off as possible.
TIP#100: Isopropyl alcohol or turpentine can be used to clean off tree sap. Dish soap and a soft brush can be used to remove dirt and mold. Rinse well and let it air dry entirely before retracting the awning.
TIP#116: Make sure there are no leaves or twigs on top when retracting the awning. A tiny twig or piece of an acorn shell will quickly wear a hole through the awning from road vibration.
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TIP#057: Emergency Retraction
So what do you do when you’re boondocking and your awning BT12 control module emits a cloud of magic smoke or the awning motor goes on strike? Grab a ladder from someone with a Class A (they carry everything), remove the front end cover, and winch away.
The end cover on the Carefree Freedom awning has a single Phillips screw holding it on.
The cover can take some persuasion (a stick and hammer from inside) to push out the screw side of the cover.
The front edge has two tabs that hook on, so you need to push out the side opposite the tabs – (see picture).
With the cover off and a 3/8-drive ratchet in hand…. you can figure out the rest.
To reinstall the cover, hook the two tabs, give it a whack or two, and put the screw back in if you haven’t dropped it in the dirt.
This has been a test of the emergency retraction system. If this had been an actual emergency…….
Disclaimer: If your awning is nothing like ours, you’re on your own. Good luck.
TIP#146: Door Step – This device hooks into the door latch loop to provide easy access to look around the roof or perform an emergency rewind of the awning. The step is very sturdy and wide enough for both feet.
TIP#211: Access Cap – We updated the access to our emergency retraction socket by drilling a hole in the cover and installing a cap. Since the cover is held on by a single screw, the modification isn’t really worth the effort and is not recommended.
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Ramp Block
There are two of these little “ramps” that align the extendable portion of the awning into the roof-mounted housing when closing. Just as they contact the housing, the blocks lift the front housing in position for a good alignment. Interestingly, the parts were printed (poorly) on a 3D printer. The screw (3/16 Allen wrench) pushes the top portion apart to tighten the bottom portion to clamp the rail tightly. One of ours was loose and was sliding back and forth. The plastic threads in the block were stripped, and the screw wouldn’t tighten it up.
For a quick fix, you may be able to revive the threads by melting the part around the hole with a soldering iron to reduce the hole diameter. Now the screw should have a tighter fit and clamp better.
An even better fix was to design and 3D print an improved ramp block design. It has a stainless locking nut and through bolt, providing positive clamping force to keep it in place.
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Awning tilt adjustment
TIP#223: Tilt Adjustment Screws – After an experience with the awning in the rain, we adjusted the tilt angle down to provide better rain runoff. We also lowered the back end more than the front to provide a rear runoff angle.
A 4mm hex set screw on each arm adjusts the tilt. ! – WARNING – ! If you lower the angle of the awning too much, it WILL HIT the sliding door with the leading edge when the sliding door is open. (Extend/retract the first/last a foot or two with the door closed, and you will be fine.)
With our old van, we could leave the arm-awning out a few feet to shelter our bikes in the rain. The tensioning bar would keep it pulled tight. Our new Galleria has an armless awning, and having it out a couple feet didn’t work very well. We ended up with a squirrel swimming pool with a bunch of leaves floating in it.
When we ordered our Galleria, we asked if we could get an arm-awning instead of a powered awning – not possible. With the old van awning, we could angle it lower in the late afternoon sun and shade the full side of the van. Angling lower also made it very easy to sweep leaves, acorns, and other debris off before retracting it.
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WARNING: Rolling up just a small piece of an acorn shell or twig in the awning, road vibration will wear a hole through in no time. Our option is to hop up on a picnic table with a small broom and try to brush things off.
TIP: Camping under pine trees – In the south, pine sap flows all year, especially in spring and early summer. It is difficult to remove from awnings, and you may want to avoid sites with pine trees or avoid using the awning near the trees.
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Replacing the BT12 Control Module
The BT12 control module for the Coachmen Galleria is located in the upper rear cabinet, passenger side, behind a thin plywood panel. The panel is held in place by short staples and can be pried off for replacement access. If replacing the module, label the wires before removing the old module.
Our coach arrived home from the dealership with a burned-out BT12 module. With the projected time to replace it at 6 months (this was deemed non-critical to the use of the RV), we decided to replace ourselves. Fortunately, BT12 modules are available on Amazon with very quick delivery.
