Can I Use the 7-Way Connector On My Vehicle To Power the Redarc BCDC

Question:

I was wondering if this would be a good fit for my trailer? I have a small home built off road trailer and had planned on running the Redarc bcdc1225d. My question is....can I mount this in my tongue box to charge my battery that will run my lights and water pump and accessories? Will it receive enough power from the 7 pin connector from the truck to opperate correctly without running a power cord with an Anderson connector? If so that would be awesome. Thank you

asked by: Mark E

Expert Reply:

The Redarc In-Vehicle BCDC Battery Charger # 331-BCDC1225D does require running a heavy gauge wire that will directly connect to the alternator or battery on your tow vehicle. Unfortunately in this case your 7 pin connector will not provide enough power to properly power the BCDC charger and keep your batteries fully charged. With that said, this charger can easily be mounted on your trailer and will provide a great source of charging for your off-road trailer since it doesn't just provide maintenance charges and can completely charge a run down battery. These Redarc BCDC systems really are a great addition to any trailer with batteries because of their full charging ability, and the fact that they can work with a variety of different types of batteries.

If you have solar panels on your trailer like the Go Power Portable Solar System # 34282729 you can use those to provide your power source for the BCDC and not worry about running the charge line on your tow vehicle.

To make the connection from your BCDC to your tow vehicle you will need to source the 6 gauge double wiring locally, but you can use the Bulldog Winch Quick-Connect Set # BDW20047 to create a quick connection that will make life easy when it's time to tow the trailer.

expert reply by: Erik B