Unhook for quick overnight stop

Doss, I run my Onan when stopped over night.

This would be the Onan that came with the RV

RustyJC wrote:
Most controllers do that - my factory controller does. The question is, if you unplug the trailer overnight and start the truck the next morning without plugging in the umbilical, how would the P3 controller know that there was a trailer attached to the hitch? As far as the controller is concerned, it's no different than starting the truck the next morning to go on a grocery run without a trailer, right? So why would it flash a Trailer Not Connected warning unless it does this any time you step on the brake pedal, towing or not?

Rusty

Thanks, I didn't describe my question well enough. :)

Doss wrote:
I was planning to run the generator. Is that a foul? It can't be any louder than the trucks engines/APU's

Depends on the generator. If you have an inverter-style, like a Honda 2000 or 3000, you shouldn't have any issues. You still might only want to run it for a couple hours, then shut down. I know my cheapie Generac we bought for Y2K fears is louder than an idling semi; several semis, in fact! And that's with the "quiet kit" added. My dad's 25kva Multiquip with an Isuzu diesel is =much= quieter. Sure wish I could tow it along. :-)

Lyle

Doss wrote:
I was planning to run the generator. Is that a foul? It can't be any louder than the trucks engines/APU's

Inverters are much more convenient for that sort of thing.

I was planning to run the generator. Is that a foul? It can't be any louder than the trucks engines/APU's

I guess my question on the unplug for a short overnight is WHY?
Is the TV batteries that bad, is the 5er's batteries that bad? I would not bother for that short of time.

I was awoken on our first night of Hosting in June, with the Propane alarm going off. during setup we had a lot of lights on (12V) it was a bit cool that day and the furnace ran a bit. We didn't have the leg of power that the converter was on, so 5er battery was low. I plug the cable in to solve the problem at 2:00 am, no issues starting the TV in the morning.
You would need some huge draws to kill the battery in an overnight, we ran the furnace off batteries, during an orientation session charging during the day off generator, batteries hardly dropped overnight.

RustyJC wrote:
Most controllers do that - my factory controller does. The question is, if you unplug the trailer overnight and start the truck the next morning without plugging in the umbilical, how would the P3 controller know that there was a trailer attached to the hitch? As far as the controller is concerned, it's no different than starting the truck the next morning to go on a grocery run without a trailer, right? So why would it flash a Trailer Not Connected warning unless it does this any time you step on the brake pedal, towing or not?

Rusty

Mine flashes red with the "No trailer connected" message every time I start the truck, unless I do, indeed, have the trailer brakes connected. Then is shows Green with the brake current reading, which is zero unless I press the brake pedal.

Most controllers do that - my factory controller does. The question is, if you unplug the trailer overnight and start the truck the next morning without plugging in the umbilical, how would the P3 controller know that there was a trailer attached to the hitch? As far as the controller is concerned, it's no different than starting the truck the next morning to go on a grocery run without a trailer, right? So why would it flash a Trailer Not Connected warning unless it does this any time you step on the brake pedal, towing or not?

Rusty

ependydad wrote:

Allworth wrote:
If I try to drive off with the umbilical disconnected, my P-3 starts flashing all kinds of bright red "Trailer Not Connected" warnings every time I touch the brake (note spelling) pedal.

Another plus for the P-3 controllers.

How does it know that there is a trailer back there?

The P-3 pumps a very small amount of current through the brakes. Not enough to energize, but enough to tell that they are connected. No current, no connected brakes.