Rewiring Trailer, do I need 6 or 7 strand wire?

[Iplayfarmer]

farmer there is different ratings for wire as temp for the outer jacket. uv resistance also the duplex wire is cheaper now but what about later.

I figure outdoor rated extension cord material is going to be as good for trailer wiring as it is for anything else.

I just know that anything I've wired with trailer wire eventually gets rewired with extension cord.

For the little utility trailers I just run a single cord... Right blinker, left blinker, and tail lights.

 

[Highbeam]

No no no. The 7th wire is for the backup lights. You don't need those, well, unless you want backup lights. The break away battery/system will be charged by the positive circuit.

The standard setup is a 7 pin connector like all the RVs use and most trucks have so certainly use a 7 pin connector. You don't need all 7 wires. I've never seen an RV with reverse lights so I propose that the RVs don't use a 7 wire conductor.

FUrther, if you use a 7 wire conductor then you need to be sure to terminate that 7th wire so as not to short circuit the reverse light circuit on the truck.

1: Brakes electric
2: signal left
3: signal right
4: ground
5: positive charge
6: running lights
7: reverse lights (sometimes labeled as aux)

 

[Diamondpilot]

Most boat trailers with Surge Brakes that are Disc Brakes use the Reverse Light lead for a Cut-Out Solenoid. The disc brakes are so good you can not back up a 5,000# boat on a slight incline in a truck with the 4 wheel drive locked in with out spinning them.

Chris

 

[jwstewar]

No no no. The 7th wire is for the backup lights. You don't need those, well, unless you want backup lights. The break away battery/system will be charged by the positive circuit.

The standard setup is a 7 pin connector like all the RVs use and most trucks have so certainly use a 7 pin connector. You don't need all 7 wires. I've never seen an RV with reverse lights so I propose that the RVs don't use a 7 wire conductor.

FUrther, if you use a 7 wire conductor then you need to be sure to terminate that 7th wire so as not to short circuit the reverse light circuit on the truck.

1: Brakes electric
2: signal left
3: signal right
4: ground
5: positive charge
6: running lights
7: reverse lights (sometimes labeled as aux)

My camper has back-up lights. Never knew they worked until I plugged it into my Silverado with a factory wire harness where the factory actually hooked the reverse lights up. So some RVs actually do use the reverse circuit. Now that I think about it, Mom & Dad's old camper had back-up lights that worked as well, but the truck wasn't wired for them as it was wired my some hack that my uncle had do it and I didn't hook them up either when I fixed his lousy job.

I've now added a picture of the back of our camper right after we bought it. I went through and replaced all of the lights. Taillights I bought the same type that were on it, clearance lights I bought LED. Couldn't get the lights to work. Turns out there was a fuse inside the trailer for all things connected to the truck that was blown.

 

[Highbeam]

I wish my Nash trailer had back up lights. I've spent quite few years "camping" or vacationing in an RV and have never seen the reverse lights work on a trailer. I've definitely seen the clear lense for them on some of the tail light assemblies though, but they never light up when backing.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I just wired my newest equipment trailer with back-up lights. I haven't used it in the dark yet, but I'm eager to see how it works. It seems I'm always backing up in the dark, and I have to keep hitting the brakes to get enough light back there to see where I'm going.

I wired mine on a corner of the trailer so that they shine to the side as much as they shine back. Then I can see them through the mirrors.

 

[Johndeere32]

I would go with the 7 so you wont have to change it later.

Dave