You could also just run a single main power wire to the roof (like 6 or 8 gauge), hook it to a bunch of relays (in a waterproof box), and then use cat5 cable to 'trigger' the relays - it's a smaller cable and much easier to route into the cab (mine runs through the edge of teh door frame)...the relays I use have a small trigger current, so no issues w/heat, etc...and you can get watertight network connectors which makes it easy to disconnect the roof rack (one main power connector and a cat 5 connector and it's disconnected). Used this on two different vehicles for years and works well..
Roof mounted lights
- Thread starter pete.wilson
- Start date
pete.wilson
Adventurer
Hey
Sorry it took so long for me to get back to this. I mounted my KC Daylighters 100Watt light's to my Garvin rook rack and used a trailer brake wiring kit (Any tractor supply co. or feed store outlet should have them (about $22), in which one lead had a white/black wire and the other one had a blue/black lead, these leads are encased togtether under a black outer casing. Under the grand cherokee's existing roof rack's, drivers side front mounting cap, I drilled about a 1/2 inch hole to fit both sets of wires through. I used a rubber linkage bushing (held in place and sealed with black RTV) to protect the wiring as they were run into the interior above the headliner. The wires then run down the left windshield post and down to the existing wiring bulhead feedthrough (again re-sealed with RTV). One set of wiring was also run from the engine compartment to the switch in order to trip the relay for the lights power. Then I connected all of the wiring under the hood using split loom and black tie wraps as needed to make it all look neat. I mounted an oval lighted switch on the removable plastic trim behind the steering wheel, with the switch mounted behind the turn signal lever (there's another post with pics that show some of this detail). Everything turned out clean and the wiring is of sufficient size to carry the current without getting hot. I also because of the location of the lights have no glare problems on the hood and it makes back woods/road running much better.
Pete Wilson
Sorry it took so long for me to get back to this. I mounted my KC Daylighters 100Watt light's to my Garvin rook rack and used a trailer brake wiring kit (Any tractor supply co. or feed store outlet should have them (about $22), in which one lead had a white/black wire and the other one had a blue/black lead, these leads are encased togtether under a black outer casing. Under the grand cherokee's existing roof rack's, drivers side front mounting cap, I drilled about a 1/2 inch hole to fit both sets of wires through. I used a rubber linkage bushing (held in place and sealed with black RTV) to protect the wiring as they were run into the interior above the headliner. The wires then run down the left windshield post and down to the existing wiring bulhead feedthrough (again re-sealed with RTV). One set of wiring was also run from the engine compartment to the switch in order to trip the relay for the lights power. Then I connected all of the wiring under the hood using split loom and black tie wraps as needed to make it all look neat. I mounted an oval lighted switch on the removable plastic trim behind the steering wheel, with the switch mounted behind the turn signal lever (there's another post with pics that show some of this detail). Everything turned out clean and the wiring is of sufficient size to carry the current without getting hot. I also because of the location of the lights have no glare problems on the hood and it makes back woods/road running much better.
Pete Wilson
ntsqd
Heretic Car Camper
My own preference when doing something like this is to wire the switches on the ground side of the relay's control circuit. That way any short in the wire results in the relay closing and the controlled circuit coming on instead of sparks. It also means that the voltage drop across the load has already happened. Which in turn means that the current in the wire to the switch will also be very low and that the wire does not need to be very big.evldave said:
