Is the Activator Brake Controller Supposed to Light Up After Installation  

Question:

Helpful Expert Reply:

When the Activator brake controller # 5504 is plugged in and no trailer is connected then it will not light up. If you then step on the brake pedal or use the manual override with no trailer connected you should see a single decimal point.

If the controller does not show the decimal point without a trailer connected and using either the brake pedal or override then it could be several issues.

First, it could be that there is no power on the black wire, a blown fuse or circuit breaker associated with the black power wire, a poor ground connection (white wire), or the black and white wires were switched.

The black wire provides 12 volt power to the controller. In a hardwire situation, it would go first to a circuit breaker and from there to the positive battery terminal. On a plug and play set up the black wire would plug into the vehicle along with the other wires and there would be a brake controller tow package fuse giving it power.

The white wire is the ground and in a hardwire situation it would have to go to the negative battery terminal. No other ground location will work. If it plugs in then there should not be aground issue.

If the black and white wires were installed opposite of their functions (black to ground, white to power) then that will destroy the internal components of the controller since it is polarity sensitive and the controller will have to be replaced. I have included a couple of links on testing and troubleshooting brake controllers for you.

expert reply by: Michael H

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