Troubleshooting Wire Challenges On A Small Utility Trailer And A Holiday Trailer With 7-Way Plug

Question:

Hey first question here. I have a little utility trailer I installed new lights for the back the left one works and the rite one does not. My question is do I have to ground it out? It is just a 4 way plug. Bc I tryed to wire the ground in but still nothing. What can I do now? Also I have a holiday trailer 7 way plug re did the plug on the trailer and my truck plug it in turn the left signal on and it works turn the right signal light on and the left one comes on. How can I fix that? Could I just rewire the whole thing and make it a 4 way plug?

asked by: Fred

Expert Reply:

You have a lot of questions and possibilities so let me take them one at a time.

Regarding your little utility trailer, everything will need a ground. However, sometimes lights are grounded through the mounting bolts of the light assembly. If the light assembly is only a stop/turn/tail light tail and there are only two wires then the ground is probably through the mounting hardware. If the light assembly has a single intensity bulb and two wires then one wire will be for the ground circuit. With your ground connections, make sure they are firmly attached to a clean bare metal surface or to the main ground wire on the connector. Besides your ground, I would check to make sure wires are not loose or pinched and that they are connected function to function. Finally, make sure no corrosion are debris impacting the functionality of your connectors.

Regarding your Holiday Trailer, I would again check your ground wires and make sure firmly attached to bare metal surface or the main ground wire. Next, I would use a circuit tester like Item # PTW2993 and make sure wires are connected function to function. I would also check to see if wires are connected to right poles in your plugs (see picture).

Since you already have a 7-Way plug, it sounds like you may have a brake controller and/or other accessories so I do not recommend changing to a 4-Way plug because you may need all the 7-Way connections.

I am also attaching some articles for you to check out.

expert reply by: Brint H