Troubleshooting Trailer Brakes And Brake Controller With Trailer Brakes Dragging

Question

Question:

I tow two different trailers. one seems to work great and the other one had problems with the breaks. I removed the break wire. But my question is on my truck wiring. should the break pin have power to it all the time? I dont understand. the one trailer works just fine. the other one the breaks were dragging. The break controller is hard wired in. I am thinking the Break controller is my problem. its an older one.

asked by: Leonard J

0

Expert Reply:

Yes. There should always be a very light power on your brake controller wire. However, it should be extremely minimal. As you increase in power using the manual override, you should see an incandescent circuit tester like # PTW2993 going from almost no light to brighter and brighter light as you increase power output to your trailer connection pin. I've attached an article to help. If this checks out, then I would check the adjustment on the trailer brakes on the trailer that is dragging.

I've attached a couple articles to help.

expert reply by: Jason S

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Answer 1

It depends on what the brake controller output is set to. If you have the brake controller set to the maximum then there should be about 12 volts at the brake magnets. To see if the brake magnets are drawing the correct power set the brake…

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Answer 2

Its not uncommon for there to be slight voltage drop off over a certain distance but with the brake controller set to the maximum you should still be getting 12 volts at the brake magnets. We need to determine if the low voltage is coming from the…

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Answer 3

Testing your trailer brakes for proper function on the test bench will require a multimeter that can display readings for both amps and ohms, such as part # PT89ZR. (Some brake controllers, such as the Tekonsha P3, have built-in test functions.) You…

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Answer 4

If you are only getting 1.5 volts at your brakes then there is an issue, but there is not a fuse that controls the brakes. There are a number of possible issues so you will need to find out if the issue is on the brake controller, truck, or trailer.…

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Answer 5

It should be getting close to 12 volts if the power output is set to the maximum on the brake controller. Some brake controllers will not work properly if they are titled or turned to the side or if it has a leveler knob that is not level. Check…

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Answer 6

First, do a visual inspection. You should make sure that the front of the magnet is not worn to the point where the interior copper windings are visible. Also, check the armature surface (inside rear of brake drum where magnet rides) is free of…

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Answer 7

I believe you almost solved the problem when you swapped the wiring, but in reality you needed to use 10 gauge wire like part #10-1-1 (sold by the foot). You are experiencing a voltage drop due to the long distance of wire that's not thick…

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Answer 8

The first test you will want to do is to test the amperage of the trailer braking system with a multimeter, like #PT89ZR. First, you will connect the ammeter inline with the blue wire exiting the back of the brake controller. Check the amperage. If…

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Answer 9

I do not recommend that you bypass the break away system because in many states it is a requirement to have a working break away system. Trailer brake magnets will have one power wire and one ground. The power output from a break away system will go…

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Answer 10

That certainly sounds odd. Here is what I would try: First, unplug the brake controller for 5 minutes and plug it back in. This will perform a hard reset on the controller which is sometimes necessary after a new installation. If that doesn't…

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Answer 11

When a fuse is constantly blowing it does sound like something very simple - you have overloaded a circuit which is causing the fuse to blow so your best option would be to utilize things like LED lights that draw less power as opposed to any…

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Answer 12

There are a few things you will need to check on your trailer tail lights. First is the simplest and checking the light bulbs to ensure they are not burnt out. The tail light bulbs will have 2 filaments inside the light for the running lights and the…

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