Experienced a new trailer brake system. Can anyone explain it to me?

[NickKent]

Friend rented a mini backhoe from Home Depot. Wouldn't let him get it with a 1/2 ton pickup. So, I went and got it with him. It had electric brakes but I'm not exactly sure how they worked. Trailer was a straight up bumper pull equipment traler with tandem axle. The trailer plug was only a 4 prong flat plug which adapted into my seven pin round. But they gave me a brake controller which I plugged into the cigarette lighter and that worked the brakes. I had to have the lights on though for the trailer brakes to work. Granted they didn't work great but they did work. Can someone explain to me how this controller was able to run the brakes on the trailer. I have many theories, just not sure which one is correct. Thanks, Nick.

[ritschner]

It sounds like the brake controller is RF based and there is a reciever on the trailer that uses power from the running lamps to activate the brakes. It would explain why they don't work great since they can only pull a small amount of power to activate the brakes without blowing the running lamp fuse.

[j_apetersen]

[ QUOTE ]
Friend rented a mini backhoe from Home Depot. Wouldn't let him get it with a 1/2 ton pickup. So, I went and got it with him. It had electric brakes but I'm not exactly sure how they worked. Trailer was a straight up bumper pull equipment traler with tandem axle. The trailer plug was only a 4 prong flat plug which adapted into my seven pin round. But they gave me a brake controller which I plugged into the cigarette lighter and that worked the brakes. I had to have the lights on though for the trailer brakes to work. Granted they didn't work great but they did work. Can someone explain to me how this controller was able to run the brakes on the trailer. I have many theories, just not sure which one is correct. Thanks, Nick.

[/ QUOTE ]

The easyest way is do you have a ramote control for your telly if you do it works when you change chanels just remember if someone else is on the same chanel with another brake controller next to you and he or she hits the brakes hard be ready to stop.

[NickKent]

Yeah, that makes sense, because I hit the manual stop button and the brakes draw alot more when you do that. It blew my fuse. I guess it is the easiest way to get brakes to work on an assortment of vehicles. Too bad they don't have a 7 pin wired and ready to go too.

[Mr_Roboto]

These trailers have an on-board battery, the power to the running lights charges the battery. The brakes probably didn't work very well because the battery was discharged. After a few times of being run down, a battery won't even hold a good charge anymore.