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Mounting a Winch to the Deck of a Flat Bed Trailer and Connecting to the Right Battery  

Updated 03/15/2016 | Published 03/13/2016

Question:

I am interested in using a 2000# utility winch on the flatbed of a steel deck trailer potentially the SuperWinch LT2000 or similar. The trailer deck is 1/8inch steel diamond plate. I am interested in mounting the winch at the very front of the trailer deck, where there is no cross-member underneath. I am assuming I would use a pre-made mounting plate kit to mount to the deck - but am still concerned about fasteners pulling through the steel deck. Would/should I bolt in angle iron or a backer plate under the deck so that the bolts are distributing their load through the angle iron, rather than the bolts and washers for the bracket? What is the difference between a down and forward bracket? Will there be issues with the winch being out in the open, exposed to weather, or does a box or cover kit exist? Regarding powering the unit - Im assuming Id use an 18AH marine battery minimum, with the battery mounted in a toolbox away from weather. How do you suggest I wire the battery into the existing 7-pin trailer connector and breakaway box so that the battery gets charged when the trailer is in use?

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Expert Reply:

On your trailer if you can bolt winch # 1120210 directly to that front frame structure then that would be ideal. If you want it on the diamond plate you will want to use a steel backing plate that is also bolted to that front frame structure. That will provide enough support for the winch. I am not sure what you mean by a down or forward bracket.

An 18 amp hour battery just won't be enough; even for light duty winches. Also, the winch should not use the breakaway battery. The breakaway system needs its own dedicated battery. To charge that you would just run a wire from the 12 volt circuit to the positive battery terminal.

To power the winch I recommend a car battery because it will have an amp hour rating that will allow you to run the winch under load more than once. To charge this kind of battery you will need to use an AC charger such as # CTEK56353, which is the one I use, because the 12 volt circuit does not have ability to charge up a larger battery. It can only maintain the charge level.

Winches are pretty tough but I do recommend using a cover with this winch, # BDW20193, which will help protect it so it lasts longer.

expert reply by:
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Michael H
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