Dump trailer charger

[CrashmanS]

I'm looking for an on board battery charger to use on the deep cycle battery in my new dump trailer. I want on that is waterproof and permanent install so I can just open the cover and plug in the cord. Any suggestions? I see some that are 4 amp and one that is 10 amp.

 

[CrashmanS]

Here it is.

 

[CADplans]

My 20 year old dump trailer needs the same charging system.

A trickle charger will not help, if you use the trailer much,,,
I think I would need a 40-50 amp charger, if I am dumping more than four 5,000 pound loads a day.
A second battery might be better than a big charger? I don't have a great answer.

 

[George2615]

An automatic charger (4 amp is good) that will shut down to a trickle charge will work fine to maintain the battery if you don't use the trailer much. I use a solar charger to keep mine topped off then it charges when I plug it into the truck. My truck will recharge the battery between loads.

On a side note, it looks like your tri ball hitch is tilted down quite a bit. Is your truck hitch bent? Also check the rating on that tri ball. Some are not rated to carry much weight.

 

[downsizingnow48]

You could buy an OEM dump trailer charger off the LoadTrail website. Or probably also PJ etc.

 

[CrashmanS]

An automatic charger (4 amp is good) that will shut down to a trickle charge will work fine to maintain the battery if you don't use the trailer much. I use a solar charger to keep mine topped off then it charges when I plug it into the truck. My truck will recharge the battery between loads.

On a side note, it looks like your tri ball hitch is tilted down quite a bit. Is your truck hitch bent? Also check the rating on that tri ball. Some are not rated to carry much weight.

It's a buyers 10,000 hitch. Like the picture below. It has drop because of play in all the pins and recievers when added together. I have some many trailers that it has been the only hitch that can do them all.

 

[jaxs]

That hitch is killer. I sometimes haul three different hitches around because my truck is 4x4 so I need various drop. And all of them are 2". Now back to charging your battery. Fast charging ruin's batteries so you should recharge as slow as possible,esp when bat is badly discharged. There is no better charger on the market better than those by Deltran. I own 2 that are busy 365 days. They will not overcharge so I leave them hooked to trailers, tractors,utv,lawn tractor and spare truck for days at a time. I credit the Deltran Battery Tenders with remarkably extending the life of my batteries. Most trucks that came with tow package from factory protect wireing and fuse from overload while dumping. If your truck came with 7 way plug,chances are it will charge battery between dumps and protect while dumping. If you do not have 7 way with overload protect,you should have it installed. I have one truck that I put 7 way on and it charged between dump but blowed fuse unless unplugged while dumping. I rigged up a double pole double throw relay inside tongue box that disconnect's hot wire to truck when dump motor run's. I dug the winch ingagement wires out on my trucks and hooked them to a toggle switch so I can put truck on high idle while out of truck. If I'm short tripping,the high idle is handy while out of cab fueling(diesel)eating lunch,grabbing a snack ect.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I'm looking for an on board battery charger to use on the deep cycle battery in my new dump trailer. I want on that is waterproof and permanent install so I can just open the cover and plug in the cord. Any suggestions? I see some that are 4 amp and one that is 10 amp.

Get a marine grade one.

With that being said leaving it plugged in 24/7 will eventually boil the battery. A maintenance type charger will not but will not recover a depleted battery fully like a charger will.

 

[jaxs]

Get a marine grade one.

With that being said leaving it plugged in 24/7 will eventually boil the battery. A maintenance type charger will not but will not recover a depleted battery fully like a charger will.

A Deltran Power Pro;
Does 4-step fully automatic charging ( qualification,20 amp bulk charge, absorption, float) I have owned two for over ten years,leave them connected to everything from dual battery diesels to lawn tractor and utv for weeks at a time and never boiled a single battery yet.
Is waterproof,vibration and shock resistant,charges any type battery,weighs 9 pounds and carry's 2 year warranty

 

[JJZ 109]

I don't know who makes the chargers for CAM Superline, but my dump trailer has been plugged in 24/7 all summer for the 5 years I've had it and the NAPA battery that came with the trailer is still working just fine.
In the winter months I remove it and just top it up every few weeks with a Pro Logix. SOLAR PL232 6-12V 2-1-2 Amp Intelligent Battery Charger-Maintainer

 

[Monster5601]

I'm looking for an on board battery charger to use on the deep cycle battery in my new dump trailer. I want on that is waterproof and permanent install so I can just open the cover and plug in the cord. Any suggestions? I see some that are 4 amp and one that is 10 amp.

