rear camera install

[gpeade]

Asking for advise here. I have a Jayco TT with Fiberglass sides. I want to add a rear view camera to the back of it. I would prefer to go hardwired over wireless for the reliability. I have no problem running the wires the length on the unit underneath. My concern is how would I get them from the camera down underneath the unit? I'm not going to tear out an interior wall just to fish this cable down. I can get surface applied wire raceway that is made for exterior that wouldn't look too bad back there but I would prefer the wire be hidden completely. Anyone know an easy way to run this wire from the camera to the bottom of the unit?

[myredracer]

I installed a backup camera for our Garmin GPS. No way was I going to drill through the fiberglass wall so I welded up a bracket that mounts on top of the bumper instead. I tie-wrapped the wire to the bumper over to the right then went under the trailer for the power wire up to the A-frame. Spare tire is mounted under the TT so nothing in the way of the camera.

I mounted the transmitter up front in the cabinet above the head of the bed for the shortest distance to the truck. I ran the wiring for the transmitter up through the coroplast, up through a cavity for the pantry wall into the ceiling space, then in the ceiling cavity all the way to the front, all 100% concealed. I used lights, AC grilles & bezels for access into the ceiling and used a fish tape. I had to buy an extension cable for the transmitter. The connector at the camera end has to be outside and it's not a weatherproof connector so used some heat shrink tubing on it.

A lot of work and what bothers me after all that is the grainy image on the GPS, pffft... But it still helps with backing up. The camera being lower down on the bumper works just fine. Cars after all have them low down on the rear too. My DW and I have hand signals down to a fine art and that works better than a camera any ol' day. It's not often she isn't with me.

[Harvey51]

I installed the rear view camera inside the class C motorhome, looking down from the top of the rear window. The video cable and power wires were easy to install inside, running under the dinette bench, kitchen cupboards and bathroom along with water pipes. The view is great.

[ajriding]

Two words: Fish Tape.

I run a wired rear camera to my trailer.

On mine the yellow wire was the critical one. I am still going slowly with the manufacturer to make sure I use the correct wires, they only answer one question at a time, so it is taking over a week….

I put camera on the back, drilled a hole for the wire, ran the wire inside (not under), spliced in new wire to make it longer.
I used the fish tape to get the wire through the wall and out to the tongue of the trailer.
Fish tape is a flat flexible-in-one-plane metal that can be pushed and forced through small holes and poked out easily a hole far away - fishing.
It is a great tool to have.
I then used a two pole plug like this one
https://www.amazon.com/Femitu-Gauge-Quick-Disconnect-Harness/dp/B006ZOGYUU?psc=1&SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B006ZOGYUU
to be able to connect the trailer and truck's camera wires together. But you may need a 4 pole wire (4 wires in one plug) for some cameras.
I then used an A-B switch to select either truck rear camera or trailer rear camera so only one shows on the screen. On mine I ran the yellow wires to the switch.
It will be complicated wiring it all up unless your camera only uses two wires. Mine 4.

[CincyGus]

Just ordered mine last night after about 6 months of on/off researching wireless camera's.

Camera

Full Review

[rambleonrose]

Do some camera options come with the ability to hook up to a tablet/ipad? Would alleviate screen size issue...

[tarnold]

Staying with the wired concept, remove one of the rear clearance lights. With a stiff rod probe down to see if you can get down all of the way down. If there is a rear hatch, try to route thru that. Worked for me. But I must ask, if this is a TT how will you get the cable up to the monitor?

[sgfrye]

philh wrote:

sgfrye wrote:
use wife to spot backing in spots also

My wife is one of the most intelligent people I know. Getting her to communicate what I need to do with the trailer, or understand how it gets placed has been... umm challenging. And she wants me to teach her how to back it up.

LOL yep, my wife operates million dollar radiation treatment computers... never can grasp place your hand on the bottom of steering wheel and turn steering wheel the direction you want rear of trailer to go.... or hand on top turn wheel opposite direction you want the rear of trailer to go.

i can back up our pontoon boat trailer perfectly straigt down into water at boat ramp leaving her only maybe 5 feet to back straight for me to launch boat.. she jacknifes 50 percent of time.

all joking aside she is a great navigator and copilot. on longer camping trip commutes she will take a turn driving and give me a break. she just doesn't back up. i explained a long time ago that she needed to be comfortable driving our tow vehicle because something bad could happen to me on a trip and it would be beneficial for her to be able to drive herself home.

[philh]

sgfrye wrote:
use wife to spot backing in spots also

My wife is one of the most intelligent people I know. Getting her to communicate what I need to do with the trailer, or understand how it gets placed has been... umm challenging. And she wants me to teach her how to back it up.

[gpeade]

phemens wrote:
an easy path to the undercarriage is to route the wire across the roof to the fridge vent then fish down and drill a hole up from underneath. Caulk it and you're done...

That's not a bad idea. My fridge is on the back wall. Thanks for the suggestion. After everyone's comments I may just try wireless. I was reading another thread on the topic and it was the opposite. Everyone was talking about how bad the wireless units were. Guess I just need to try one or the other and see for myself.

[sgfrye]

Second Chance wrote:

Fire19 wrote:
Second Chance What type of Wireless unit did you use?

It's a Furrion (still use it). Our Grand Design fifth wheel came with the mount and power connection for Furrion already in place. If that's not already there, it's very easy to get power from the top center clearance light on the RV when installing it yourself.

That said, a rear camera is not the end-all for backing up - my wife still stands back there with a two-way radio when backing into tight spots. I find the camera very useful, though, for double-checking clearance when pulling back over after passing a semi and situations like that.

Rob

this is our experience also.

first TT was 33ft, current is 37ft

i removed the furrion from previous TT and installed on current. works great rarely drops signal. wish screen was larger. use wife to spot backing in spots also

[JJnLilly]

I hardwired mine. Went through the hitch and under, tucking the wire under the duraplast bottom then up the back. I have a center mounted ladder so connected mine under one of the steps.

[phemens]

an easy path to the undercarriage is to route the wire across the roof to the fridge vent then fish down and drill a hole up from underneath. Caulk it and you're done...

[garyemunson]

Once you have a rear camera you won't want to be without it. Our situation is slightly different with a Class A. It originally displayed on the radio screen (about 5") but it was low on the dash and not easy to see. Bought a 7" monitor from eBay, mounted it to the side on the dash, and changed the wiring for it to always display. Ours is currently wired but have had wireless units in the past with no problems. Would be much easier to install.

[riven1950]

I am not an expert but do have 2 experiences with BU cameras.

1- I installed a Camecho on our previous TT. Installed it wireless.
pros- less than 100$
better screen image than my current Furion 7" vs 4"
cons- poor reception wireless . I think if It was installed wired it would be fine, although more trouble to install. I ended up installing the wireless transmitter in the front of the TT and it worked great

2- Current GD TT came ready for a Furrion
pros- Easy peasy to install
Wireless works great
cons- Screen is only 4" and hard to see. I think they have a 7" screen version, if so I would definitely buy it
price is way too high, paying for convenience

If my Furrion had a 7" screen I would be really happy with it. I don't really use it much for backing up mainly for observing while driving.
I would not go to the trouble of installing a camera wired. Just too much trouble for me although it should work fine