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Open Roads Forum > Dinghy Towing

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Viewfinder

Western, NJ

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Posted: 09/26/11 09:55pm

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Toad Charge can be wired to either one. Which one do you use and why? I can see reasons for each hook up and wonder what users like or dislike about each choice. thanx

jim

othertonka

Stockton, CA

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Posted: 09/26/11 10:18pm

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I wired my charge wire to the chassis battery. It probably does not matter which one you use because the MH alternator charges both chassis and house batteries, and therefor will also charge the TOAD battery. I have a 20 amp breaker at each end of the charge wire, one real close to the chassis battery and one real close to the Toad battery. Has worked for over 7 years.

20 amp breaker

Othertonka
2004 Southwind 32VS 8.1 Workhorse chassis
2002 CRV Toad
U. S. Gear Unified brake system
Retired Fire Captain, SFD

Dutch_12078

Great Sacandaga Lake, NY

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Posted: 09/27/11 06:55am

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My ToadCharge is connected to the house batteries, although as Othertonka said, it likely makes little difference. My connection decision was based on there being a convenient connection point at the breaker for the jacks hydraulic pump.

Dutch
1995 Coachmen Catalina 322QBXL
F53 chassis, 460 V8, TST TPMS
Quadra Bigfoot EZE Levelers
2011 Toyota RAV4 4WD/Remco pump
ReadyBrute Elite tow bar/Blue Ox baseplate

RJsfishin

Winston Or.

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Posted: 09/27/11 07:50am

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I just started toading,.....
Why is the Toad charge wire connected to anything ?
I don't know my toad even has a charge wire, and I don't know I need one.

Rich

'01 31 ft Rexall Vision, Generac 5.5k, 9245 conv, 400 watt inv, 2 12v batts, ammeters, KingDome/sat, Two Oly Cat heaters, and towing a '05 Jeep Liberty, or sometimes towing a Lowe bass boat.

2chiefsRus

USA Somewhere

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Posted: 09/27/11 08:01am

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RJsfishin wrote:

I just started toading,.....
Why is the Toad charge wire connected to anything ?
I don't know my toad even has a charge wire, and I don't know I need one.

The Toad Charge is a product you can buy (or some have made for themselves) that ensures the Toad is being charged while it is being towed. We installed one because if we towed for 2 - 3 days in a row without starting the minivan, we would sometimes have a dead battery when we arrived. We have to leave our key turned on while towing. Since we full-time we wanted one less thing to remember to have to do. If you only tow one day at a time, and have no drains while you tow, you most likely don't need anything to keep the toad charged while towing.

Dave & Kathy
2007 Monaco Knight 40PDQ towing 2003 Odyssey
Fulltime since October 2007
Before you give someone a piece of your mind, make sure you can get by with what will be left.

2chiefsRus

USA Somewhere

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Posted: 09/27/11 08:03am

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As to the original question, ours is wired to the chassis battery. As mentioned likely doesn't make a difference.

Beverley&Ken

Tottenham,Ontario

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Posted: 09/27/11 08:10am

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RJsfishin wrote:

I just started toading,.....
Why is the Toad charge wire connected to anything ?
I don't know my toad even has a charge wire, and I don't know I need one.

The Charge wire maintains the battery in the towed vehicle. A lot of toad's need to have the ignition key in the acc. position to free the steering wheel and/or supply power to the auxillary braking system.

Our charge wire was included in the Winnebago 7 pin connector on the back of the MH. It is only live when the E-450 ignition is on, I am assuming it is connected to the chassis battery.

Beverley and Ken

2006 Winnebago Outlook 29B E-450.
2012 Honda CR-V AWD
Blue Ox Aventa LX tow bar and Brake Buddy Vantage.

vfrmarc

Hamburg TWP Michigan

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Posted: 09/27/11 03:25pm

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I wired our Toad Charge to the house batteries. Just because access to them was easier. The only thing I need to do when we Walmart camp is disconnect from the car so I don't leave an extra load on the house batts while boondocking. Since all batteries are charged when running down the road the choice is yours.