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How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:19 pm
by thedogsbollox
If i were building a garage or shed in the garden and equipping it with leccy then i would run a feed from a spare slot in my fusebox out to the garage/shed and install another box there that would give me seperated fused supplies to sockets, lights and tools.
In my Bongo i have fitted a TM2 and a low coolant alarm which need a live feed when the ignition is on. I am soon to fit a cruise control too which will require the same.
I am also going to fit a leisure battery which in turn will give a permanent live to things like blinds,radio, lights and ciggy lighters.
Up to now i have wired my extras to the ciggy lighter as this has a switched live. When i fit the leisure battery it will then be providing the ciggy lighter and therefore the TM2 and LCA with a perminant live which is not good.
I will have to find another switched live.
The Willington kit that i got for the LB has a lovely loom with fuses and i think 4 feeds that you simply push into the fuse holders of the circuits you want perminant.
Is there a device, or can one be made up simply that will take a live feed from the main battery, via a relay that is switched from a switched live, to a bank of fuses in a box(to be fitted under the dash) that you can just add your after market extras on to?
If there is one then tell me where to get it. If there isn't then i am sure that someone has the noodle on how to make one(Haydn

) then can i have one for free for giving you the idea as i am sure it is marketable.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 5:38 pm
by g8dhe
Maybe I'm missing something but, when your Igniton is switched ON and the engine is running, then the split-charge relay will have operated and both batteries will be in parallel, so there won't be any difference between using the original switched feed (still available at the top of the fuse socket - provided an extra in-line fuse is included in the wire) and the feeds from the Willington kit. When the Ignition is OFF then that's just what you want its OFF, the only time you would be drawing power from the Starter battery is if the Ignition is ON but you haven't started the engine.
So what your looking for is an In-line fuse

with a spade terminal

fitted to push into the top of the fuse socket in the Fuse 8 hole. An in-line fuse holder you can buy from any motor shop or even Halfrauds, if you asked nicely they might even fit the spade terminal for you!
If you click the images you could even order from CPC but the postage might cost more than if you drove to Halfrauds.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:33 pm
by thedogsbollox
Maybe I over explained it
at the moment there is no LB.
My LCA and TM2 are wired to the ciggy lighter.
I have to find other lives for these as when I fit the LB to the ciggy circuit the lca and tm2 will be permanently live.
I just want a Neat place, not necessarily fused, to attach all all my periferals.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:45 pm
by missfixit70
Has to be fused for safety's sake, what G8DHE has described is what I've used for various ouputs that require power with ignition on.
When you fit the Willinton kit, you remove the 4 relevant fuses, then plug in the fused supply from the LB via the provided loom into the bottom sockets where the fuse was plugged in, this now provides the power to those circuits.
This means the top sockets where the fuse was plugged in still have the power running to them as before, but is going nowhere, I think 3 of them are powered with the ignition on & one is permanently on.
These can be used (via a fuse & cut down connector plugged in, as Geoff described, or try & source the right sized connectors?) to power your cruise control, LCA etc.
Simplez

Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 6:54 pm
by g8dhe
Yup, when you put the Willington kit into place, you will remove Fuse 8 and plug one wire of the Willington kit loom into the lower part of the fuse holder socket (as I understand from other descriptions), if you plug the above into the upper part of the Fuse 8 socket, and perhaps connect a standard terminal strip (chocolate block) onto the other end of the in-line fuse then you can simply screw all you extras into the terminal strip, then you can tuck the whole lot behind the fuse panel and it will be nice and neat.




The new Blade connector fits just above the blue wire about where the arrow head is in the empty top socket.
And yes as Kirsty says please FUSE it at no more than 10 or 15 Amps in the in-line socket, otherwise you will live to regret it!
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 7:06 pm
by haydn callow
If its just the TM-2 and LCA then at the back of fuse 7 there is a Green/Yellow wire....you can tap into that (it powers one side of your blinds)...if you do this there is no need to put a extra inline fuse as the No 7 fuse will protect it. That the wire I always use if the ciggy socket is perm live. (I also somtimes tap into the radio/cd wires)
PM me your email and I can send you a pictorial guide which covers this.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 7:10 pm
by missfixit70
haydn callow wrote:If its just the TM-2 and LCA then at the back of fuse 7 there is a Green/Yellow wire....you can tap into that (it powers one side of your blinds)...if you do this there is no need to put a extra inline fuse as the No 7 fuse will protect it. That the wire I always use if the ciggy socket is perm live. (I also somtimes tap into the radio/cd wires)
PM me your email and I can send you a pictorial guide which covers this.
Depends if he's putting the blinds over to the LB?

Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 9:22 pm
by thedogsbollox
Ahhhhh now I see the light. Where I change the ignition lives to perminant with the willington kit. I can use the other side of the fuse holders to feed my periferal ignition feeds. Yes simples. Great
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 9:38 pm
by scanner
You could wire a cat up under your dash.
That should give you 9 of them.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 10:10 pm
by thedogsbollox
scanner wrote:You could wire a cat up under your dash.
That should give you 9 of them.
Ok a little loose there, a bit of a smile but a wee bit far out.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 10:27 pm
by madmile
From memory, if you have patched in the 4 permanent lives from the LB then there are far fewer ign switched lives for such things as coolant alarms.
I have fitted a few alarms and always to vehicles with a kit similar to willintons. The wire I use is the black one with yellow stripe on the back of the fusebox (second row I think). This is still ign switched. I am sure the power taken from a mason alarm and coolant alarm will be fine from this point.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Thu Nov 12, 2009 11:13 pm
by stilldesperate
thedogsbollox wrote:
Is there a device, or can one be made up simply that will take a live feed from the main battery, via a relay that is switched from a switched live, to a bank of fuses in a box...
Would a feed from the Battery, into a relay and then to a bus-bar (
LIKE THIS ) then into your fuse panel be an answer?
SD
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 3:44 am
by thedogsbollox
It is not a problem now i have seen the light. I will Mount my leisure battery and Willington kit. This means i can remove 4 fuses and make 4 circuits permenantly live. On the other side where these fuses came out i now have 4 switched live feeds so i can wire my bits to that.Wayhey
Thanks everyone
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 9:50 am
by stringman
Don't forget that if you connect anything to that side of the fuse box (i e the input side) it will not be fused so you will need to fit an inline fuse. Apologies if this duplicates what any one else has said but you can't be too careful. The fuse needs to be as close to the source as possible.
Re: How do i wire up extra lives
Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2009 3:00 pm
by thedogsbollox
stringman wrote:Don't forget that if you connect anything to that side of the fuse box (i e the input side) it will not be fused so you will need to fit an inline fuse. Apologies if this duplicates what any one else has said but you can't be too careful. The fuse needs to be as close to the source as possible.
Yup got it. Thanks.