Troubleshooting Shorted Out Brake Controller Connected to Breakaway System

Question

Question:

Hello, Hooked up my truck to our 24foot Carson enclosed trailer that we just installed a new breakaway battery on. Immediately fried the controller. Short to ground somewhere in the harness? Thank you

asked by: Jeremiah H

0

Expert Reply:

I'm sorry that this happened to your brake controller. I am happy to do research to help get this issues resolved.

If when testing the breakaway system and the pin was pulled with the battery connected backwards. This would compromise the brake controller. When reaching out to my contact at Tekonsha we agreed that there may be a wiring issue someplace in the breakaway system. The combination of the wiring issue, combined with pulling the pin would certainly cause frying of the brake controller.

The break away system on a trailer would typically have its own battery, like that shown with part # 20400. The break away switch should be wired so that it is a normally open circuit that closes when the pin is pulled. When the pin is pulled, the circuit closes, allowing voltage to travel to the trailer brakes. One leg of the switch should be wired to the positive terminal of the break away battery, and the other leg tapped into the brake circuit (see provided diagram.)

Once you have everything wired as shown in the diagram, the system should work fine for you.

expert reply by: Timothy G

0

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Answer 1

There are several fuses that relate to the trailer connector on a 2015 Ram 1500. These are all located in the power distribution center (PDC) and I have attached a list of them for you below: Trailer Tow Backup Lights - F28 - 20 Amp Blue Trailer Tow…

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Answer 2

Thank you for reaching out! I'm not 100% certain what you have installed on your trailer but it sounds like you may have some things wired incorrectly on your trailer. Your brake controller should be going directly to your trailer brakes and the…

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Answer 3

You are correct, you should only be getting output when the brake is applied, or the override switch is activated. It sounds like the controller might be bad, but to make sure, you should probably bench test it before tossing it. Use a circuit…

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Answer 4

First thing to check is to see if your truck's third brake light is still working when you hit the brakes. When the fuse for that circuit goes on GM trucks like your 2014 model it will prevent the brake controller from activating when the brakes…

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Answer 5

I took a look at the online version of your 2014 Ram 2500 owner's manual. It looks like there should be a 30 amp pink fuse located in the F11 position inside the power distribution box (under the hood). This particular fuse is for the integrated…

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Answer 6

There are times when it is tough to locate the brake controller plug under the dash. On the 2015 Ram the factory plug is located between the brake pedal and the emergency brake pedal as shown in the attached photo. It is probably behind another…

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Answer 7

The only time you want to see power on the blue brake wire from the Curt Triflex Brake Controller part #C24VV is when the brake pedal depressed in the vehicle or the brake controller manual override is activated. If the blue wire has a constant 12V…

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Answer 8

You should only be seeing 12 volts on the blue wire on the brake controller, #C24VV, when the manual override is used. If there is constant power all the time then there is either something that is miswired or a problem inside the controller and it…

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Answer 9

Try unplugging the brake controller for 10 seconds or so and then replugging it in. Sometimes brake controllers like the part #C24VV just need to be reset and this is the corret way to do that.

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Answer 10

Absolutely! If you would rather not connect the trailer to your tow vehicle, you can simply use a separate car/truck 12V battery to test the electric brakes on your trailer. You can apply power to the appropriate brake input pin on the trailer…

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Answer 11

To reset your Curt Triflex part #C24VV all you need to do is unplug it temporarily and then plug it back in. Once you do that the controller will have reset itself.

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Answer 12

If your trailer has 7 wires running all the way back to the brakes, then yes, you can tap into the existing wiring. Each of your new brakes will have two wires for the brake magnet. One wire is for 12 volt power to the brake magnets and the other…

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Troubleshooting Shorted Out Brake Controller Connected to Breakaway System

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