Troubleshooting Electric Brakes on 2011 Forest River Coachman

Question:

I have a Prodigy P2. Brake controller and a 2011 Coachman 31 foot trailer made by Forest River. 2 axle 15 inch wheels. 5325 dry weight. Truck is a 2014 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. I bought the controller new not quite 3 years ago when I bought the truck. Im not sure if the brakes ever worked properly. Running around Florida they seemed allrght. Going out west in the mountains shortly so I need brakes. I have replaced all four backing plates and magnets and brake shoes. I can hear the magnets trying to work but I get the front right working a little more then the other three. I have reset the controller three four times and rechecked the brake adjustments everything seems right but no brakes to speak of. Thanks in advance for any assistance you could give me

asked by: Vern N

Helpful Expert Reply:

If one of your tandem axle Coachman 31-foot trailer's electric drum brakes appears to be getting more power than the other three I would check the wiring for all four brakes. Each one needs a solid ground to the frame (either magnet wire can be used for ground since they are not polarized).

The brake grounding points need to be clean bare metal to ensure proper operation. You can try sanding/cleaning off any paint, primer, rust, grease or dirt from the magnet ground points and also make sure the main trailer ground for the 7-way plug is likewise connected to clean metal.

If all four brakes hum (indicating power is reaching the magnets) then you may need to adjust each brake star wheel to bring the pads into fuller contact with the drums. When an electric drum brake is adjusted properly you should feel and hear slight drag on the drum (even when no brake power is coming from the controller) when you rotate the wheel by hand.

You can test the brakes directly, without a vehicle or brake controller, just by applying 12V power direct to the brake circuit. You can use any well-charged 12V battery (the one in the truck or a spare if you have one around). With a full 12V reaching the brakes you should find the wheels to be locked up.

Also make sure you follow the set-up and adjustment process for the Prodigy # 90885. The instructions are linked for you.

expert reply by: Adam R