Since I’ve decided to purchase an enclosed trailer for work, the wheels just won’t stop spinning! Can’t wait to get my hands on it and set it up just the way I want it.
What I’m wondering is if anyone knows of a rechargeable 12V power supply I could put a female 7round plug on. What I’m thinking is that I’d still like to be able to use the lights and stereo when it’s not hooked up to the truck. For that matter, I’d like to rely on this 12V source all the time except for when I’m actually pulling the trailer. The way I understand it is that there will be no power to the trailer unless the key is turned up in the truck. This makes me a little nervous as my truck is a diesel and the cost and inconvenience of replacing TWO big azz batteries doesn’t sit well with me in the event that things should be left on for too long. Not to mention I plan on using the trailer without the truck hooked up to it for a fair amount, if not majority, of the time.
Also related to this topic is another question: Anyone know where I can get a wiring diagram for a 7round plug? Are they all the same or wired differently? In my head I can’t seem to account for all 7 wire. Let’s see, 1)ground, 2) live for interior lights,3)brake lights, 4)turn signals…left and right? 5)reverse lights, 6)electric brakes, 7)????? What I would like to do is isolate the wire designated for the reverse lights on the trailer. My trailer will not have reverse lights and I’d like to use this “extra” lead to run an “in dash” type car stereo installed inside the trailer. Of course it seems I would have to rewire it back directly to the battery, or it would only run the stereo when I’m in reverse right?
I’ve dreamed of having a “mobile shop” of sorts for a long time. Now that I can finally afford to do it, I want to really take my time and set it up so as to not have any regrets. I’m really looking forward to having a bit of my own space on the jobsite.
Thanks in advance,
Brian
Replies
7-pin diagram:
http://www.marksrv.com/wiring.htm
A rechargable 12 volt power supply?
That is a battery.
Place it on the tongue in a plastic battery box. It can also be placed inside the trailer, but you will have to vent it if it is. Air in and out of the enclosed battery compartment.
Wire the battery to your auxillary wire. That way it will charge as you drive. If that is not enough to keep it hot, you can always toss a little battery charger into the mix.
Not sure if the cargo trailer builders have stayed with the old camp trailer color codes, but for 30 years it has been;
Red......left turn
brown....right turn
green....tail
black.....aux
white....ground
blue......brakes
that is 6 of the seven, the seveth is very rarely used. Most trailer don't have back up lights, but if it does have pick a color
pretty sure you will have no problem wiring the steroe into the existing aux circuit.
FYI....if you do any of the truck wiriing. The aux circuit most be fused at the battery.
A deep cycle battery should do just fine for your power source, but be aware that if you run it down badly, you should NOT just hook it up to the truck to recharge it. Vehicle alternators are not designed to recharge a dead battery, and are likely to fry themselves trying. The alternator is designed to handle a fairly brief surge at full output after startup, and then to supply the normal running loads of the vehicle. Anytime you have a seriously discharged battery, use a battery charger...
Dave
"A rechargable 12 volt power supply? That is a battery."
You're just trying to get a rise out of me right? Otherwise, thanks for stating the obvious. Maybe I should have been more specific. I was thinking along the lines of something that would obviously contain a battery for storing the energy, but upon depletion, I could plug in to normal household current and it would recharge. Sort of like those batteries you plug in and charge and can then use to jump start your car in an emergency. But thanks for the other good advice.
And to ALL: Thanks for your knowledge and the wiring schemes. I should be able to figure something out. I'm a little hesitant to let my truck's alternator do the charging though. I prefer to have something I could just plug in at night or to the generator in the field if need be. Thought about running off the generator full time, but I really only use it on about 1/3 of my jobs. Unless it's new construction, most folks would prefer I use their power rather than listen to the gas generators and compressors all day.
Edited 3/3/2004 2:37:22 PM ET by dieselpig
How about solar? I picked up a couple panels at a swap meet, and use them to keep a trickle charge going to the battery on my old F-350. (Sorta environmentally ironic... ;-) ) They need to be in series with a diode, or they'll drain the battery at night.
-- J.S.
As one Brian to another, I swear I was not trying to be a smarta$$.
That wheel has pretty much been invented, hasn't it?
Even if you could buy it all pre packaged in a pretty box with a fancy handle for toting around, it would still just be a Auto, or Marine battery and a charger.View Image
What do camper trailers use for power supplies? Don't they run off 12V when on the road, but then charge back up with a generator or 110V when plugged in?
Just wondering if a setup from one of them might work for you. Unfortunately I know virtually nothing about the systems...I don't lie, cheat or steal unnecessarily.
You might try looking into the marine charging systems. they have isolation switches and 110v charging system with more of a built in type system.
I rigged up an old horse trailer to work out of. (it was free). I set up a 7 pin trailer plug. As best of recolection the wire diagram came with. I punched a hole on the angle of the bumper for a clean install. I used the extra tail to power a couple of 12v lamps.
Hope this helps
mike
No good deed goes unpunished
Check out some power systems used in larger sailboats - big batteries, chargers, inverters, etc. Look at a West Marine store, if you've got one nearby.
did
Blah, yada, whatever, Hi how are you today
I did this to my race car trailer.
I got a big deep cycle batt (Optima dry cell, no venting req)
I got a wireless brake controller. (I pulled the trailer with 4 different trucks last summer, always had brakes!) Co-incidently (not really, it was a master plan!) the wireless unit uses the trailer battery to apply the brakes, then recharges it constantly (off the running lights). The all so common these days microchip keeps track of things and tends to the charge rate, not too much, not too little!
So, at the end of the day, I power up my computer monitor off my APC UPS unit and watch my in car video tapes from the days racing. later i kick back and watch Speed TV or listen to my Sirius satelite music. I have a generator to charge up the UPS if needed, and I use the batterey for lights and 12 volt things. So far, so good! I put a voltage guage in just to keep an eye on the state of the battery.
Someday, I'll figure out how to get the generator to automatically start when the UPS gets low!!
Jake Gulick
[email protected]
CarriageHouse Design
Black Rock, CT
Harbor Freight often has small solar panels on sale for pretty cheap. Most of them seem to come with the cigar lighter plug which would need to be adapted. While these will keep an unused battery topped off, they aren't going to keep up with any type of equipment use. Fry's Electronics (for those in Calif. or Oregon) have solar panels, but one large enough to be useful in recharging the battery between intermittent uses of power equipment will probably run you a C note or two.
I have wanted to find a small gasoline powered generator that would provide enough juice to power some adapted cordless tools. I have the small Coleman, but that is still more than I want to carry a couple of hundred yards over rough ground. I think the smallest Honda and Yamaha are lighter but they also seriously lighten the bank book... Thought about rigging up a small engine to a heavy duty truck alternator, but it hasn't worked its way up from the bottom of my "wanna do" list. Such a rig would require probably require a bit of fiddling with the regulator to get it so it wouldn't burn itself out.