fixing/replacing trailer lighting

[boatman37]

have a few lights out on my trailer and my 7 pin plug was cracked so its time to fix it all. my trailer is about 28' long end to end and the typical 8' or so wide. currently it has the rear tail/brake/turn signal lights (1 on each side rear). and has 4 marker lights along each side (2 in front of axles and 2 behind axles). it also has the triple lights in the rear center.

here is my question. i am in Pennsylvania is it matters. the left and right side lighting are different from each other. each has a red marker light on the rear side but the 3 ahead of them some are red and some are orange. seems to be no reason for it other than its what the previous owner had laying around to replace the old ones with...lol. none of the side lights flash with turn signals but they do have 2 bulbs in each. not sure if they are supposed to flash with turn signals or not.

i did a google search but haven't found anything identifying which light should do what.
currently my right rear is completely out and the left rear only has turn signal functionality. the side lights seem like half work and half don't.

everything i have found says the rear should be red and everything ahead of that orange/amber. should they flash with the turn signals?

any help here?

thanks!

 

[gm280]

Okay, typically the rear lights, all of them, are red. The turn signals and brake and even rear running lights are all red. And every other light on the sides are orange or amber. I don't think any side lights are supposed to blink with the turn signals but that is just me. I've seen some cars with side lights blinking, but I haven't seen any trailer side lights blinking. However, I would buy a new trailer light kit setup and follow the instructions on the light kit. I would even go with the LED setup. They cost a little more, but there are no bulbs to burn out. JMHO

 

[boatman37]

thanks GM. kinda what my research indicated too. i plan to replace just about every light on the trailer before pulling the boat for the winter

 

[wrvond]

The side marker lights are not intended to blink (or flash), but it wouldn't be a bad idea to set them up that way. You need amber (left and right) at the front of the trailer and on or near the fender. Red goes at the rear (abaft the axle) though some use a combination light on the fender with amber facing front and red facing rear. Then of course your tail and brake lights are red. You could wire amber turn signals and even a white backup light if you want. LED is absolutely the way to go these days.
Etrailer.com sells kits that make the job about as easy as it gets, and they are very helpful.

 

[77GlastronMT]

ebay is your friend, led kits are very affordable.

 

[boatman37]

may go LED but don't want to spend too much on a trailer that gets used twice a year. i would rather save the money for the boat...lol

 

[GoldDuster360]

On my 73 Plymouth the old incandescent bulbs on the trailer kept popping fuses on the car's brake light circuit in addition to always having one or the other not work every other outing. Switched to led trailer lights and never popped another fuse, been 3 yrs. and the lights have never givinen me a moments trouble on the trailer either. $50.00 wally world set, go figure.

 

[wahlejim]

LED is absolutely the way to go with trailer lights. They have come down significantly in price to the point where it is pretty much a wash. You should be able to find a set that is pretty much plug and play with your current setup. If you are only using them 2 times a year, they are probably going to be the last lights you buy for the life of your boat, if it is wired correctly of course and you use dielectric grease in your plugs to prevent corrosion.

 

[boatman37]

definitely using dielectric grease. i will check prices when i'm ready to buy them. i just replaced my bunks so lights are next

 

[Silvertip]

wrvond is correct with the side markers. They definitely are NOT all orange or amber. You can have as many marker lights on the side as you want and they must all be orange or amber EXCEPT for the rear-most lamp which must be red. That red lamp and a bunch of amber lets you know which direction the trailer is moving. Look closely at the picture of his trailer. The front marker is actually a reflector. The one in front of the wheel is amber and one at the rear is part of the tail/stop/turn lamp and is red.

 

[boatman37]

thats how mine is. red near the back and the rest orange

 

[MH Hawker]

i just re worked my trailer it has one amber side marker light