Help with wiring LED offroad lights?

[DEATH2000]

Hey guys,

I got two LED lights mounted on the front of my truck, but now I need to have them wired up. Electrical wiring is not my forte in the least. I would really appreciate if someone who knew what they were doing could give me a hand. Im down in the SW if that helps.

I can pay in beer :D


Thanks!

[heavyfuel]

What brand, and what do you have for wiring/switches? I just wired 4 lights onto my truck a few weeks ago, wiring is not my forte either but it was actually really really simple. I got 2 sets of KC's and I ended up having an easier time custom building the harnesses than using the garbage that came with the kit. You should have a 5-way pigtail that plugs into a relay. +/- to the lights themselves, switch power, main power, and ground. Main power to the battery. Ground it somewhere. Run your switch wire to the switch inside the cab and the other end right into any unused outlet in your fuse panel. Make sure you splice in a fuse box on your main power and switch wires. I might be able to help you out one evening this week. Do you have a shop to work in?

Also I haven't drank beer in months and I feel great. A bottle of Bonterra Cab or even a jug of skim milk would be just fine lol

http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/rr150/2500calgary/20131110_133801_zps68480a0b.jpg (http://s478.photobucket.com/user/2500calgary/media/20131110_133801_zps68480a0b.jpg.html)

[DEATH2000]

Hey Heavyfuel,

Their round LED lights from China. Buddy of mine gave em to me a while back for helping fix something on his car (not wiring related lol). They did not come with any kind of wiring harness.

It will have to be "custom" wired I guess to say. Some people i talked to said 18w LED lights didnt draw enough power to warrant a relay, and some people said to use one for sure. I could possibly attempt it if it really doesn't need a relay. I have no idea how to install relays.

I would appreciate the help because I would like to learn how to do this properly.

Thanks.

[FraserB]

Travis,

They won't need a relay, the draw on those KCs is a ton higher than the LEDs. Even Rigid doesn't require a relay to install, just the fuse.

[DEATH2000]

Originally posted by FraserB
Travis,

They won't need a relay, the draw on those KCs is a ton higher than the LEDs. Even Rigid doesn't require a relay to install, just the fuse.

Thanks Fraser. Do you know what the amp draw on your Rigids is?

[FraserB]

2.90 amps

[heavyfuel]

K I'm no expert as this was my first light wiring job but as I understood it, the relay is just so you don't blow the switch? I have led light up switches and you definitely don't want them running directly off the battery, no? Would it be a good idea to use one anyways so that down the road if you wanna upgrade, it's already done? Relays are cheap and I found them to be easy to install.

[FraserB]

The LEDs draw so little that an inline fuse is good enough to keep everything under control. I ran 4 of the KC 130W Daylighters on my last Jeep and each set had a relay, when you switched them on you could watch the volt meter drop on the dash lol.

[DEATH2000]

Originally posted by FraserB
2.90 amps

I should be good with a 5 amp fuse then eh?

Trip to Princess Auto may be in store for tomorrow...

[FraserB]

Let me check what the Rigid ones are using, I think it's a 20 amp. It's yellow for sure.

[Unknown303]

:werd: The fuse you can size pretty high for a lighting circuit. Although if you break it into a relay circuit you can use a smaller fuse for the control circuit and a larger one for the lighting. You normally want to keep the fuse low if the circuit is going through the cab to cut back on the current that could cause a fire.

[FraserB]

Should help

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd316/fraserbrown1986/Automotive-Wiring-Diagram-1_zps37ae2390.jpg

[Unknown303]

Yeah that drawing is golden. Although fusing the site leading to the lights isn't really required if you've fused the positive to the switch and positive to the relay. In my opinion anyways.