Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

[leesumm]

I have an '03 Ford extended cab with a V6 and the factory towing package. 2 inch receiver, 7 pin flat , round plug, and the standard 4 pin flat plug , all standard factory options. My question is this, I put a 3,000 lb. ATV winch on the trailer making the brackets and all that , then set a car battery on the trailer to "try the wench out" . Things seem to be working ok to normal. Now I am wondering how long that one battery will last pulling the boat up ( 15 foot trihull fiberglass with 70 hp johnson motor. On the 7 pin round plug on the P.U. I see a + and - plus the tail, park, and brake lights. My owners book says there is a hot wire constant in that plug but I can't find it with a test light. Can I hook a hot wire from the Pick up to the spare battery to "charge it " on the way to the lake or will that overload the electrical system on the pick up ? Or , if I do find the "hot wire" on the pick up, what type of fuse, breaker or ? would I have to put on to handle the winch? Supposedly its marked as 12 V 120 amps. intermitant use. If anyone has done this thing before I would like to hear the outcome of their experiences and if it works.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

You can use the power in the 7-pin to charge the battery but you certainly can't run a winch with it.

I wired my winch directly to the battery in the truck. Running the wire thru the frame was a piece of cake. My battery has top and side terminals so I connected the in-fuse directly to the battery post and went from there.

I used these as the connection to the winch

Fused the connection with one of these

4 years of use in saltwater, no problems

Don't have to worry about keeping a battery charged or someone stealing the battery off the trailer

 

[leesumm]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

Dingbat?, ok this leads to another question then. My owners book says there is a blade in the 7 pin plug for a hot wire. If I set it up to charge the battery on the trailer for the winch. Does that ad another 12 volts to the truck system or is there something in the truck system that prevents the 12 volts from both batteries burning up the pickup ? Most wiring and replaceing I can handle , its adding and taking away voltage that confuses me like the two batteries to one vehicle. As for the breaker in the picture, what size is it? How would I determine how much of a breaker to be safe when my winch says 120 amps ?

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

Dingbat?, OK this leads to another question then. My owners book says there is a blade in the 7 pin plug for a hot wire. If I set it up to charge the battery on the trailer for the winch. Does that ad another 12 volts to the truck system or is there something in the truck system that prevents the 12 volts from both batteries burning up the pickup ? Most wiring and replacing I can handle , its adding and taking away voltage that confuses me like the two batteries to one vehicle. As for the breaker in the picture, what size is it? How would I determine how much of a breaker to be safe when my winch says 120 amps ?

The Batteries are in parallel, it is still 12v, NOT 24!
The Truck will charge the Trailer battery while the trailer is attached AND the truck is running.
The trailer Battery will actually assist in starting the truck to some extent.
A fuse in this circuit would be advised.

I see 40A in the picture.

Just get a Wiring Kit.

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

Dup.

 

[leesumm]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

Ok, I see the solution now. I was trying to get out of adding the second battery to the boat. Where I boat is both small lakes in the country. There are only a handfull of users at each lake and with the water at an all time low even less users. I was worried more about some one stealing the battery. Although nothing yet has happened to my or my cousins vehicle even tho he leaves his windows down and sometimes the keys in the ignition LOL> I lock and take my keys with me tho.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

As for the breaker in the picture, what size is it? How would I determine how much of a breaker to be safe when my winch says 120 amps ?

120 amp draw for a boat winch? What size is it? Mine draws 80 amps max. and it's rated for #4200.

 

[leesumm]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

The winch I am using is a 2,000 lb Champion winch off a ATV I had. Remote control , and a button. The tag on the winch just says 2,000 stall load, 120 amps at 2,000 lbs. I am illiterate when it comes to electric stuff . All I know is that it pulls like crazy and quiet. I attached a a pic of the tag itself. For the time being I have a battery in the back of the pick up and lead wires from the winch on the trailer to the battery . I think I might go to the lake in a couple of days and give it a check out and see. Then figure out how to maybe hardwire it to the pick up with a plug .

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

It draw 120 amps STALLED. That means the motor is NOT turning.
The breaker will save the day if it pops before the motor stalls.
60-80 amps should fit the bill. The breaker Auto-Resets after 30 seconds so you can fix the problem and try again.

I re-read your original post.
Yes, you can just use the trailer battery and charge it from the 7 pin connector from the truck.
Connecting the +12v from the connector to the battery Positive will charge the battery while the truck motor is RUNNING.!

Remember you are only sliding the boat, NOT Lifting it.
A 2000lb winch should be able to load an 8-10,000lb boat.
If it has trouble, spray on some bunk lube and be sure to always keep the safety chain on until you are ready to launch.
Bunk lube has been responsible for dry launching more than one boat onto the concrete ramp. It almost works too well!

 

[dingbat]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

Remember you are only sliding the boat, NOT Lifting it.
A 2000lb winch should be able to load an 8-10,000lb boat.

hummm........

Fp (overcome gravity) = Fg (weight of boat) x sin (20 degrees) = 8,000# x 0.34 = 2720#

Fd (overcome friction)= Fg (weight of boat) x cos (20 degrees) x Fn = 8,000 x 0.939 x 0.10 = #751

Total pull required: Ft = Fp + Fd = 2720 + 375 = #3471

Please recommend a #2000 winch that pulls #3471 with a full spool of cable

This particular winch #2000 winch only pulls #940 with a full spool of cable.
http://www.championpowerequipment.com/pdf/manuals/12002/12002_manual-english.pdf

BTW: If you work backwards, you'll find that a #2000 winch is just about right for a #2000 boat.

 

[skyking897]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

The hot (12 volt positive) wire you are looking for in the 7 pin connector may need a fuse or relay in the under hood fuse panel to work properly. Hooking up the wire to your battery on the boat trailer is exactly how they are hooked up in RV trailers, so no worries there.

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: Putting an electric winch on boat trailer. Would like some help

...Please recommend a #2000 winch that pulls #3471 with a full spool of cable?
... If you work backwards, you'll find that a #2000 winch is just about right for a #2000 boat.

How right you are. :redface:
I stand corrected!

I just checked my winch.
It is a 1600lb rating pulling a 2400lb (Dry) Boat.
It is a real grunt. It could be bigger.
The manufacturers site suggests a 2 to 1 rule of thumb for selecting a winch. 3 to 1 is special cases.
They must have used the 2 to 1 rule on mine thinking a 1600lb winch is good for up to a 3200 lb load.

I like your 1 to 1 rule better.

A 3000lb 2 speed winch looks desirable.
Or an electric that the admiral can operate sounds even better.