Electrical help

[Zeiderman]

So I'm looking for some guidance and wiring, and doing it neatly and correctly.
Vehicle is a 96 Jeep XJ.
What I have to wire:
CB-hard wired.
GPS
Bluetooth speaker
Inverter x2, one for front and rear, one is plug in, the other will be wired.
Tablet/phone
Interior/exterior lights, adding both new-LED
Multiple USB and lighter sockets through out, i.e. my GPS is mounted next to my mirror and I want to put an USB plug in my top console for a short cord run.

I hate electrical, but hate wires/charging cords all over worse.
Also only running 1 battery, and would like some solar at some point in the future.
So besides layout-still working on it, where do I start?
My first thought is a box next to the battery, and then run everything from there.
I have all my electronics, still working on mounts, thanks for the help.
I can post pics of interior as needed.

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[rayra]

I'd start with reviewing the layout and the current loads and flavors, with an eye to either consolidating what I could, or simplifying circuit layouts. And even consider clustering things and putting smaller satellite fuse panels near each cluster of needs, to limit total overall wiring mess. Run the appropriate gauge wires to feed the subpanels, fuse and split the power at the subpanels to feed each need / device.

And must USB stuff is low-amp, 5V, 1A, 2.1A, etc. Take a look at your stock wiring gauge and fusing for your overhead console / cockpit lights, you'll likely find you can tap into their wiring in the overhead console itself to add your USB converter sockets for your stuff high on the windshield. Likewise things like the cig lighter / 12V power ports. Just figure what the loads are and make sure your connections are proper and sound and the total simultaneous load won't exceed the fuse or the wire gauge. That way you can make use of your existing wiring as much as practicable without turning your dash / firewall into a bowl of spaghetti.

And there's a solar / electrical 12V subforum here where you'd get much more expertise

 

[Zeiderman]

I'd start with reviewing the layout and the current loads and flavors, with an eye to either consolidating what I could, or simplifying circuit layouts. And even consider clustering things and putting smaller satellite fuse panels near each cluster of needs, to limit total overall wiring mess. Run the appropriate gauge wires to feed the subpanels, fuse and split the power at the subpanels to feed each need / device.

And must USB stuff is low-amp, 5V, 1A, 2.1A, etc. Take a look at your stock wiring gauge and fusing for your overhead console / cockpit lights, you'll likely find you can tap into their wiring in the overhead console itself to add your USB converter sockets for your stuff high on the windshield. Likewise things like the cig lighter / 12V power ports. Just figure what the loads are and make sure your connections are proper and sound and the total simultaneous load won't exceed the fuse or the wire gauge. That way you can make use of your existing wiring as much as practicable without turning your dash / firewall into a bowl of spaghetti.

And there's a solar / electrical 12V subforum here where you'd get much more expertise

Thank you that's a great start, right now my radio is out and staying, as well as my overhead which held interior lights and trip, mileage, direction, etc. I have one lighter socket that stays unused as well. So if I put in a small panel at each accessory port how do I determine what my loads are compared to my output? Also I'm being told that I should probably run my larger inverter direct off a box from the battery. And also that wire gauge going in to the interior panels will make a difference as well. Looks like I have some reading to do.

 

[Zeiderman]

Yes sir, but as stated I hate cordage worse. I had an incident with house electric once, will be one of those things that I will never forget, and it was all out of my lack of knowledge, I don't even like wiring in outlets, just one of those things. Hell I don't really care for jumper cable hook up either.

 

[rayra]

You need to read the specs on your planned devices, their current requirements.
Need to look at a wire sizing chart, which will tell you how much current you can draw without slagging the wire. And build in a safety buffer in that load calculation, don't plan to use more than 80-90% of a wire's max rating. And fuse that line at that lower amp level, so you CAN'T exceed the max load of the wire.

I'm working a similar mess of gear and options into my Suburban, I'm further along the same arc you are on. The Sub already has (3) 12v 'Power Ports' (cig lighter style sockets) in the middle of the dash, the true cig lighter is switched on by the ignition, the other two are always hot. The factory center console has another on the back, facing the 2nd row. And there's another in the far back right of the cargo area.

Right now I have a suction cup mount high on the windshield left of the mirror, for my iPhone. I use an USB converter in one of the dash ports for USB power and have a cable running up and over the back of my mirror, into the phone. I've also just added a tablet mount to the top center of the dash. It's fed the same way. By the same cable, right now.

