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Old 07-31-2015, 08:26 AM   #1
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Is RV battery needed when towing?

I have another stupid newbie question. We don't want to keep our battery on the RV when it's in storage and it would be more convenient to remove the battery at home prior to returning it to storage.

Do the brakes work when there is no RV battery present?
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Old 07-31-2015, 08:28 AM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tylersdad View Post
I have another stupid newbie question. We don't want to keep our battery on the RV when it's in storage and it would be more convenient to remove the battery at home prior to returning it to storage.

Do the brakes work when there is no RV battery present?
Your service brakes wil work, but the emergency brakes will not if the trailer were to separate from the tow vehicle.
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Old 07-31-2015, 08:29 AM   #3
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The brakes will work, (assuming you have 12V feed from the truck) but the emergency disconnect brakes WILL NOT. I believe it is technically illegal in most places to tow without the battery (?).

That being said, in my case, I sometimes have a case of CRS (Can't Remember S#!t) and forget to bring the battery when I go to pick up the trailer from storage. So I risk it and tow the 5 miles home without it.
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Old 07-31-2015, 08:29 AM   #4
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The brakes work but the emergency brakes system wont work if the trailer becomes separated from the TV. It might even be illegal in some states..
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Old 07-31-2015, 08:31 AM   #5
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Jeez you guys are fast.

My wife reminded me that the electrical tongue jack won't work either. Something I had not even considered.

Thanks for the quick answers.
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Old 07-31-2015, 09:11 AM   #6
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Electric Tongue Jack

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Jeez you guys are fast.

My wife reminded me that the electrical tongue jack won't work either. Something I had not even considered.

Thanks for the quick answers.
I believe that the electric tongue jack will work when plugged in to the Tow Vehicle's (TV's) electrical connection. Isn't that correct, guys?
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Old 07-31-2015, 09:24 AM   #7
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I believe that the electric tongue jack will work when plugged in to the Tow Vehicle's (TV's) electrical connection. Isn't that correct, guys?
That is correct.

Food for thought, the manual crank function of the power jack is faster.
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Old 07-31-2015, 10:21 AM   #8
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If you decided to tow without the battery be sure the positive lead to the battery cannot touch the frame or the negative lead. As others have stated it is best to have the battery on board.
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Old 07-31-2015, 10:22 AM   #9
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If you decided to tow without the battery be sure the positive lead to the battery cannot touch the frame or the negative lead. As others have stated it is best to have the battery on board.
+1
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Old 07-31-2015, 01:01 PM   #10
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I believe that the electric tongue jack will work when plugged in to the Tow Vehicle's (TV's) electrical connection. Isn't that correct, guys?
Mine doesn't, but that is becasue I added it aftermarket and connected directly to the battery, not through the TT 12v system.
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Old 07-31-2015, 01:26 PM   #11
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It's illegal to tow without an ripcord / emergency brake. Therefore ...
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Old 07-31-2015, 04:49 PM   #12
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I put the battery back on the TT. We have a battery bracket on order, so hopefully I won't have to do the battery shuffle too many times.

Thanks for all the advice.
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Old 07-31-2015, 05:53 PM   #13
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I've never tried to tow without a battery but I believe what the folks are saying here. I always remove the battery when I reach the storage facility. Only takes a wrench and a minute.
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Old 07-31-2015, 06:47 PM   #14
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Another thought on not having a battery installed might go real bad with your insurance company if your runaway trailer did a whole bunch of damage or worse and they find out you don't have a DOT required battery installed.

That may not go in your favor to well...

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Old 07-31-2015, 09:54 PM   #15
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Yep. I want everyone to know that I will not and did not tow without the battery. This was going to be a one-time deal while I waited for the battery bracket lock.
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