How Long Does it Take for Self-Adjusting Electric Brakes to Break In

Question:

I read the information on self adjusting brakes. Ive installed all new self adjusting brakes on my trailer. After adjusting them, going down the road with the brake controller on the truck at 10 full, I just notice the trailer braking a small amount. Will these over time self adjust? Are we talking in the next 100 miles or 10000 miles? Or should I take them apart again and manual adjust them a little more?

asked by: Rich L

Helpful Expert Reply:

Self-adjusting brakes like the etrailer.com Electric Brake Kit # AKEBRK-35-SA that you recently installed do require an initial calibration, which it sounds like you have already done. From there the brakes will continue to set themselves to the proper tightness as you power them when towing. As a general rule it takes about 200 miles of use for self-adjusting assemblies to get to their optimal braking power.

What you can do to speed this process up is take your trailer out to an empty parking lot and apply the manual override on the brake controller several times as you travel at a slow speed. The brakes should get tighter and tighter with each application.

expert reply by: Chris R