Titan EHB Electric Over Hydraulic Actuator Will not Pressurize

Question:

My unit wont build psi. It clickes on and off. Sounds like a solenoid turning on/of

asked by: Jeff

Expert Reply:

There are a few different issues that could cause your Titan EHB actuator to not build pressure. The first and easiest things to check is the ground connection and fluid level. A poor ground is the most common cause for electric-over-hydraulic actuators to fail. The actuator should be grounded to a 12 volt battery, not the trailer frame. The trailer frame is not a suitable ground location for this actuator.

If you adjust the ground connection and the unit will still not pressurize, you can test the unit using a voltmeter. With the tow vehicle connected to the trailer, check the voltage from the black positive wire to the white ground wire without applying the brakes. This voltage should be close to 12 volts.

Next, test the voltage with the brakes applied. The voltage may drop to 11. If the voltage drops below 10, then there is likely a wiring issue somewhere between the actuator and the brake controller on your tow vehicle that would cause a drop in voltage. Be sure to check for any corrosion on the trailer connectors or damaged sections of wire.

If the black wire has the appropriate voltage, test the voltage between the blue wire and the white wire. It should show minimal voltage without the brake applied. Then set the gain on your brake controller to the maximum setting and apply the manual override. The voltage on the blue wire should be near the maximum gain setting on the brake controller. If there is minimal voltage on the blue wire with the brake controller activated or constant 12 volts on the blue wire without the brake applied, there is likely a wiring issue or a problem with the brake controller.

If everything checks out, I recommend testing the wiring directly at the actuator. For this you will need an independent 12 volt power supply such as a 12 volt vehicle battery. Unplug the trailer from the tow vehicle and disconnect the battery leads on the trailer. Next, cut black, blue and white wires coming from the actuator.

First, touch the white wire to the negative post of the battery and the black wire to the positive post. The unit should not run. Next, add the blue wire to the positive post of the battery. The actuator should start to run and this would indicate there is no issue with the actuator. If the actuator does not run, then the actuator is likely the problem. These units are not internally serviceable and Titan recommends contacting them directly for repair options.

expert reply by: John H