Any trailer brake experts out there

My brakes are making a humming noise when I apply the brakes but other than that they do nothing. I don't even feel them engauge even with the gain all the way up, with light setting or heavy setting or when just pressing the slide all the way. Any ideas?

How old are the brakes? Sounds like the magnets might be shot. Tough to say without taking them apart and checking everything out. Could be springs, could need adjustment, could need a whole brake job. Best to pull one of the wheels and have a look see.


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The trailer is almost 2 years old. It does not get used much. That might be the whole issue. I have not got it apart yet but I can't imagine that too much can be wrong. Electrical stuff is not my strong suit

the magnets wear like the brake shoes do, they could be shot, adjust the brakes, give them another try

when I replace electric brakes, I cut the wires, unbolt the backing plates and replace the whole unit

If they're only two years old with few miles, they could just need adjustment. Without power to the trailer or brakes, jack each wheel off the ground. You should hear or feel a bit of drag from the brake linings. It will sound like someone scraping a pan with a spoon, but not as loud. It should not keep the wheel from spinning. If it spins freely making no noise, you'll need to engage the pads a bit more. If you spin them and they seem to slow down quickly and the lining noise is louder, then back them off.

Incorrectly set brake controllers can grind magnets down quick, especially if the controller jerks the trailer during braking. If you hear lining noise on all the brakes and still have issues, you'll need in to the brakes to check on the magnet condition. If you do need new magnets then be sure to check the face of the drums too. If it's not smooth then they should be turned to keep from jacking up the new magnets. If it's really rough you could be due for drums. Hard to imagine being only two years old, but it happens.

I got four years out of the brakes on my work trailer driving it 4-5 days per week. By that time it needed the whole job so I did new plates with the brakes already installed as another user suggested. The magnets are an easy hook up since the wires don't matter which side they're connected on. Butt connectors with a heat seal do the trick and are quite easy.


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How are you testing them? They will humm.

When power is applied, the drum (wheel) needs to rotate so the brakes engage.

Jack it up, have someone press the brakes, as you are spinning the tire. Spin tire in forward direction.

Also, there is an expander that can be adjusted.

If you've got as low of miles on them as it sounds like I'd lean more towards thinking it's a connection problem. Any chance you can hook up another vehicle to test them? It would be pretty rare for a 2 year old trailer to have worn parts or a failure, or really much of any problem - even if just sitting.

Try to rule out the vehicle as the problem if you can. Otherwise, troubleshooting this stuff is pretty basic for someone who knows how to do it. I'm with you as it's not my thing. Any tire/brake shop should be able to sort it out or at least isolate the problem pretty quickly.

Good info guys. I feel confident enough to fix it, it is mostly just a matter of taking the time to do it. I have a lot going on so I might just bring it someplace. Which I really hate doing but it might be my best option at this time. Thanks

Read the post BRAKE CONTROLLER lot of info there

you could pull the break-away switch to test the brakes to, then you know you are getting full power to them

I did not even think about the breakaway switch. Good idea!

I did read the brake controller thread in it's entirety, lots of good info there as well.