I want to add:

- high center USB power for a dashcam, mounted near the rearview mirror. So I'm planning to tap my overhead console lamps and put in a dual USB port on the driver side of the overhead console and use the shortest leads possible to power both devices locally.

- a USB charging port INSIDE the center console. There's a molded location for a power port -style connector. I'll just mount the USB charger there and tap the center console power port circuit.

- I've added a custom-built center console which will house both CB and HAM radios. Also has a 12vdc cooling fan inside the console, blowing up on the radios. I'm putting a fuse panel in there, with it's own main power feed off the battery and controlled by a relay from a dash switch. I've added 6 switches on my dash where my obsolete analog OnStar controls used to be. Those switches will chiefly be for various lights, front, top, back, ground, radio main.

more pics here
http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...ling-and-heavy-gage-power-lines-under-vehicle


- I plan to add a second battery, in the factory under-hood location. And use an isolator setup and run them as 'vehicle' (normal) and 'house', whereby I can drain the house battery and not impact the vehicle starting etc. Most of my added loads will go on the 'house' battery.

- I've already tapped the rearmost power port to add a switched supply for an LED lighting strip that outlines my rear hatch / liftgate. I'm going to be reworking that to be TWO split / parallel circuits, white light on one half red light on the other half, with their relevant switches set on each side's D pillar.

- I'm also planning a rear 'power module' as part of my storage platform / drawer build. It will have a variety of voltages and power connectors / adapters mounted in both the front and rear faces of it and be semi-permanently mounted. Will fit with my 3rd row seats installed. There will also be a 110VAC inverter installed in this module. And future plans for rooftop solar and charge controller. And if there's any room left over inside, I'll add some sealed 12VDC batteries there too. The module will be hardwired with heavy gauge cabling to the 'house' battery up front. Thru the floor and up the frame.

https://powerwerx.com/panel-mounts

- I also want to have a rear-mounted large Anderson power coupling which I can use with modified jumper cables, to jump vehicles from the rear of my vehicle. In my time in the Marines our vehicles had a 'slave cable' arrangement like this for connecting two vehicles together electrically. Since I'm running 0/1 cable back to the rear power module anyway, it would be easy to feed a large power coupling right off of the bus bar in the module.

- I also just relocated my 7-pin trailer connector from my trailer hitch and mounted it in the bumper proper, and pulled my hitch off. That connector has a a trailer power feed line in it, would be easy to also rig a trailer connector plug as a pigtail with other power connections on it.

In essence I want to have 5V USB, 12VDC/15Amp Anderson PowerPole connections, 110VAC, 12VDC power ports available throughout the vehicle. For road trips with several people, for camping, for preparedness reasons, for HAM field use, for CERT adn maybe even some future Search & Rescue. I want anybody to be able to plug anything into it, from any seat.


Again I refer the OP to the power subforum, there's lots of useful info about adding circuits, proper equipment and techniques for doing so. None of it is hard. A lot of it is easy to mess up, with disastrous outcomes. A little reading goes a long way. And above all don't hate or fear it (or any of the rest of that feelz BS). Just pick up the tools and Do it.

 

[Zeiderman]

Wow.....I don't understand a word you said, but I'm going to learn me some. Thank you for the time.

So a guy I work with is genius level as well and he mentioned a small panel I could jump out of the main panel in the kicker panel. He basically made it sound like I could plug a 30A fuse in that bridged out of the panel that connected to a smaller panel and then go from there, do you find this reasonable?

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[rayra]

Yes. Same thing i was suggesting. You run a thicker power supply line to a central location where you can mount / fit / hide a smaller fuse panel, with a few fuses in it which allow you to split out multiple lines from there to your devices.

Something generally like this product -
https://www.bluesea.com/products/5045/ST_Blade_Compact_Fuse_Blocks_-_4_Circuits
where there's a power line feeding the block, then a bunch of branching lines each of which starts with a fuse. There are many varieties of this fuse block design.


