Need a device

tarnold wrote:
Op here, been camping for a few days and no service. Some good points above. What I’m after is knowing when the towed brake pedal is being depressed and releasing. I know that when I press the MH brake, the toad lights will come on, has 4 diodes installed. Had a mental lapse this last trip and adjusted the brake cable WITHOUT having the arms extended all the way after just hooking up. When we took off the arms extended tighten the brake cable and activated the toad brakes, and drug it 100 feet on gravel driveway before getting out to chec everything again. An indicator would have alerted me to this.

Read my post immediately before this post of yours. That is EXACTLY what I did, and exactly WHY I did it. The hot wire to the third brake light is not activated by your MH brakes, only by the car's brake pedal. If the car also has a trailer power connector to tow its own trailer, you can choose to hook to that. It also is not powered by the MH brakes.

Op here, been camping for a few days and no service. Some good points above. What I’m after is knowing when the towed brake pedal is being depressed and releasing. I know that when I press the MH brake, the toad lights will come on, has 4 diodes installed. Had a mental lapse this last trip and adjusted the brake cable WITHOUT having the arms extended all the way after just hooking up. When we took off the arms extended tighten the brake cable and activated the toad brakes, and drug it 100 feet on gravel driveway before getting out to chec everything again. An indicator would have alerted me to this.

When I installed the ReadyBrute Elite tow bar between my (previous) Class C and towed car, I bought their indicator light. It had me run from a hot wire under the dash to the light, then a LONG wire to the back of the RV where there was a connector. The other side of the connector went to GROUND. The tow bar had a matching connector that just grounded the two wires together when the tow bar activated the brakes. I was unhappy with that because I wasn't interested in when the tow bar brakes activated, I wanted to know when the car brakes activated. A subtle point, but an important one to me. I put a 12v normally open relay between the towed car's third brake light hot wire and ground. Then I ran a long wire to the front of the car and installed a matching connector, and made a 4-ish foot long jumper to go from the front of the car to the back of the RV. After that, if the brakes on the car DIDN'T activate, I knew it (because the light did not come on). Or, if the brakes got locked on and dragging, I knew it (because the light stayed on).

Once installed, it was absolutely no problem. Connect the jumper wire at both ends and it was done.

I'm curious why we wouldn't trust our brake lights. Most MH tail lights are wider than a probable toad and therefore visible to following vehicles. We don't go hooking up mirrors and what all to our everyday trucks and cars. A light that comes on just because the pedal is moved proves nothing.
Get a HF or where ever magnetic trailer light harness that plugs into a 4 way as a secondary if wanted. They are 25' long and extensions are available if needed.

Road master makes a small transmitter and receiver I installed with my deacon stay and play, I’m happy with it

https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories-and-Parts/Roadmaster/RM-9530.html

My AF1 system came with a wireless beeper that activates with the toad brakes. At a light, it was annoying to have the beeper on but I found that I can ease off the brakes and the toad brakes release before the coach brakes. You can miss a light on your dash but can’t miss the beeper. It is loud enough that I buried it in my overhead cabinet.

Rich

Thank you wnjj, obviously you think outside the box a little. wa8yxm didn't read the OP's follow up when he said he really can't see his towed.

wa8yxm wrote:

D.E.Bishop wrote:
Go to Ebay and search for wireless trailer lights. I foun one "buy it now" for $45.

These do NOT answer the Original poster's need

These are for telling the person tailgating you he should be standing on his brakes.

O/P wanted to know when the car's brakes were active (he's in front of the car)

Like I said a Switched light powered by the brake light switched lead (And then a toggle switch to shut it off when driving) on the dash. Use a 1136 LED equivlent (a very very bright led) so you can see it in the rear view.. (I have a led strip that backs up another sensor on the car and sadly I can't always see it due to sun wash so make sure it is BRIGHT.

I don’t think the wireless trailer lights care if they send the signal backward or forward. He can put a trailer light near the motor home driver’s area and “tow” it with the car he’s towing. In other words when the car “steps on the brakes” it lights up the “trailer” lights for the motor home driver.

D.E.Bishop wrote:
Go to Ebay and search for wireless trailer lights. I foun one "buy it now" for $45.

These do NOT answer the Original poster's need

These are for telling the person tailgating you he should be standing on his brakes.

O/P wanted to know when the car's brakes were active (he's in front of the car)

Like I said a Switched light powered by the brake light switched lead (And then a toggle switch to shut it off when driving) on the dash. Use a 1136 LED equivlent (a very very bright led) so you can see it in the rear view.. (I have a led strip that backs up another sensor on the car and sadly I can't always see it due to sun wash so make sure it is BRIGHT.

Go to Ebay and search for wireless trailer lights. I foun one "buy it now" for $45.