Low Voltage Reading on Output Wiring for Draw-Tite Activator Brake Controller 5504

Updated 12/09/2014 | Published 12/07/2014

Question:

I got a tekonsha brake controller the red wire have 13. 6 voltage the black wire have 13.6 voltage hit the brake and blue wire have 0.9 voltage the white wire grounded to the battery how much voltage should the blue wire have and hit the brake switch on controller it have 8.0 voltage

asked by: Bro M

Expert Reply:

Thank you for providing the voltage readings on the wiring for your brake controller # 5504.

The black wire carries 12V power from the vehicle (through a circuit breaker) to the controller to power it; so the 13.6 volts is within the correct range.

The red wire carries the brake light switch signal to the controller to tell it to send power to the trailer brakes; this wire should have close to 12V on it but ONLY when the brake pedal is pressed. If there is voltage on the red wire at any other time then the unit is mis-wired.

The blue wire carries the output signal for the trailer brakes. At full power this should be close to 12V. If you detect only 0.9 volts on the blue wire when you press the brake and only 8 volts when you press the manual override on the controller it may be that the power level is set too low. Or it is possible that your controller is damaged. Try increasing the power level on the controller thumbwheel.

expert reply by: Adam R