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.

[Cinderelle]

Great info everyone! Thanks so much for the super tips! I'm taking my first BIG trip - Florida to Virginia on Memorial Day weekend. I will definitely have a mechanic go over everything before I take off! THANKS AGAIN!

[LVJJJ]

mobeewan wrote:
As far as having it's on a "little" battery box this is true on utility trailers over a certain weight that are required by state laws to have brakes. This could be as simple as a small 12V lead acid battery in the 5 to 7 amp range. The battery sole purpose on the trailer is to power the Emergency break away. Travel trailers generally have a need for a battery so therefore the Breakaway is wired into the 12-volt system of the trailer.

As far as the person mentioning his missing Breakaway cable and pin, someone may have stolen it because he needed it, someone could have been doing it as an act of vandalism, it could have been teenagers pulling a prank. I heard a story once where someone who stopped at a rest stop said they saw teenagers hanging out around the front of their trailer as they returned from the restroom. They were looking at his trailer tongue. They saw him looking at them and they
immediately scurried away. The person walked over and started looking at his hitch and found it had a pin missing from one of the spring bars on the weight distribution hitch. Most likely one of them had pulled it as a very dangerous prank.

When towing, anytime I ever stop for gas, food, groceries, use the rest stop, or leave the truck and trailer for any reason, I always check the hitch, all pins, trailer plug, chains, safety pins and break away cable upon returning.

I always do a complete walk around everytime we stop for anything. Look at tire wear, inflation, feel for excess heat using back of the hand on the TT tires and TV tires, inspect hook-up, is the spare still attached, sewer hose hanging out, etc. etc.

[MarkTwain]

mobeewan wrote:
As far as having it's on a "little" battery box this is true on utility trailers over a certain weight that are required by state laws to have brakes. This could be as simple as a small 12V lead acid battery in the 5 to 7 amp range. The battery sole purpose on the trailer is to power the Emergency break away. Travel trailers generally have a need for a battery so therefore the Breakaway is wired into the 12-volt system of the trailer.

As far as the person mentioning his missing Breakaway cable and pin, someone may have stolen it because he needed it, someone could have been doing it as an act of vandalism, it could have been teenagers pulling a prank. I heard a story once where someone who stopped at a rest stop said they saw teenagers hanging out around the front of their trailer as they returned from the restroom. They were looking at his trailer tongue. They saw him looking at them and they immediately scurried away. The person walked over and started looking at his hitch and found it had a pin missing from one of the spring bars on the weight distribution hitch. Most likely one of them had pulled it as a very dangerous prank.

When towing, anytime I ever stop for gas, food, groceries, use the rest stop, or leave the truck and trailer for any reason, I always check the hitch, all pins, trailer plug, chains, safety pins and break away cable upon returning.

X1, that is exactually what happened to me, it was vandalism. So now I always have a spare breakaway cable and pin with me.:)

[MarkTwain]

Cinderelle wrote:
Thank you all for your replies - a lot of good info. And YES, I do have a 12v marine battery on the tongue of my trailer. During my research, I was quite confused because it seemed like to me that the breakaway switch was supposed have it's own little battery box. So now I understand that this switch runs off my RV battery. And thanks for the tip about buying an extra switch. I can't believe someone would steal that! Hopefully this is correct protocol in replying to everyone, this is my first time on this forum. THANKS! The next thing I need to do is to test the switch. I read that with the wheels turning, pull the switch out and the brakes should lock. That makes me a bit nervous, is it safe to do this if I am towing the TT VERY slowly, to have someone pull the pin out? Or should I take it to a garage and have it put a lift for testing?

Hook up your trailer and make sure the breakaway switch is connected. Now pull the pin breakaway switch out. Now very slowly try to move the trailer a few feet. If you feel the trailer dragging and it does not feel the trailer is moving freely or that the trailer will not move at all then you know the breakaway switch is working as it should. Now reattach the pin into the breakaway switch, your should trailer should now move freely.
Don't forget to also adjust your trailer brakes control switch. Drive your trailer to about 20 miles per hour, then slide the brake switch all the way closed, your trailer should come to a stop without locking up the trailer brakes completely. If the trailer brakes lock up and start skidding the you need to make the adjustment of your brake control until your trailer will come to a stop without locking up the trailer tires and skidding. Job done.

[NMDriver]

A pull test can be done anytime you are stopped. Just pull the pin and try to drive forward, you will feel and see the wheels on the trailer drag. If one spins while the others drag you need to adjust the brake and/or check the wiring, magnet, etc.

I also test the break away circuit when I have the tires elevated to adjust the brakes each year. All the tires should have about the same resistance to spinning, if the brake magnets are working and are adjusted correctly. It is also a good time to check the wires, plumbing, underside, etc. for problems while I am under the RV.

