Electric brake settings

Hello. I'm a new member and new owner of a heartland mallard m27 travel trailer. I've never towed anything larger than a Coleman pop up camper. I'm looking for advice on the electric break controller setting for my tow vehicle. The trailer is 5500 dry weight and about 6500 loaded. Thanks!

Re: Electric break settings

This is going to vary for each truck and camper. Unfortunately there is not a magical setting for each camper.

The best way I found my setting was to be all hooked up and ready for a trip. Find a straight level road with no one around and get up to about 15 miles per hour. Activate your brake controller completely and see if the camper tires lock up. I started low and kept working my way up until I could get them to just briefly lock up. Once I found that point I backed off my brake controller so they worked in conjunction with my truck brakes and not against me.

You want to find the spot where the truck is not doing all the braking action or where the camper is doing all the braking action. You don't wont them to lock up on you either.

Good luck and hope this helps.

Re: Electric break settings

Welcome to the forum.

Every truck, controller and trailer combination is going to be a little different. My advice is to hookup, find an empty patch of road, and just play with the settings till it feel right. For me, I like to feel the trailer pull on the truck just slightly as the brakes start to grab. Not enough to lock the trailer tires, but just so I can feel they are working.

Once you decide what feels right for you, take a few practice 'stops' at different speeds. Start at a crawl and find your​ most comfortable setting and make a note of it. Then do it again at 10mph and adjust as necessary​, make a note. Again at 20-25mph and adjust as necessary​, make a note. If you have space, do it again at 35-40mph, etc.

The idea is learning how you specific combination reacts at different speeds. Then once you get out on a trip you have a starting point. Once you get to cruising speed, test you brakes and see if you need to adjust a bit. The controller on my truck does not self adjust, so I have a preferred setting for highway, in town and when parking.

It is better to know before you are really counting on them.

Edit:. Looks like I type too slow. Great tips @weekender01

Greg
2012 | RAM 2500 | CCSB | Custom tuned by Double R Diesel
2016 | Heartland Pioneer | DS310

Re: Electric break settings

The man is asking for a starting value. If you have no starting gain how will applying trailer brakes full stop anything , is that right? Maybe try a 5 and apply slowly or maybe something different. I don't know. I've seen this questioned many times and only seen it answered once. That person was pulling a heavy Rv and said he needed a 9 or 10

Thanks all. I will experiment in a few weeks when I'm packed up for a trip.

Re: Electric break settings

CoveredWagon said:

The man is asking for a starting value. If you have no starting gain how will applying trailer brakes full stop anything , is that right? Maybe try a 5 and apply slowly or maybe something different. I don't know. I've seen this questioned many times and only seen it answered once. That person was pulling a heavy Rv and said he needed a 9 or 10

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I would agree. Start out low (not zero) and work up. For my rig, 5.5 is the sweet spot. But I also use the manual downshift on my Duramax/Allison to slow down before actually going for the brakes and use them lightly.