Just go start reading some of the topics in this subforum, get the basics down so you can at least know the terminology and what is available, and then design from there.
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/forums/48-Power-Systems-12v-Solar-Gen


There are several companies that make good serviceable electrical products for wiring and power management. Blue Sea Systems gets a lot of attention here because their stuff often had features good for wet outdoor environments (that's their forte, really), so their stuff makes a good crossover into the offroad genre. And all the 'overlanding' fashionistas have latched onto that brand like it's a Gucci purse.
Powerwerx is a brand that gained favor servicing the HAM radio folks and they have a lot of stuff useful in mobile / vehicle installations. But there are many other more pedestrian brands that work fine.

 

[Zeiderman]

I feel like I'm getting somewhere, thank you so much for the help. I will keep you updated.

So this:

Then this:

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[Zeiderman]

OK, so here is what my guy drew up at work and gave a great class on it as well, thank you again for all your help.

 

[rayra]

That's an interesting diagram. It seems to be arranged so that the accessories powered by it will only receive power when the ignition is on. That's a fine way to ensure those accessories aren't using power unless the vehicle is on and presumably running / charging. But what about circuits which are always hot, like Power Ports, or Radios. There are many ways to wire things, depending on your purposes.

 

[Zeiderman]

That is correct it is hot when on only, concerns were with the CB. I have off power already wired in with my courtesy lights, which will be converted over to LED and one lighter socket that is hot now, not sure if my radio was always hot or not, I'll have to check into, either way that's another power source available. I was able to score a 4 relay panel pane from work off a wrecked truck, so I will be able to build on that for exterior lighting, or whatever else in the future as needed.

I really want to thank you for your help, I have been dreading this and putting it off for a long time, now I am actually looking forward to it. Also really liked the tablet mount, I have a Samsung 7" as well, and like it a lot, it pulls double duty for work and play and handles everything just fine, mine will be mounted in the same position as yours and I think I will give your design a shot.

 

[rayra]

Cool, and you're welcome. Only way to get it done is a piece at a time.

I spent some time this afternoon fiddlign around with my setup. I intend to have both my cellphone and dash camera mounted high center on my windshield, using suction cup mounts. Had my cellphone there for a long time, with its cord trailing up from the dash, up behind and around the rear view mirror. I've seen kits for adding USB power to an overhead console / cabin lights, for dashcams, but they are typically hard-wired dedicated setups. What I'd rather have is a set of generic 5V USB ports up there, for flexibility. Then I can use very short USB cables to attach things, tuck the wire up there.

I also want to add a similar output inside the center console. There's a pre-molded location for a cig lighter / power port style socket and just such a socket on the back side of the console facing the 2nd row seats. So I plan to tap that circuit to also feed the new port inside the console. My plan is to leave the tablet in the car, in the console, when I'm away from the vehicle. And I'd also be able to leave my bluetooth phone earpiece plugged in there as well, instead of always finding it dead when I want to use it.

So I printed out a 1:1 scale image of the face of the common aftermarket USB plug and taped it up various places looking for a fit.

These USB adapter devices are about 1-1/4" in dia. and about 2" in depth. The depth and dia are a bit of a problem in the overhead console, as there's a lot of stuff in the way on the inside. I'm looking around online for some sort of adapter that's smaller, maybe a smaller rectangular face, but no luck yet. There's an option part from / for Toyota that looks lice, but have to find it.

I've long used USB charger adapters that plug into cig lighter ports. And those are quite compact. The PowerWerx cylindrical style is $19-25, depending on desired power outputs. A very similar generic item on a slow freight plane from China is $7 but has the same size issues.
Looking at the cig adapter that I have, I'm giving serious thought buying another couple of those and hacking them up. I have the tools and skills to modify / remove their cig lighter plug ends and replace them with wire leads that I can splice into my factory wiring. Then it's a simple matter of mounting their smaller square faceplates where I want them and likely anchoring them with hot glue on the inside.

The black oblong on the edge of the console (bottom edge of the pic) is the defunct OnStar microphone. It just clips over the edge of the console and will be removed altogether. I think I like the vehicle front -facing edge as a location on the console, as it will hide things somewhat from the inside angle. And once connected, those ports won't be used for much else.

 

[Zeiderman]

That's is exactly where my first port is going, in the upper console next to windshield for GPS. That's a good idea about printing the ports out, think I'm going to do that. Fortunately my center upper is long and completely empty, except for the interior lenses. I got a digital test light this past weekend so I'll be able to poke around my unused power lines and see what I have.

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