[drsteve]

Electric trailer brakes emit an audible hum when energized. Pull the pin, then go to each wheel, and you should be able to hear them.

[Delphi]

On my travel trailer when I pull the pin while parked I hear a loud "clunk" sound and my whole trailer shudders from the brakes engaging.

[GrandpaKip]

To test the switch, just raise one tire off the ground, pull the pin and try to turn the tire. Put the pin back, lower the tire and raise another.

[whatimmadoboutm]

Cinderelle wrote:
...I read that with the wheels turning, pull the switch out and the brakes should lock. That makes me a bit nervous, is it safe to do this if I am towing the TT VERY slowly, to have someone pull the pin out? Or should I take it to a garage and have it put a lift for testing?

I can't think of a safe way to accomplish that during a pre-trip inspection. I know the commercial vehicle officers in our area test commercially plated trailers with electric brakes by pulling the pin with the TV in park, then confirming the activated trailer brakes will hold back the truck/trailer combo at idle, once the TV is put in drive. That's the test I use during my pre-trip. That's in addition to any tests prescribed by the manufacturer of your trailer brake controller.

(edited for clarification)

[mobeewan]

As far as having it's on a "little" battery box this is true on utility trailers over a certain weight that are required by state laws to have brakes. This could be as simple as a small 12V lead acid battery in the 5 to 7 amp range. The battery sole purpose on the trailer is to power the Emergency break away. Travel trailers generally have a need for a battery so therefore the Breakaway is wired into the 12-volt system of the trailer.

As far as the person mentioning his missing Breakaway cable and pin, someone may have stolen it because he needed it, someone could have been doing it as an act of vandalism, it could have been teenagers pulling a prank. I heard a story once where someone who stopped at a rest stop said they saw teenagers hanging out around the front of their trailer as they returned from the restroom. They were looking at his trailer tongue. They saw him looking at them and they immediately scurried away. The person walked over and started looking at his hitch and found it had a pin missing from one of the spring bars on the weight distribution hitch. Most likely one of them had pulled it as a very dangerous prank.

When towing, anytime I ever stop for gas, food, groceries, use the rest stop, or leave the truck and trailer for any reason, I always check the hitch, all pins, trailer plug, chains, safety pins and break away cable upon returning.

[Cinderelle]

Thank you all for your replies - a lot of good info. And YES, I do have a 12v marine battery on the tongue of my trailer. During my research, I was quite confused because it seemed like to me that the breakaway switch was supposed have it's own little battery box. So now I understand that this switch runs off my RV battery. And thanks for the tip about buying an extra switch. I can't believe someone would steal that! Hopefully this is correct protocol in replying to everyone, this is my first time on this forum. THANKS! The next thing I need to do is to test the switch. I read that with the wheels turning, pull the switch out and the brakes should lock. That makes me a bit nervous, is it safe to do this if I am towing the TT VERY slowly, to have someone pull the pin out? Or should I take it to a garage and have it put a lift for testing?

[MarkTwain]

When you buy your break away switch, buy 2 and keep one as a spare. I had one stolen while parked in an RV park. The pin was pulled and the trailer brakes were activivited and I could not move the trailer. I could have cut the wire coming from the battery and took off but then I would not have an emergency brake system in the event the trailer broke loose.

[Old-Biscuit]

Is there a battery box on trailer tongue behind the propane cover?

If no......
Inside forward compartment...is there a spot for a battery (two battery cables NOT connected)?


Even a small trailer like yours would have a trailer battery to operate the lights, water pump, furnace, water heater, fridge (12V DC components) etc.

And even a small single axle trailer like yours has electric brakes.

When plugged into 120V AC power (30A for your trailer) the converter would supply the DC System
BUT when NOT connected to a 120V AC power source your trailer battery is what would supply the DC System.


When connected to your Sequoia via the umbilical cord your Sequoia will supply DC Voltage to trailer.........very limited due to size/length of DC Power wire from Sequoia to Skamper
But ONLY when connected.....

Trailer battery is 'required' by FED Law and must be good enough of a battery to provide FULL DC Voltage to trailer electric brakes for min of 15 mins should trailer become disconnected from tow vehicle


If you do NOT have a trailer battery.find where it should be and buy/install one prior to next towing trip

[Lwiddis]

You were lucky on those 15 trips and so was everyone around you. When is the last time your TT brakes were inspected?

[Terryallan]

Cinderelle wrote:
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.

It does run off your 12V. But your TT has to have a battery to run the 12V when not hooked to your TV. It WILL work off the TV power, UNTILL it unplugs it self. then the TT battery takers over. If no battery on the TT. No breakaway brakes once it pulls out