# Trailer wiring issue Please help



## itmustbeslim (May 5, 2011)

I am having a ground issue, I think. I was wondering if any of you could help. 

I finished the harness and converter on my car this morning (instead of studying for my employment law final) and using a circuit tester all of the poles lit up.

When I hooked it up to the trailer I am not getting any lights. I have diagnosed the problem to this point:

When using the circuit tester and connecting the checker to the ground spot on the car I am getting continuity from the trailer harness back but no lights. When I hook the checker to the ground wire on the trailer harness I am getting continuity back (ground not connected to trailer) and still no lights. Then when I hook the ground to the trailer and hook the tester to the trailer frame I am getting no continuity and still no lights, the trailer is painted all the way around. I don't think I have a tilt trailer (This is my first boat) so the problem must be elsewhere. The spot where he had the ground wire connected when I got it was to one of the U bolts on the tongue.

My tail lights are raised on metal posts but have no ground wires coming from the light itself which seems kind of weird. What would you guys do next? The wiring itself is pretty old so I may just spend the 15 bucks and put it new wiring, besides the guy jury rigged the connections using spliced connections instead of just butt connectors which is something I want to change.

So should I figure out putting a ground on each tail light even though there is no ground wire coming out? What else should I check or should I just replace the wiring? 

Thanks for your help.


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## Bugpac (May 5, 2011)

the lights if no ground wire ground thru the mounting studs.


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## texxfletch (May 5, 2011)

probably rewire, but if no dedicated ground wire to bulb, then light grounds through body of light housing. take light housing loose and clean a bear spot on trailer post and bulb housing......( if you can since light housing is loose use this chance to test light. put light housing on black(neg) battery post then the light wire first brown then green/yellow to red(pos) terminal,lights should light up.if not then bulb,or bulb socket could be bad...be careful to not short body of light and (pos) terminal. 

good luck. any other questions I'm sure someone can answer them.


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## T-MAN (May 5, 2011)

I my self would replace the wire harness, that way it would be up to date with color coded wires and then you know its good wire.


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## itmustbeslim (May 5, 2011)

I put a new harness on today, so I am almost sure it is a grounding issue. I think I will have to pick up some self tapping galvanized screws tomorrow and re ground everything to see if that works.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (May 6, 2011)

Run a white ground wire to every light. That's what I do on all the trailers I rewire.


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## itmustbeslim (May 6, 2011)

This might be obvious but if the lights do not have a ground wire coming out of them how do I run a ground wire to them?


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (May 6, 2011)

itmustbeslim said:


> This might be obvious but if the lights do not have a ground wire coming out of them how do I run a ground wire to them?


The mounting bolt. It should be part of the socket base.


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## huntinfool (May 6, 2011)

Take the lens off the light and you will see one of the mounting bolts goes through a piece of metal inside the light. This is the ground. Run a wire from it to your good ground point and you should be fine. 

But honestly, I would just rewire and you would eliminate most of your "FUTURE" problems.


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## Froggy (May 6, 2011)

Happen to me, all you need is a piece of ground wire from the back of the tail light screw to the frame somewhere ( I use the closest bolt) you could probably also simply use a self taping screw right on the frame behind the light.


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## itmustbeslim (May 6, 2011)

Ok so here is where I am at after my work today:

I pulled the old wires and ran new wires from the pigtail back, wired a new pigtail and connected the new wires to the lights. I connected the front ground to the tongue and tried to connect a ground to the back of the lights. So far I still get nothing, which makes me think it may be the lights themselves or at the very least the grounding of the lights. Here are some pictures:

This is the view of the lights from the back:






Another view of the lights:





Here is a view of the ground I made for the lights, because the lights are elevated a attached the ground at the bottom to the trailer frame, which I have since changed and shortened:





Here is the pigtail with the ground in the background:





Here is another view of the front ground:





Before any ground screw I used a cone grinding attachment and took all of the paint off at the ground site and used #10 self tapped screws. The weirdest part is what happened after I connected the car to the trailer. Without connecting the car to the trailer I tested the car harness and the correct posts are firing when turn signals etc are turned on. After I connected the trailer and turned on the left or right turn signal all 3 wires on the trailer were showing voltage blinking but still not lights (using a circuit tester). Why would this happen? I even checked the ground on the car just in case. 

I am not sure what is happening so any help or direction would be much appreciated, this is very frustrating because it should be so simple and yet just out of reach.


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