NOTE: You may have noticed the screw falling out on the left side of the small picture. This seems to be a common occurrence with the cabinetry in this van. You will also notice the power light is on even though it is in ‘store’ mode, not plugged in, and with the inverter off. I will need to look into that one a little more. We will be adding a power kill switch like we did in our previous van to make sure it’s off!
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Awning Deployment While Driving
The Carefree Freedom awning used on the Galleria have had cases where the awning extending on it’s own while on the road.
Recall 1 – There is a recall notice to add a relay to turn off power when the ignition is on. This workaround is OK while driving however, several people reported their awning would extend on it’s own while parked at a campsite or in storage.
Recall 2 – The second recall for Carefree awnings due to the motor housing breaking and the awning unfurling while in motion.
Recall 3 – Another problem was a gear problem also causing the awning to unfurl while driving.
TIP#199: If you are concerned, a simple solution for Recall-1 is to remove the awning fuse or install a combination fuse/switch. Another option some people have done is a couple Velcro straps to keep the awning from extending. Some owners have removed the awning completely.
Our final solution is to remove the powered awning and install a manually operated one. We prefer to have an awning with legs although you can purchase legs for the powered awning. The advantage of the legs is that you can angle the awning low to shade the side of the van in summer, or to sweep debris off the top. You can also lower one corner for rain runoff. The legs will provide sturdy support if you wanted to add a screen room or just a shade screen. The manual awning could possibly still have some kind of failure causing it to unfurl but at least it doesn’t have a brain of it’s own. 🙂
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TIP#214: Fire Safety – At an RV rally, we were told the story of two coaches that had decided to park awning to awning to create a large shaded area. One coach caught fire, and it spread across the awnings and ended up destroying two RVs. After that, rally goers were not permitted to park awning to awning. Wood campfires should be at least 10 feet away from the RV and awning; however, propane fire pits may be used closer since they don’t emit embers.
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Awning Trouble Shooting
Awning will not extend
STUCK – – –
1 – Has the awning gone for a long period without being extended or stored wet? It may just be stuck and need a good whack. Jiggle the front end and then the back end while someone presses the extend button.
POWER – – –
2 – Check that your 12-volt house power is on with the “USE” switch (not “STORE”). Do your ceiling lights and other 12-volt items operate normally? If so, the awning is probably getting 12 volts of power.
3 – What is the house battery voltage? Is the battery showing around 12 volts? If it is too low, the awning may not have enough power.
4 – Do the awning LEDs light up? If so, there is power to the control module.
RELAY – – –
5 – Is the vehicle ignition OFF? The awning has an ignition lockout relay to prevent extending/retracting when the ignition is on.
6 – The lockout relay could be bad. When turning the ignition on/off, do you hear the relay clicking? I will probably be in the driver’s side rear wheel well compartment.
7 – There may also be an awning power relay. Pressing the awning extend/retract, you may hear a clicking.
BLUETOOTH – – –
8 – Can you connect via the Bluetooth app? The awning uses a Bluetooth BT12 module and can be paired with a phone/tablet. If it works with the app and not the FireFly, this could indicate if the problem is with the FireFly controller.
FIREFLY – – –
9 – Reboot the FireFly Control Module. If the issue is the FireFly, rebooting it may fix the problem.
MANUAL UNROLL – – –
10 – Using the manual rewind socket, you could see if you ccould manually unroll the awning a little bit. This will indicate if it is stuck or broken.
BT12 MODULE – – –
11 – Check to see if the BT12 module red light is on. This indicates it is powered and relay is OK. Unfortunately, you will need to pull the access wall to get to the module.
12 – BT12 wire is loose. The module is connected using wire nuts or clips and may have disconnected. Give the wires a tug to see if they are all tight in the wire nuts.
EXTERIOR – – –
13 – Check the exterior connector for power when pressing the extend. This is difficult since it is up on the awning rear. The connector could have some corrosion, causing the malfunction.
14 – I’m running out of ideas… Finally, there is a possibility it is a bad motor. To test, you may be able to use a 12-vdc jump battery at the exterior connector to test the motor.
24 – Water Box
25 – Awning