![]() ![]() Don’t also forget to also check that the switch device on the drawbar is operational and not damaged, and that the battery is fully charged before you leave. In summary, it is great that you are managing this safety critical device properly. This will be the same terminal where the solar is connected. The negative must be connected on the non-battery side of the shunt to measure all the current correctly. In the Setec ST-III setup you will most likely have the Drifter display inside your van so you will need to ensure that you are wiring correctly through the shunt if you decide to wire directly to the battery. If in doubt – replace with a new and fully charged battery. To work effectively the batteries in these units must be carefully maintained and tested regularly. ![]() This is twice the capacity of the actual battery so in the case of an emergency it will be extracting current at 2C (rated capacity/amps required). By the time you include the brake lights as well it could be up to approximately 13-14 Amps. A dual axle caravan with 4 electric brakes drums will draw approximately 6amps for each pair of brakes. Having it properly charged is critical as it needs to be fully charged to be able to operate effective in case of emergency. The Breaksafe contains a 12v lead acid battery which is only 7ahr in capacity. They should switch off automatically once the battery is fully charged. They do not charge a battery very quickly but are appropriate where you don’t want to be left with a flat battery after having you caravan in storage for a long period of time. Trickle chargers are used to maintain batteries over a long period of time. However, if you were to charge directly from the caravan house battery it would have the same effect as charging from the vehicle assuming the solar panels are keeping the voltage on the battery at the upper levels.Īs the Breaksafe has a built-in trickle charger you should be able to expect that it would not allow current to drain back to the larger caravan house battery and that the inbuilt circuit would have a reverse diode inbuilt or equivalent circuitry to prevent this. In regard to charging this device it is recommended to either charge from the vehicle line or from a 240v charger. Your responsibility extends to other road users to whom this device could potentially be life saving for in the face of a decoupled oncoming caravan. If you had a flat tyre on your van you would certainly fix it! “Out of sight, out of mind” is no excuse. Where these devices are legally required to be installed, care should be taken to ensure that they are properly maintained. As mentioned in previous articles it does concern us when we observe out there in the “real” world that many caravanners do ensure that the battery on their Breaksafe is properly maintained. Glad to see that you are one of the few who does pay attention to the safety devices installed on your van. Would I need a diode between the house battery and the BrakeSafe battery to prevent discharging the BrakeSafe battery when free camping? 12V Guru answers: The BrakeSafe battery is charged via a 220V plugpack when on mains power but is not charged at all when in storage for most of the year.Īfter reading the answer about charging a BrakeSafe battery published in issue 591, I wondered whether it would be safe to connect the BrakeSafe battery charge input to my caravan house battery instead of the car 12v. I'd be hunting around for dirty or corroded connections somewhere between the truck batts and that center pin.īTW, if this is a F*rd the center pin should be cold when the ign switch is off, this also means that there is an extra contact to deal with.My Jayco van battery is charged with a Setec ST-III power supply when on mains power and a solar panel when in storage. When you have volts (though not enough ) but don't get amps, you probably have RESISTANCE ! Something somewhere in your truck needs a fixin'. As you say, the batteries charge fine from your generator or shore power, so Golly-Gee, this is a truck problem. When loaded it is probably dropping to under 13, even worse. I agree, that isn't enough to charge a 12 volt battery. If you're measuring it with the trailer unplugged then the 13.6 is the OPEN CIRCUIT voltage from your truck. When I have the trailer plugged in to 110 volt or the generator running, the batteries are charging fine. I have checked the fuses in the trailer and none of them are blown. I checked the wires on the truck and when it is running I am getting 13.6 volts going to the trailer (center wire on the plug ). When I have my truck hooked up to our horse trailer, the batteries aren't getting charged. Originally written by ddkrueger on 12:23 PM
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