# Electric Winches & Wiring



## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Anyone know of an electric winch that can plug into the existing trailer / hitch wiring.

Would like to avoid having to run a cable all the way to the front of the truck to where the battery is and then install another plug at the rear. Would prefer to use what is already there...if possible...


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## Guest (Aug 15, 2018)

Get a lithium jump pack off Amazon ($30-75 depending on model) and a spare jumper set that plugs into the jump packs. Cut the alligator clamps off, connect the wires from the winch to the alligator clamp-less jump wires. When it's time to put boat back on trailer, plug it in and you have 12v of power


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Had thought about a second Marine battery in the bed of the truck, but a lithium pack may actually be a better option.


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## Guest (Aug 15, 2018)

crboggs said:


> Had thought about a second Marine battery in the bed of the truck, but a lithium pack may actually be a better option.


Plus it can be used for power outages, charging a battery/phones on camping trips


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## mwolaver (Feb 6, 2014)

The winch power wiring is quite a bit bigger than your trailer lighting harness. I've "installed" the winch harness on 3 trucks now. Not a very technical install. I don't install a harness and female on the truck. Just a harness and the male that plugs into the winch. Coil it up out of the way somewhere in the bed. Might be wrong, but hooking up to a running truck d.c. system may give you more "P= volts x amps" than a plain battery, too.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Not only is the winch power wiring much, much bigger than your trailer wiring (and it needs to be... ) but it also must have an in-line 30amp breaker near the battery (big wire running under or inside your vehicle's chassis - you don't ever want a dead short since it would be a fire starter..). A vehicle hook up kit from the factory usually comes with that breaker in the right size - I'd never have one without it... 

As noted in the previous post - not much to the installation since you're only running the positive side from battery to your rear bumper, then a short trace to your frame for the ground side of things... I used a pair of trolling motor plugs (female and male) for the terminal end -the female to the right sized hole in my rear bumper - the male side for the short power trace needed from bumper to winch (and on the other end of that short trace a male PowerWinch plug).

Install it right the first time (and insulate any contacts between your power line and the vehicle's frame with inexpensive split loom wiring harness, held in place with tie wraps... and it should be trouble free for the life of the vehicle.

There is an alternative to a permanent installation, simply hook up your duplex cable to positive and negative poles on your vehicle's battery (don't forget that 30 amp breaker in-line....) with a male PowerWinch plug at the terminal end - making sure you have a bit more cable than needed to reach from your battery all the way back to that winch... When not needed simply coil up the cable and store the entire rig inside your motor compartment next to the battery - but still out of the way... When needed open your hood and run the cable all the way back to the winch, plug it in and you're in business... 

Hope this helps.. if you do a clean installation onto a truck's step bumper the way I did, it actually looks as if it came from the factory (you keep that short bumper to winch power lead stored inside your vehicle until needed...).


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