Eeven Brake eats car batteries

[topher80]

Good morning all. Towing Jeep Grand Cherokee from NH to FL and id way through the trip the brake monitor told me battery low. So I went into the Jeep and sure enough the car battery was dead.

After getting the Jeep jumped, we rand it for an hour or so and hooked to up the next morning and 3-hours into the trip, guess what. Battery was drained dead. I called Roadmaster and they told me the Even-Brake system draws 15 amps every time the compressor is on,. Plus we have to have the auxiliary position on to run the brake system.

Any work arounds for this? I guess I am not the only one to have this problem.

[daveshan]

2 things, one already mentioned.

Run a charge line. Numerous ways to do this, hit Google and pick the one that works best for you.

Make sure your Even Brake doesn't have an air leak, mine was cycling every 5-6 minutes just sitting in the driveway. Never noticed it 'till I was doing some work nearby with the door open after hooking it up. Roadmaster replaced it under warranty but it took 45 days for them to ship me a reman box back.


I've had issues with phantom braking with both boxes but since I already own the box I'll stick with it a while.

[RoyB]

The bad about running down any of the start batteries or the deep cycle batteries is that you can only do this one or maybe two times. The battery won't come back to full life like before if discharged below its 50% state of charge. This is around 12.0VDC on a deep cycle battery.. You may have to replace the battery to get full performance again... Could get expensive doing this everytime you tow your Jeep.

I would come up with something to keep this from happening...

Just my thoughts...
Roy Ken

[Shot-N-Az]

I have the same system, but have never had a problem. Check to ensure your ignition switch is in the correct position. On my toad, I turn only one click to unlock the steering wheel, but nothing on the toad gets energized in the process. If I turn two clicks (as I did once by mistake), there is a significant draw on the battery. I've driven 14 hr straight and still had battery at the end of the day.

[WyoTraveler]

Run a charge line to the Jeep from MH. I run my charge line through a diode instead of the toad charge. I didn't buy the Even Brake for that very reason and the prior posts about dead batteries. 15 amps is a lot of drain on any battery if the engine isn't running. That drain can even kill a new battery.

$110 for a Toad Charge is pretty pricey for basically a $3 diode in a plastic box. I bought 4 diodes and the plastic box from Radio shack for less than $6.

[admiral0647]

rgatijnet1 wrote:
You can get one of the battery jumper boxes and use it to power your brake system. At least when it dies you would still be able to drive your vehicle. These are available from Harbor Freight, and other sources, for under $50.

I used the above solution of about 5 trips last year when my toad battery would run down. Fixed it by replacing the toad's weak battery. Have not used it since, but I still carry the jump battery in my MH. I leave it plugged in in an outside compartment with 110v outlet. Have used the jump battery to help other campers with 12v problems.

Jim

[willald]

Indeed, battery depletion is one of the reasons why I prefer (and went with) the Readybrake system over all of the 'electronic box' type systems.

However, there is an easy solution to this, that I highly recommend in many cases regardless of brake system used: Run a (fused) charge line from your MH, through the 'umbilical cord' going to your toad, to your toad's battery. In most cases it is a very easy thing to do, parts to do it can be had for very little $$ (just requires a little wire, connectors, fuses, etc).

This will keep your toad battery charged up whenever you're towing, and you'll never have to worry about the toad battery again. Even if you accidentally leave something turned on inside the toad that you didn't mean to.

I did this for our Ford Fusion we tow, and it works great.

[travelzoo]

topher80 wrote:
Good morning all. Towing Jeep Grand Cherokee from NH to FL and id way through the trip the brake monitor told me battery low. So I went into the Jeep and sure enough the car battery was dead.

After getting the Jeep jumped, we rand it for an hour or so and hooked to up the next morning and 3-hours into the trip, guess what. Battery was drained dead. I called Roadmaster and they told me the Even-Brake system draws 15 amps every time the compressor is on,. Plus we have to have the auxiliary position on to run the brake system.

Any work arounds for this? I guess I am not the only one to have this problem.

Have the Jeep battery load tested to make sure it is in good condition. Also make sure your brake lights are not staying on all the time.

[harold1946]

I found that when DW was driving we were having the same problem, but not when I am driving. I noticed she was inadvertently resting her foot on the brake pedal which was activating the system enough to cause the compressor to repeatedly come on, drainng the battery.

[John_Joey]

Think of all of us that have brake systems that don't have that problem. I doubt they could sell many brake systems if we all had dead batteries at the end of a travel day.

I would take a hard look at why your Jeep can't hold a charge. You may have a draw you don't know of, a dead cell in the battery, running lights that stay on because a fuse isn't pulled, etc...

I only had a dead battery once and that was because when I had the key on Acc. the fan could run, I didn't notice it and that's what drew down the battery.

Having a jumper unit is a good idea regardless, but should not be needed to run your system.

[bluwtr49]

I got rid of mine for several reasons....that being one. Installed a ready break and have never looked back.

[kdk]

Google LSL products and look at the "Toad Charge", easy hook up if you can use tools. Been using one for 5 years now and have not had any more dead battery problems. Good product with a lot of built in safety features and worth the price in peace of mind. One less thing to deal with.
Blessings; KDK

[rgatijnet1]

You can get one of the battery jumper boxes and use it to power your brake system. At least when it dies you would still be able to drive your vehicle. These are available from Harbor Freight, and other sources, for under $50.