Powering lift jack from my Jeep

[Joy Quill]

Our 31-ft '84 excella has been sitting in one spot for a long time and we need to lift the power jack in order to move it. My question is -- if we connect hte 7-way power cord from the trailoer to the tow vehicle (a 2001 jeep), will that provide enough power to life the jack?

[AWCHIEF]

It is a 12 Volt DC jack, that is what your Jeep should be putting out if the plug is correctly wired.

[idroba]

The Jeep charge line has a circuit breaker (or maybe a fuse) which will limit the power that can go through the charge line. It may or may not have the necessary amp capacity to run the jack. The only way to tell is to try it.

If you still have the battery and converter/charger in the AS, it should run the power jack just fine. Even without the battery, the converter/charger will have capacity enough if it is plugged in to 120 volt power.

[Protohyp]

Question is WHY has it been sitting in one place for so long?!

[mefly2]

Wouldn't try it as the load from the jack motor likely exceeds the wiring to plug / receptacle ... you might be able to sneak it by once or twice, but my guess is that it will blow the fuse - as the voltage goes down, current requirement goes up.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Joy Quill

Our 31-ft '84 excella has been sitting in one spot for a long time and we need to lift the power jack in order to move it. My question is -- if we connect hte 7-way power cord from the trailoer to the tow vehicle (a 2001 jeep), will that provide enough power to life the jack?

It depends, and the only way to find out for sure is to try it.

If the 7-way is wired properly at the Jeep and trailer then the charge line should be at least 10 gauge wire and should be fused for at least 30 amps -- more than enough to run the tongue jack, assuming that it's properly oiled or greased. But it's not unusual for the charge line to either be disconnected or not working. Most people don't check, and a few manufacturers (but not Dodge or Jeep as far as I know) leave it disconnected from the factory.

I would suggest bringing the crank along, or maybe an extra already-charged battery that you can install in the trailer.

[MrUKToad]

If you're not sure, use the hand crank.

[Shacksman]

If there is no battery in the trailer, check that the positive cable for the battery is not touching anything metal or you will blow a fuse, as the truck line will put power to that cable

[BradB]

I've done that on mine successfully with no issue - just do as Shacksman suggests and make sure the positive cable for the battery is safe.

[Wazbro]

If you are taking the trailer on the road you should have a battery for the break away switch to be safe and legal.

[Joy Quill]

Thanks to all of you for this helpful advice. My husband is still considering the best way to proceed. He asked me to post another question -- it's about the big 3-prong power cable that comes out of the rear of the trailer. Is there an adapter that would allow us to connect with a regular extension cord, which we could plug into household current?

The reason we haven't moved the trailer for a while is that we use the airstream as overnight accommodations for guess. They enjoy and everyone still has privacy.

thanks to everyone for your help. We really appreciate your advice and guidance!

Joy

[AWCHIEF]

Joy, you should be able to get a 30 or 50 amp (depending on what you have) to 15 amp adapter at any Walmart or RV/trailer/auto parts store.

[dcheshire]

Hi Joy,

Yes, there is an inexpensive adapter that will let you plug that three prong into a regular extension cord. Please note that you MUST open the batter box, make sure the battery is OK (or disconnect it and make sure the batter wires aren't touching anything) and then plug in the power. You are probably looking for something like this thing, but any local RV shop as well as wal mart, home depot, etc should have them for you. Amazon.com: Conntek 15 Amp Male Plug To 30 Amp RV Female Connector RV Adapter: Sports & Outdoors