ChrisFix shows you some great tips for wiring up just about anything in a car, including police lights. Many of these tips can be used for other electrical projects in a vehicle, including wiring a stereo or adding fog lights.
What tools and supplies do I need to work with wiring?
For any wiring job, you’ll need:
- Wire strippers
- Butt connectors
- Heat gun and heat shrink tubing
- Soldering gun and solder
- Solder paste and dielectric grease
Each light or electrical component you add needs to have at least a power wire and a ground wire. Without the ground, the circuit is “open,” and the accessory won’t work. To learn more tips about wiring accessories in your vehicle, continue reading.
Tip 1: Battery
Always remove the negative battery cable when wiring up something. Since the vehicle’s entire circuit has an “open,” you can’t send too much voltage to something or shock yourself. Make sure the negative cable does not touch any metal when you put it to the side.
When you are finished with your wiring job, reconnect the battery negative. But, before you do that, lightly sand the post and the terminal to ensure you have a good connection.
Tip 2: Hide the Wiring
Hide all of the wiring. You can run it through bumpers, under the deck, under carpets, and even through the frame of the vehicle. If you leave wiring exposed, it looks like garbage, plus you run the risk of pulling the wires loose.
Tip 3: Make Sure You Have Enough Wire
Before you cut a length of wire, make sure you have enough to go from point A to point B. Always figure at least 12 inches extra, so the wires are not tight. If your routing has turns and curves in it, don’t forget to account for them.
Tip 4: Mounting Exterior Lights
Consider mounting exterior lights in the bumper. Make sure you have lights that have a protective backing and bezel, so they are at least watertight, if not waterproof. It’ll take longer for the circuit board to rust out, which means you don’t have to mess with it as often.
Tip 5: Spacing Lights
When you mount the lights on the exterior of your vehicle, make sure you center them or put them at an equal distance from the center of the vehicle or an equal distance from the ends of the bumper or fender.
Tip 6: Installing Lights and Accessories: Drilling Holes
Always drill pilot holes before drilling the main hole, especially when you are working with rubber bumpers or fiberglass.
Measure distances to make sure lights and other accessories, even those inside the vehicle, are lined up and / or spaced evenly. It will give you a more professional look.
Tip 7: Soldering
When you strip the wires, make sure you strip enough to work with. Use a light coat of solder paste to prevent oxidation of the wires. Push the wires together, then twist them together.
Tip 8: Using a Soldering Gun
Hold the wires on top of the tip of the soldering gun. Run the solder over the top of the wires. The heat will melt the solder and allow the solder to drip through the twisted wires, ensuring you have an excellent connection.
Tip 9: Finishing up the Connection
Spray the connection with dielectric grease to prevent corrosion. Slide a heat shrink tube over the connection, then shrink it with a heat gun. You should not be able to pull the connection apart, and it should be waterproof.
Tip 10: Check Your Work
Before you hook up the wires, check for continuity using a multimeter. To check for continuity with a digital multimeter, turn the dial to ohms. Choose the lowest resistance (ohms) setting. Insert the black lead to the COM jack and the red lead to the VΩ jack.
Make sure the wire does not have any power to it. Put one test lead at the end of the wire and the other at the other end of the wire. It doesn’t matter which lead goes on which end of the wire. If you have continuity, the multimeter will beep.
If you do not have continuity, then the circuit is open and the multimeter will not beep.
Tip 11: Stay Organized
Even if you don’t have that many wires, you should label all of them. Not only will it make it easier for you to grab them and plug them in, but it also helps you remember which wires are for what if you have to make repairs later.
Tip 12: Add Butt Connectors
Once you have all of the wires running from point A to point B, then add the butt connectors. Make sure you heat shrink the connections. Once you have all the butt connectors on, all you need to do is plug everything in.
If you have to change a light or accessory, it’s very easy, since you just have to plug the new one in. You won’t have the hassle of having to connect wires and tape them up, it looks nicer, and there is less chance of having a wire come loose.
Tip 13: Use the Right Size Wire and Supplies
Use the proper gauge wire and butt connectors for what you are wiring. The heavier the wire, the smaller the gauge number. The thicker the wire is, the more power it can handle.
A battery cable is much thicker than a wire for a marker light because the positive battery wire handles a high load of voltage versus the marker light power wire.
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