How To Charge Trailer Battery On Dump Trailer Using The 7-Way Trailer Connector

Question:

I have a 2015 Chevy Silverado 2500 6.6 liter turbo diesel 4×4. I want to know exactly what I need to charge my battery on my dump while hooked to the truck.

asked by: Jere

Expert Reply:

You can provide a maintenance charge to the trailer mounted battery on your trailer via the 7-Way trailer connector's 12 volt circuit. But the wiring in that circuit is too small to handle the amount of amperage needed to charge up the battery. It is also possible that the alternator on the truck is not strong enough to push back that much amperage even with a larger wire gauge.

So if you connect a wire from the 12 volt circuit to the battery on the trailer it will provide a maintenance charge only. What you can do to get more charge is mount charger # 331-BCDC1240D to the trailer and run a 12 volt wire from the trailer connector to an input on it. Then run an output wire to the battery. This is a DC to DC charger.

If the maintenance charge is good enough then you could invest in a quality AC charger such as # CTEK56353 and charge the battery at the end of the day when you have access to AC power. This charger will not only charge the battery but also recondition it so it will last longer.

expert reply by: Michael H