Where are the wires?

[Anon]

Originally Posted by tphan

Do you know too if it's easy to put in a new circuit and switch to be able to turn on all the clearance lights , not hooked up to the tow vehicle? Just thought it might be neat to be able to do that at night, like when someone is trying to find us in a big campground. thanks- tim

This is what I did to turn on my clearance lights:
1. Buy an extra tow vehicle 7-way connector.
2. Find the wiring diagram for your trailer. Some of them are wired differently than the normal plug. Mine no longer is.
3. Remove the cover from your new 7-way connector
4. Cut a small length, (2-3 inches), of 12 or 14 gauge multi-strand wire.
5. Strip both ends of the wire.
6. Locate the post on your plug that has the 12VDC coming from the battery.
7. Screw one end of the wire into that post.
8. Locate the post on your plug that has your running lights coming from the trailer.
9. Screw the other end of the wire into that post.
10. Put your cover back on the 7-way connector.
11. Cover the open end of the 7-way connector with good old duct tape.
12. Plug it into your trailer's 7-way connector.
13. Unplug it when you want to turn them out.
14. Crack a beer and look REALLY cool!

This is what I did. I have seen some where they have wired in a switch to turn them on and off. Works good and it is CHEAP!

[tphan]

hi all and thanks for all the help, especially the insistence that my dead fixture problem might just be a fuse- it was! I looked at them right from the get-go, but only LOOKED- and none were burnt through in the middle as is typical, so I thought it must be a break in the wiring somewhere. At jim and susan's second attempt at getting me to do a more thorough check, I took all 4 fuses for the interior circuits out, noticed that one of the holders was a bit loose so squeezed it in a little, steel-wooled the fuse ends, and put them back in, turning them back and forth as I did to scrape off any corrosion on the holders. And LO- ALL the front fixtures now worked!!!I was so excited I at first didn't notice that now the lights in the bed/wardrobe area didn't work. Anyway, found that one of the fuses was bad even though it looked OK- A GOOD LESSON! Thankyou from saving me ripping out the ceiling panel, though appreciate the advice on how to do that! And pattersontoo- thankyou, may just try that method-sounds easy enough. You guys are great- Hope I can help you one day. -tim with lights

[tphan]

hi- funny how you can go from great to bad in about 2 seconds- I jumped the terminals on my umbilical to get the running lights on (sort of a short cut to pattersontoo's idea), which worked fine untill I persisted in jumping around to other sockets to try and find out if my back-up lights worked, and shorted the whole thing out. Dang!!I hate it when I'm so dumb. I heard a little click up front by the umbilical plug-in, and also found a blown 50-amp fuse next to the univolt, the battery negative side I believe. I stuck another fuse in (untested, found it in trailer) but still no interior lights, no nothing. I came in the house before ruining anything else- and tried to sleep on it. I will go out this morning and start testing from the battery outward- how do I know if there is something now wrong with that re-setting circuit-breaker thing that apparently lives up under the belly-pan at the front of the trailer? Argghhhhhhhh! Electricity is definitely not my thing, Are there any other hidden fuses or breakers I need to find??? thanks- tim

[thenewkid64]

There are 2 or more fuses. There is a positive and a negative 50 AMP fuse. there may be 2 positive 50 AMP fuses depending on the trailer.

[tphan]

whew- after only an hour, I solved the problem and we're back to normal. Just incase this happens to anyone else, here's what it was: The 50-amp fuse blew, protecting the circuit and battery from ME (thank goodness). After replacing the fuse to no avail and starting to panic, I removed the battery this morning and tested it. I then tested every fuse I could find, all good. I replaced battery, and just using a test light worked my way down the battery cables. I had power up to the newly replaced negative fuse, but not on down the black cable to it's terminus inside the univolt-? I took that short piece of cable off, tested it separately for continuity- seemed to work fine, though all green at one end, as was that end of the old, blown fuse. So cleaned up the cable ends, the greenish terminus, put it back in, and now at least had power to the univolt. Went inside with my fingers crossed, and flicked a light switch- AND THERE WAS LIGHT! AND IT WAS GOOD!!!!!!So, somehow in the shorting out process that cable decided to stop letting electricity flow through it, untill it knew I was about to lose it.

[FrenchBern]

"There is a positive and a negative 50 AMP fuse"
Can someone tell me where the negative 50 amp fuse is located and what the nomenclature of it is? thanks

[tphan]

hi- in my '72 overlander, the negative 50-amp fuse is located next to the univolt, at the end of the black cable coming out of the univolt. It is a little hard to get to, not much room for fingers to grab the fuse to inspect it. It's in a fuse holder screwed to the plywood platform the univolt is also screwed to. According to my manual, it is an AGU 50. I got some spare fuses from Fuseone.com. -tim