How to wire a relay for off-road LED lights?
Let’s say you want have your LED Light Bar come on with your high beams, or reverse lights, for example. Read more about that below. The relay will have 4 prongs on it, marked 30, 87, 85 and 86. Kind of cryptic isn’t it.
What kind of wire do you need for a relay?
With our wiring harness, all you need to do is cut the wire coming from the switch to the 30 prong on the relay, and wire it to your high beam lead or your backup light wire.
How are the lights connected to the relay?
If installing lights, split it into two leads at the lights. If you do this be sure the wire is rated to handle BOTH lights since it will carry the current of both. The diagram shows two leads coming from the relay. Then I run the second wire of the lights or other accessory to a good ground on the frame of the vehicle.
Do you need a switch to turn on a relay?
In almost every case where high current is required, the switch you will use to turn on the power should not handle the load because most switches are not designed to handle higher amps. The job of switching the power is better left to a relay. What is a relay? A relay is a device that, through a magnetic induction coil, turns on the power for you.
What are the colors of the slide out switch?
It makes sense that there is a relay somewhere as the wires on the back of the slide out control switches are different colors (orange “slide in” wire, blue “slide out” wire, and a common purple wire for all three switches). Somewhere the orange and purple wires at the control switch change to green and yellow wires at motor.
What kind of wires are in a slide out motor?
All that I saw were the green and yellow wires coming out of the wire bundle that connected to the motor’s black and red wires (see the motor photo above).
What kind of relay do I need for my 4×4?
The switch that is installed in the cab of your 4×4 actually only powers the relay itself which draws very little current. In most installations a 30 AMP relay from Radio Shack (Auto Relay Cat. Number 275-226) will do unless your amperage demands exceed 30 amps. I like to used a lighted switch in the cab to let me know if driving lights are on.
Where do you run the wire from a relay?
The diagram shows two leads coming from the relay. Then I run the second wire of the lights or other accessory to a good ground on the frame of the vehicle. If the wires will not be soldered together and crimped connectors will be used it’s a good idea to put a dielectric paste on the connectors where they come in contact.
