breakaway switch and cable

[Cinderelle]

Hello - I am fairly new to this and after about 15 trips in my little RV I realized I wasn't hooking up the breakaway cable as it was broken and zip tied through my safety chains. I've ordered a new cable. My RV has a switch installed and through all my research I learned that I need to check the battery. I cannot find a battery - I crawled underneath and looked all over. Does the breakaway switch have to have it's own battery or is it possible to run off my 12V? Thanks in advance for your help. I have a 17 ft ECO by Skamper travel trailer. I tow with a Sequoia and have a brake controller installed in my TV.

[NMDriver]

The switch "should be" wired to your trailer battery. It does not have its own battery.

The cable is attached to the pin that pulls out of the switch, if the trailer breaks away from the tow vehicle. When the pin pulls out the trailer battery supplies power to the electric brakes on the trailer, hopefully stopping it without any further damage.

Additional advice: do not pull the pin to act as a parking brake. If you keep electric brakes powered (energized) they will burn out and need replacement. The pin is suppose to activate the brakes in an emergency not as an everyday parking brake.