2011 F-150 Supercrew Truck Bed Power Supply

Bravo1782

Adventurer
Hey guys!

Finished my accessory block that I had been working on so I figured I would show you all the final product. Wanted to add a little more capacity in my truck bed as far as power goes, and I think for my applications, this should be more than sufficient.

So here's the assembly. I got a six-circuit blue sea fuse block form amazon and used some 1" steel bars to make a bracket. I had some angle aluminum laying around that happened to be just the right size to mount to mount a pair of Blue Sea 12V outlets. The switch in the middle would control the strip LEDs I added to the truck cap. I wired the outlets with 12AWG wire...overkill, but I'd rather go with something too big than too small. Even the 14 AWG for the LED strips was overkill.

vFdzNfC.jpg

Splx6Et.jpg


I bought 30 feet of red 4AWG and 10 feet of black 4AWG from KnuKonceptz. The wire is high strand copper and is super legit and affordable ($1.55/foot). Can be bought on amazon in 5 foot lengths or custom lengths on their website. They make some legit stuff and I will do business again. I have a few other vehicles that'll need some upgrades and I'll order from them in the future. It's true 4AWG, as this picture suggests:

http://i.imgur.com/A6veKbk.jpg

I ran the 4awg through these two holes. One hole was already present and the other I had to drill with a step drill bit. I added a custom-cut grommet and fed them down. If you remove the taillight this is much easier. I'll post pictures of where I grounded the black wire and where I routed the red wire when I get home today. Short version: drilled a hole in the frame and bolted the ground where there after cleaning up the contact location. The red wire I ran through the frame and popped out on the engine side of the frame up by the battery.

ge14T6Q.jpg


WIRING PRO TIP: To easily run the heavy wire through the frame, first run a coat hanger "needle" with 550 cord thread through. There's enough holes that you can weave 550 cord through. Then, attach the 550 cord to the 4awg with electrical tape (be generous) then with a friend's help, carefully guide the 4awg through the frame and pull it thorough. In truth, I used about 25 feet of 4awg, but 30 give you plenty of extra. I already had a fuse block installed for this (reference this thread for details) so all I had to do was patch the wire into the fuse block.

I soldered and heat-shrinked 4awg copper battery terminals where relevant and hooked up all the connections. Final installed product looks like this:

mfhTZb2.jpg


I had previously added some amazon strip LEDs for bed lights. I ran one on the top of each topped window and three long strips on the bottom of the topper window so when flipped up it would warmly illuminate the whole area. They're cheap, and use hardly any power. The adhesive is not great, so thoroughly clean all surfaces before sticking them down. Even then I sealed them all up with some clearly caulk just to be safe.

x47VkHf.jpg

JAv1CPK.jpg


I wanted to make sure I had ignition-independent wiring so I could run small accessories or a fridge\freezer out of the bed if need be. Plus, I still have three more circuits in the fuse block for whatever else I can dream up and all the area lighting I need to work out of the truck bed.

I'll post some pictures of some important points in where I ran the wires.
 

ismael D

Adventurer
Cool light on camper shell can you post a picture light that you install. I see you ran 4awg is at overkill I think you will loss amp. I am run 10awg battery to my bed with 2 12v outlet so can run ARB fridge. But nice work
 

Bravo1782

Adventurer
The 4AWG is a little overkill, but I wanted to err on the side of caution. It'll always be there if I ever need to wire in a heavier duty accessory. I'll post some more pictures of the light install when I get home. It's pretty simple.
 

anickode

Adventurer
With that 4awg back there, you could easily slap a deep cycle or two in the bed, and put an accessory power activated solenoid relay where the 4awg line ties into the battery. Instant isolated house power system, and no dead starting batteries.
 

Bravo1782

Adventurer
That's.....a really interesting idea. How would you propose to wire that exactly? I think you might be on to something here....
 

Forum statistics

Threads
189,887
Messages
2,921,889
Members
233,084
Latest member
Off Road Vagabond
Top