Electrical Question

[IBleedMusick]

Thanks for the help I will order the stuff and post pics once I get the job

[IBleedMusick]

done*

[KenC210]

With the relay you will wire 87 to the 12volt source to power the relay, the 86 to the remote lead from your radio so it will turn on, the 85 to a good grounding spot, and the 30 to the junction post box. As you can see with the pic of the post junction box i ran little jumpers from each post from the first one i put the relay to each of the top post of the junction box. from there you can run any wires to that and it should power them up when you turn your radio on. If i need to explain it better i think i may be able to. I could explain it with text in the pics if you need me to i just dont got much time during the week i got to pick up kids from school get ready for work stuff like that. if you need more help i will be happy to help out.

[IBleedMusick]

Actually I think I understand what you're saying I had a basic grasp of whats going on just wasn't completely sure my only question now is did you run fuses in between each accessory on the junction post and if so I know what size to get for the lights but how big should the fuse be for the amp turn ons?

[KenC210]

Actually I think I understand what you're saying I had a basic grasp of whats going on just wasn't completely sure my only question now is did you run fuses in between each accessory on the junction post and if so I know what size to get for the lights but how big should the fuse be for the amp turn ons?

i didnt run any fuses on the jumpers or the amp turn but for the lights i would fuse them... i know when i will buy my lights and install them i am going to run a fuse. if i am wrong about not fusing the amp turn on hope someone tunes in and corrects me.

edit: also you would need to fuse the relay #87 to 12volt source though

Edited October 28, 2011 by KenC210

[Wicks]

Actually I think I understand what you're saying I had a basic grasp of whats going on just wasn't completely sure my only question now is did you run fuses in between each accessory on the junction post and if so I know what size to get for the lights but how big should the fuse be for the amp turn ons?

i didnt run any fuses on the jumpers or the amp turn but for the lights i would fuse them... i know when i will buy my lights and install them i am going to run a fuse. if i am wrong about not fusing the amp turn on hope someone tunes in and corrects me.

edit: also you would need to fuse the relay #87 to 12volt source though

All wires should be fused at their source. This protects the source in case that wire comes loose and shorts to ground down along the cable run.

Power distribution wire should be fused to the gauge of the wire. It supplies many things and you want as much current through it as possible. If it shorts to ground though you want the fuse to blow before the wire heats up and causes damage.

Amplifier power inputs should be fused to the rated current draw of the amplifier. You allow it to draw its maximum rated current, but if the amp fails and draws more current then its fuse blows before doing more damage to the amp itself (and anything its powering).

What lights are we talking about? LEDs, light bulbs, etc.

Find the power rating of all the lights in the circuit and divide by the max voltage (12-14V). This will give you the total current draw that the lights require.

Match that with the corresponding fuse.

[IBleedMusick]

Thanks for the explanation so that I understand you correctly I am running 14 gauge remote wire for the amp turn on's should I do my math using the MAX on the amp or the RMS if I use the max the would be 900w/13.8v = 65amps do I get a 60 or 70 amp fuse mids/highs. 1000w/13.8v = 73amps do I get a 70 or an 80 amp fuse. Did I do that correctly? As far as the lights go how do I determine the power rating the trunk lights were cheap led strips from ebay no info provided just says 12v led. I haven't gotten the ones for under the seat yet.

My final question is how large should the fuse be from the #87 relay to my 12v source?

[Wicks]

Thanks for the explanation so that I understand you correctly I am running 14 gauge remote wire for the amp turn on's should I do my math using the MAX on the amp or the RMS if I use the max the would be 900w/13.8v = 65amps do I get a 60 or 70 amp fuse mids/highs. 1000w/13.8v = 73amps do I get a 70 or an 80 amp fuse. Did I do that correctly? As far as the lights go how do I determine the power rating the trunk lights were cheap led strips from ebay no info provided just says 12v led. I haven't gotten the ones for under the seat yet.

My final question is how large should the fuse be from the #87 relay to my 12v source?

Not sure I followed everything you wrote.

14ga is plenty for a remote turn-on (assuming that you're using it to only switch items on and not power anything).

Remote turn-on leads should already be fused from the Headunit.

Always use RMS ratings, max numbers can be highly exaggerated and lead to the wrong size fuse.

Do the amps already have fuses? If not, their manuals should state what to fuse them at.

Amps aren't 100% efficient so they will input more power then they output. Therefore you have to take that into consideration when fusing.

Do you have a multimeter that can measure current? You could use that to measure how much current the LED strips are pulling.

Depending on how many you're running, LEDs use very little current so without knowing what you have, a 5a fuse is probably fine.

Where is this relay sourcing its power from? A distribution block in the trunk or a seperate power wire from the battery?

[IBleedMusick]

Thanks for the explanation so that I understand you correctly I am running 14 gauge remote wire for the amp turn on's should I do my math using the MAX on the amp or the RMS if I use the max the would be 900w/13.8v = 65amps do I get a 60 or 70 amp fuse mids/highs. 1000w/13.8v = 73amps do I get a 70 or an 80 amp fuse. Did I do that correctly? As far as the lights go how do I determine the power rating the trunk lights were cheap led strips from ebay no info provided just says 12v led. I haven't gotten the ones for under the seat yet.

My final question is how large should the fuse be from the #87 relay to my 12v source?

Not sure I followed everything you wrote.

14ga is plenty for a remote turn-on (assuming that you're using it to only switch items on and not power anything).

Remote turn-on leads should already be fused from the Headunit.

Always use RMS ratings, max numbers can be highly exaggerated and lead to the wrong size fuse.

Do the amps already have fuses? If not, their manuals should state what to fuse them at.

Amps aren't 100% efficient so they will input more power then they output. Therefore you have to take that into consideration when fusing.

Do you have a multimeter that can measure current? You could use that to measure how much current the LED strips are pulling.

Depending on how many you're running, LEDs use very little current so without knowing what you have, a 5a fuse is probably fine.

Where is this relay sourcing its power from? A distribution block in the trunk or a seperate power wire from the battery?

This is strictly for the turn on all of my power wire is fused correctly. I just needed to know if I need to fuse the turn on lead from the junction box to the amp turn on's. I am running the relay from the 12v wire that would power my head unit so power is only there when I am actually using the radio. So lets clear this up I need to turn on my 3 amps, power 8 led strips and not have my car electricals go crazy in the process. I order the relay, junction box and 14 gauge fuse holders. Now What?

[Wicks]

Gotcha.

So you're running the switched power wire from your headunit to a relay to turn on amps and power some LEDs.

The remote wire (from the headunit) should already have a fuse inline. Usually from the backpanel of the headunit.

If not, it wouldn't hurt.

That turn-on wire will only be powering the coil in the relay so a 1a fuse would be plenty.

The switched power wire that is running the headunit, relay and accessories should come from your car's fuse panel and already be fused.

It will probably be fused for the headunit only though, so more draw through the fuse might be an issue. You're only running amp turn-ons and a LEDs so I highly doubt it but I need to throw that out there.

Does your car's fusepanel have spare fuse outlets? Those should also be switched with the key and allow you to fuse that line seperately.

I still don't know what the LED current draw is but LEDs draw very little power. Amp turn ons will also be low power, depending on the amp.

To be safe and allow for enough expansion, a 10a fuse should be plenty.

What size wire are you running from said terminal block to the trunk? 14ga like you mentioned for the remote turn-on?

14ga is good for around 20A so fusing at 10A will be safe.

Edited October 28, 2011 by Wicks