ksd
Medina, MN
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Joined: 10/22/2003
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willald wrote:Have you programmed in a custom message that comes up, when its on? Mine says 'Born to Camp', hehe. 
Will
Yeah. The 'burb is my wife's daily driver, so I programmed the display to read "Anna's Truck." She likes it.
Thanks for the tip on the audible alarms.
2008 Salem LA 312QBBS
2006 Suburban 2500 LT 8.1/4.10
Gear Vendors Under/Overdrive
BrakeSmart Controller
ProPride 3P hitch
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ksd
Medina, MN
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Joined: 10/22/2003
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chadsalt wrote:The Brakesmart "wakes up" and "goes to sleep" with no trailer?
Yup. It wakes up whenever you apply the brakes. It goes to sleep if the brakes haven't been applied for some period of time. That time period is adjustable in 30 minute increments, with 30 minutes being the minimum. So if you're tooling down the highway with the cruise control on and don't touch the brakes for 30 minutes, it will go to sleep. It wakes up instantaneously upon you touching the brake pedal, though.
You can set the delay longer. I think it came from the factory set at two hours. The only problem I have with that is that the unit then stays on, and the display active, for two hours after you last touch the brakes. Since you usually hit the brakes when parking the truck, that means it sits there turned on for two hours after you shut down and get out of the vehicle.
That seems kind of strange to me. I would have liked the system to have a way to detect whether the key is in the "on" position, and turn on/off automatically with the truck.
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chadsalt
sc
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Joined: 04/04/2005
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ksd wrote:chadsalt wrote:The Brakesmart "wakes up" and "goes to sleep" with no trailer?
Yup. It wakes up whenever you apply the brakes. It goes to sleep if the brakes haven't been applied for some period of time. That time period is adjustable in 30 minute increments, with 30 minutes being the minimum. So if you're tooling down the highway with the cruise control on and don't touch the brakes for 30 minutes, it will go to sleep. It wakes up instantaneously upon you touching the brake pedal, though.
You can set the delay longer. I think it came from the factory set at two hours. The only problem I have with that is that the unit then stays on, and the display active, for two hours after you last touch the brakes. Since you usually hit the brakes when parking the truck, that means it sits there turned on for two hours after you shut down and get out of the vehicle.
That seems kind of strange to me. I would have liked the system to have a way to detect whether the key is in the "on" position, and turn on/off automatically with the truck.
Interesting. My Maxbrake goes to "sleep" in about 5 min......but it stays in "sleep" mode when there is no trailer. You have to plug in the trailer or use the manual lever to get the screen back on.
I dont think I would worry about the Brakesmart sitting there on for 2 hours (I would'nt worry about it being on all night), that little screen doesnt draw enough power to worry about. No different than running a clock or an aftermarket alarm. Like willard said it can be turned off, but I would think the alarm would be nice for a trailer disconnect warning........could turn it back on with trailer in tow I guess?
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radshooter
Western USA
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Joined: 11/29/2004
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Both installs look top-notch!! Did you have to bleed the brake lines after installation? That is the only part that concerns me.
Thanks.....Steve
03 Silver 3500 SLT 4WD CTD HO 6spd 3.73 DRW LWB Dipricol Boost and Pre-turbo EGT, Jacob's Exhaust brake, Jordan, diamond plate bed rails, diamond plate mudflaps.
03 White Toyota Tundra 4X4
99 Travel Supreme Express 36RLTSO
Fulltimers Steve, Joan, Jake, Pooh
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ksd
Medina, MN
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Joined: 10/22/2003
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Yes, you do have th bleed the brakes. It's a very, very simple thing, however, and the unit comes with excellent instructions on how to do it. You just need a helper. In my case, that helper was my eight year old son. He sat in the driver's seat and hit the brake pedal when I told him to, while I watched the fitting and tightened it down at the appropriate time.
Seriously, the hardest part of the whole thing was fishing the wiring harness through the center stack. Even running the cable from the master brake cylinder through the firewall was easy, as the unit comes with very clear instructions showing you where to drill the hole.
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Arcamper
Fayetteville, AR
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Joined: 08/05/2007
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Brakesmart is the best and it always reminds me whose truck it is...
2007 Keystone Laredo 29RL 5th
2003 Ford F-250 SD Crew Cab 4x4 6.0 Diesel
Pullrite 16k Superglide with Super Rail kit
Brakesmart
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DSteiner51
Wooster, Oh
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Joined: 01/30/2004
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Nice job! Great controller too. Now go hook up to that trailer and use it.
D. Steiner
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ksd
Medina, MN
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Joined: 10/22/2003
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DSteiner51 wrote:Nice job! Great controller too. Now go hook up to that trailer and use it.
I did. In fact, I pulled a 35 foot trailer over 1,000 miles from Alabama to Minnesota last weekend. The Brake Smart worked like a charm.
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Hornet28BHDS
Parker, PA
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Joined: 01/29/2007
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Looks great!
2006 Hornet 28BHDS-Bunk House, Dual Slides
2006 Dodge Ram 2500 HD
5.7L Hemi, Factory Towing Package
Reese Brake Controller, WD Hitch and Sway Bar
Life is short, why not spend it in an RV!
SPRING HAS SPRUNG!
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BlackSilver
East of Heaven, North of Hell
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Joined: 12/18/2003
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Medina --- Hamel --- I'm nextdoor in Plymouth, another happy BrakeSmart owner (actually I traded my BrakeSmart off with my previous truck, as the new one has a similar controller "built in" from the factory.)
Hans, KØHB & Colleen, KØCKB
Master Chief Radioman, US Navy
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'04 Prairie Schooner 34FBR Platinum XL Camping Trailer
'08 3500HD Silverado Big Dooley LTZ Go-power by Max & Allie
My rig (Click)
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