Do I need a fuse block? Light bar, bed lights, etc...

I've got some things to install, LED light bar, some LED bed lights, reverse lights, and probably an inverter for the interior. I was wondering about fuse blocks. Maybe the marine kind? (waterproof?)
Can/should I just wire each thing up individually?
I remember back in the days of my youth haha, id have 10 different wires coming off each battery terminal. Probably better ways to do it now no? Wire in ONE fuse block, and then run whatever I need to from there? Switches in the cabin, then wires all around the truck to their lights.

What do you guys think? What fuses if any should I throw in between the battery and say some flexible sticking LED light strips around the bed?

I used some for my license plate lights, but i just spliced into the existing light wiring for them. But ADDING entirely new circuits, that makes me wonder.

Thanks!

 

Anything you add needs to have a fuse as close to the battery as possible. A fuse block is a good idea.

 

x2
for my future electronics i'm gonna run a extra fuse block.
theres a writeup for using a pontiac or saturn fuse block in our truck somewhere on here.

 

ive seen some on Amazon, for marine use, 6 or 8 fuse circuits for like $35 or so, sounds good no?

Basically do I wire up a pos and neg to it, then tap the block for all my (up to however many it has available obviously) new electronics?

Also, inverters, I'd like to mount one under a seat maybe, thoughts? For something like a laptop, what would be good? 400W?

 

i don't know the prices.
i think so.

personally i would go for a bigger inverter, like 1,000watt iff you have the money to put into it. there is at least 1 person who added some plugs to the inverter and ran them to the back of the center console.
just food for thought.

 

The size (amperage) of each fuse you need depends on the item that you want to power. 2x100 watt lights need a fuse capable of handling around 17 amps (20 amps will do). Take the number of watts (200) and divide it by the number of volts (12) of your system and pick a fuse that covers that amount. LED's use a lot less wattage in general so you should find that 10 amp fuses should work.

 

i knew the size of the fuse depends on the draw of the item im wiring up, but never knew the formula! thanks man!

im using mostly leds for the lights, the light bar wont be a 10amp fuse im sure, haha...

 

You're welcome dude, post some pics when you git it all done!

 

Blue Sea fuse block and bussman 100amp breaker. Works like a charm.

 

Just a suggestion, but if your bed lighting is only going to be those LED strips, or some other low draw LED setup, you could tap an existing circuit for power. It wouldn't need it's own circuit and would be fused by the existing circuit.

The inverter will have a pretty significant draw, make sure you use thick enough wire for that and it will definitely need to have it's own dedicated circuit.

Make sure you use relays where necessary for high draw accessories so you don't draw all that power through a switch.

As far as getting power, if you like your engine bay nice and neat, you won't want a bunch of wires hanging off the battery. As an alternative, pop the under hood fuse panel cover off and look for the metal bolt sticking up at the front, passenger side. That bolt is power taken directly from the battery and can be used the same as battery power without all the visible wires.