More trailor questions - wire loom and safety chains

[JSGOLD]

Is there any harm, or any need to wrap the wires under the trailor in plastic wire loom..or split flex as I call it? The only thing I am concerned it with it being submerged...would it keep water in and cause trouble?

On safety chains....do they have to connect to tougue??? I have a one pc chain that "lays" in a slot in the middle and is not connected anywhere. I was surprised to find this, but it would not fall out unless the trailor was driven with the chains not hooked to tv....

the chain is rusted and I want to replace it. Looks like thisis the way the trailor was designed, but was wondering if this is bad. I may be able to bolt on on, if need be.

 

[dockwrecker]

Re: More trailor questions - wire loom and safety chains

If I understand what you're calling "split flex," you mean the corrugated looking flex wrap split down one side? It won''t hold water and may offer some chafing resistance for as long as it stays on there which usually isn't long.
A graded U bolt with a 3/16 cross bar min. could be used for connecting safety chains.

 

[JSGOLD]

Re: More trailor questions - wire loom and safety chains

Thanks. I will see what I can do. The current chain "lays" in the opening under the tougue and I did not realize it was just laying there. Half of the chain was out one side, and half the other. I guess it has been that way for years but I would feel better if the new chain was anchored somewhere. I want to rewire the trailor as the po used wrong wire, wrong size, and shoddy lights. I can fix the current problem OK for now ( right tail light is not grounded well) but it looks like a better setup. perhaps with a direct ground to each light might be in order. I have plenty of the flexible split duct available, would like a nice, neat job provided it does not cause issues.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: More trailor questions - wire loom and safety chains

Loom gives the wire significant protection in areas where it cannot be tied down properly, provided it is not in direct sunlight or high heat, in your application if it is possible to run your trailer wiring inside the frame rails Loom would be perfect, if that's not possible then using loom to run your trailer wiring either on the side or under the frame rails will work fine but loom is not UV protected and will become brittle in a couple years. You can do what you wish but I run a ground to all lights and use heat shrinkable butt splices with heat activated glue on all connections, add loom to the electrical system and you should enjoy several years of problem free trailering. The key to this is to secure the loom so it doesn't droop, sometimes this means securing it to the trailer every 6"-8", the more secure it is the longer it lasts

 

[seaboo]

Re: More trailor questions - wire loom and safety chains

I've seen this (construction trailers use to do this set up alot). It works (and I assume works well) but I agree I would rather see it anchored somewhere.

Is there any harm, or any need to wrap the wires under the trailor in plastic wire loom..or split flex as I call it? The only thing I am concerned it with it being submerged...would it keep water in and cause trouble?

On safety chains....do they have to connect to tougue??? I have a one pc chain that "lays" in a slot in the middle and is not connected anywhere. I was surprised to find this, but it would not fall out unless the trailor was driven with the chains not hooked to tv....

the chain is rusted and I want to replace it. Looks like thisis the way the trailor was designed, but was wondering if this is bad. I may be able to bolt on on, if need be.