I recently purchased a Big Tex dump trailer, it came with a deep cycle battery and an onboard marine 5 amp waterproof charger that offers automatic multi-stage charging and also maintains the battery with a maintenance mode.

It is this one;
ProMar 1 - 5 Amp Single | ProMariner

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

I have a "smart" 4amp charger/maintainer from Lowe's that has been attached to the deep cycle in the box for 7years.

CADplans,
I think you may have a problem with your battery or charging system. I use my dump behind my tractor extensively. On a longer day I probably do 20 power up/down cycles at just under max lift (I've gotten pretty good a judging the max load... For loam it's between 4 and 5 yards depending on the moisture content and considerably more than 5000lbs.)

After a long day or 4-5 shorter days of use I plug it in over night. Most of the time it is not plugged in (except in the winter when I remove the battery and keep it on the charger/maintainer.

My point is, if I am reading you post right (#3), you should be getting a lot more out of your battery. I know you are not new to your dump trailer and have probably already looked into this but wanted to give you a heads up just in case you hadn't. :drink:

 

[plowhog]

I put a trickle charger in my battery box and connected the clamp on leads to the battery. I left the AC plug routed outside the box. My plan was to plug it into AC power when needed, so it was already hooked up and ready to go. What I found is that the battery charger depleted the battery if it was not plugged into AC power.

 

[1stDeuce]

For best battery life, I would suggest that you really need to have it charging off the truck. This will help keep charge the battery between dumps, which keeps it from getting low.

For storage, if you park the trailer under cover, then a plug in unit that is advertised as a charger/maintainer is needed. There are many to choose from, and I can't recommend one over another. They will not be high amperage, and will take a week or more to charge a battery that's been run down, which is why getting power from the truck while the trailer is in use is important.

If you park the trailer outside and in a place that gets some sun, then I'd suggest you can't go wrong with a small solar panel mounted on the tool box. A 10W panel should do the job even if it only gets sun a few hours a day. A larger panel will charge it faster, but you would want to be sure to put a small charge controller on it so you don't overcharge the battery if it gets a lot of sun all the time. I have a 5w panel wired direct through a diode on my fire trailer, and it maintains the battery well without cooking the battery.

 

[Luke'sScreenName]

. They will not be high amperage, and will take a week or more to charge a battery that's been run down, which is why getting power from the truck while... .

Just another experience: my charger/maintainer will charge my deep cycle overnight from a fairly depleted charge. The lowest I can remember seeing where I checked it the next morning was something like 20% (charge remaining as reported by the charger). I'm sure from 0% it a different story but I can tell the battery is performing worse once only 15-20% is left so it rarely gets below that.

Edit: My charger/maintainer is 3amps.

 

[Rara Avis]

I have these hooked up to all my trailers...
Pulse Tech 12v 5 Watt Solar Charger with Desulfator Controller | SP-5

And on my dump trailer I have one these units as well...in case we dumped too many loads that day...plug it in for the night...
Battery Charger 12 Volt "Built In"

 

[Code54]

I have one of these on my 12K dump trailer....
1.5 Amp Three Stage Onboard Battery Charger/Maintainer
Cost about $15 with the coupon and works great!! The truck charges the battery of course when I drive and when I park it I have an extension cord that I run to the trailer box where this charger is mounted. Never have any issues with the battery and have dumped 8-10 loads a in day and hooked it up over night and did the same the next day.

 

[Tractor Seabee]

Leaning on my days as a motor home owner; these type applications need to have a battery isolator to keep the truck battery separate from a deep cycle(s) you would normally use for the trailor lift and/or breakaway system. See this site: True Smart Dual Battery Isolator (SBI) - 12 Volt Battery Isolator - Relay or Switch :
Good insurance to keep both batteries properly charged when connected to the truck and prevent back feed through the charging circuit.

Ron

 

[Ron50]

My dump trailer came with a 4 amp Genius charger/maintainer. It is water proof and doesn't need to be unplugged if you have to leave the trailer and want the battery to stay charged. It charges over night just fine and shows a green light in the morning. Surprise- Amazon has them.

 

[CrashmanS]

My dump trailer came with a 4 amp Genius charger/maintainer. It is water proof and doesn't need to be unplugged if you have to leave the trailer and want the battery to stay charged. It charges over night just fine and shows a green light in the morning. Surprise- Amazon has them.

Funny you should bring up that model. That is the one I purchased but I think it was the 7 amp model.