5th wheel electric brakes problem

[allscott]

I'm pretty new to this so bear with me.

I bought a new truck and a 5th wheel camper last year.  Details;

TV - 2008 Dodge 3/4 ton diesel

RV - 1999 Vanguard 26' fifth wheel approx 6000 lbs

Prodigy brake controller.

Last year I set up the brake controller and everything was fine.  This spring I took the camper to the city to have the axels flipped to raise it up.  At the same time I had them pack the wheel bearings and install new tires.  I didn't drive it home so I don't know the status of the brakes after that.

Went out on a maiden voyage for the year a couple of weeks ago and it seemed like I didn't have any trailer brakes.  Coasting with the truck in neutral I applied full manual brakes on the controller but could hardly feel a thing.

I took it in today to a machine shop / trailer specialty shop (I'm in a small town so not a lot of options).  They seemed kind of baffled.  For one they had never seen a controller like mine before and told me they could only get 4Vout of it?  They adjusted the drums and said that they "looked really good".  So I drove it home and tried manually applying the brakes with the controller and found it was better but even with full power I couldn't lock them up. 

What really boils me is when I got home I found out that they had unhooked the breakaway switch (at the switch end) and I drove it home that way, guess that doesn't work either!  I know I should have checked it but they hooked up and were supposed to be the trailer experts.....  Unless I'm out to lunch I think that should have locked up the brakes solid.

So what the heck?  I'm a professional electrical engineer and a journeyman electrician but I know nothing about brakes.  Thats why I took it to people who supposedly know what they are doing.

$220.00 later I have brakes that kind of work and a breakaway switch that doesn't work.  What should I do?

 

[RoyM]

Check your connections at the truck receptacle and trailer plug, especially the ground. This is often a trouble spot as water sneaks in and corrosion starts. I re learned that lesson last weekend.

 

[Marsha/CA]

Now don't be insulted by my question, but you do know there is an adjustment to set how much braking you like on that controller?  You can adjust it to give as much braking or as little as you need/like.  I used to have a Prodigy break controller and they are pretty sensitive.  The older systems used to have a "gain" wheel and you rolled it forward or back to adjust the "grab" of the brakes.  It's very possible the gain is turned down.

Marsha~

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I'm not sure what you mean when you say they "unhooked the breakaway switch".  The breakaway makes an electric circuit from the trailer battery to the brakes when it is pulled, activating the electric brakes. Disconnecting the switch does nothing - no electric circuit and no braking. You can use the breakaway switch to determine if the trailer brakes are working - pull the breakaway out and the brakes should lock up.

As for the controller output voltage, 4v (have you measured it yourself?) is effectively zero. I would be looking for loose or corroded wires in the feed to the controller and the wiring back to the plug. The plug itself is the first place to look. Check the voltage at the controller itself and at the plug to help isolate.

As Marsha says, the manual control knobs can vary the output voltage from 0-13v, so make sure it is set properly. The display on the Prodigy will show theactual voltage applied in manual mode. Your instruction manual covers this. If you don't have one, download it here:

http://www.tekonsha.com/product/pdf/N90185.pdf

 

[allscott]

Thanks for the replies.  I'm not sure I'm explaining things properly.

As far as the breakaway switch goes, when I got home I found the actual switch was pulled out of the receptacle on the trailer.  Now unless I'm missing something I thought that should apply full brakes to the trailer but it pulled just fine.

I have the gain on the prodigy turned up as far as it will go.  When I manually apply the brakes on the controller the display reads about 13V but I am getting minimal actual braking on the trailer.  I would expect the brakes to lock up completely.

I will go through the manual for the controller and all of the connections myself. 

Thanks for the help. 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

If the breakaway switch was on (pulled from its socket) then yes, the brakes should be on. If not, there is a wiring problem in the trailer or  a dead battery (the breakaway uses the trailer battery to power the brakes ).

If the prodigy says it is putting out 13v and you are getting only 4v somewhere along the line, you need to trace back until you find the 13v again. Corrodes connections are common in trailer brakes, both at the plug and where the wiring connects to the brakes themselves at the axle hub. It is common that the hub connections are just taped wire nuts and they don't last well under highway conditions.  It is also common for the brake wiring on the trailer itself (from plug back to the wheels) to be undersized for the amp load. If it is not  10 gauge wire you might think about replacing it.

 

[Boskop4]

Random question on an old thread - but do you by chance have the manual for that vanguard? I have a 1999 vanguard also and I cannot find the manual online anywhere. Can you post the photos of the pages here? Lol

 

[Rene T]

Random question on an old thread - but do you by chance have the manual for that vanguard? I have a 1999 vanguard also and I cannot find the manual online anywhere. Can you post the photos of the pages here? Lol

Don't expect a reply. The last time he was on this forum was in 2013