DIY HOW TO: LED Strip Bed Lights

Blackdawg · Jan 6, 2013

Drunknsloth[OP] said: ↑

Glad to hear that! I'll have to check out your truck in person one of these days!
Click to expand...

Like wise man

tacoman85 · Jun 17, 2013

I have to stop looking on the site My wallet is getting empty hahahahahaha!!!! nice write up tho!!! might try that at some point in time.

Blackdawg · Jun 17, 2013

Yea..this place makes you go broke in a hurry.

Ncsmith91 · Apr 3, 2017

Drunknsloth[OP] initial post: ↑

Ever wish you had more light in your bed when looking for something at night? Well here is a simple, extremely bright, and relatively cheap solution!

These are the LED Rigid Bars in Cool White that I am currently selling. Please check out my thread for more information :
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/group-buys/145657-led-lighting-strips-interior-exterior.html

Materials needed:
3x Pair of Cool White 10" Rigid LED Bars (You can use two pairs for less light)(Sold by Me)
2x 12v/Ground 6' Connector (Sold by Me)
2x Bar-to-Bar 1' Connector (Sold by Me)
1x Bar-to-Bar 5' Connector (If using 5 or more Rigid Bars) (Sold by Me)
Molding Tape
Waterproof Clear Silicone
Zip Ties (At Least 4 Inches)
1" Zip Tie Square Mounts
Black Conduit (The smallest you can find)
Single Throw Single Pole Switch of Your Choosing
~20' of Wiring (Recommended Solid Copper not Stranded)
Black Electrical Tape
* Recommended Wire Hanger if you are using an aftermarket fusebox
* Fuse Tap (Add-A-Circut) If you do not have an aftermarket fusebox

Prices for my products:
3x Cool White Rigid Bars @ $29.98 = $84.94
2x 5' Bar-to-Bar Connectors @ $8.99 = $17.98
3x 1' Bar-to-Bar Connectors @ $6.99 = $20.97
1x 12v/Gnd Wire @ $8.99 = $8.99
Shipping and Handling (Flat-Rate Lower 48 US)= $10.95

Total: $143.83

Step One:
Connect the Bar-to-Bar Connectors and the 12V/Ground connector in the set up that you want. I have it with two bars on each side of the bed and two at the front. So in my set up on the driver's side and the front I connected a 12v/Ground connector to a Light, then to a 1' Bar-to-Bar connector then to another Light to a 5' connector to another Light to another 1' connector to another Light. And the passenger side is just 12v/Ground to a Light to a 1' Bar-to-Bar Connector to another Light... So:

12v----Light--1'--Light--5'--Light--1'--Light

12v----Light--1'--Light

In these pictures I did not use a 12v/Ground connector because I did not have them in at the time of the start of this installation. I used a 5' Bar-to-Bar connector and cut of one end.

Here is my passenger side (the wire with the twist-tie is where you should just use the 12v/Ground connector):

Step 2:
Pull out all the connections a tiny bit so they are not completely inside:

Step 3:
Apply silicone around the space in between the connections and then push the connections together so the silicone looks like so:

Step 4:
Apply silicone in the holes around the wires on the Connectors:

Step 5:
Leave the Lights and Connectors to dry:

Step 6:
Remove the driver side tail light by un-bolting the bolts on the side of the tail lights (there will look like there is 3 bolts holding on to it but it will only be the one on the top and the lower one on the 2 that are close to each other at the bottom). And remove the bulbs and connections allowing you to place the tail light in your desired place without scratching your truck or the tail light:

Step 7:
Decide on a place to mount your switch and drill a hole:

Step 8:
Start running the wires from the tail light. I recommend not cutting the wire yet and leaving it on the spool so you have as much as you need. Just follow the black conduit (the pipe-looking object that holds all the wires) of your tail lights to under the driver's seat. This is where a solid copper wire is easier then a stranded because you can bend the wire into the angle that you need to push it through some areas and it will keep it's shape and not be weak like a stranded wire. You can pull it through where you can get enough grip on the wire while unspooling it from the tail light so you don't have to cut the wire yet and can get the right amount.

Step 9:
Once you get under the driver's seat you should see the conduit split with one end going up into the cab under the driver's seat. Now pull apart the door sill of the driver side (just pry it up) and the kick panel by pulling up the foot rest and unscrewing the hand screw behind the kick panel:

Step 10:
(Before you do this read this post by caribe makaira: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/lighting/154477-diy-how-led-strip-bed-lights.html#post3108230 and http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/lighting/154477-diy-how-led-strip-bed-lights.html#post3108146)
Go back under the truck and you can push this rubber boot to the side a little bit and push the wire through and grab it from under the driver's seat's carpet, pulling it out:

Step 11(If using a fuse tap):
If you are using a fuse tap, pull out your change holder and you will see an internal fuse box behind it. Using the back of the change holder as a reference, pull out the illumination fuse (in theory you can use any fuse) and insert this into the top slot of the fuse tap, insert a small amp fuse into the bottom slot (3A-5A) and slide the fuse tap into the slot of the original fuse. Then connect the wire that you ran from the tail light to the wire on the fuse tap by stripping the wire from the tail light, sliding it into the blue connector and crimping the connection.

Click to expand...

Do you happen to remember what size wire you used for this? I done this to mine and used 18 gauge but I don't have them completely hooked up yet. I wasn't sure if 18 was to little for this. Good write though! Thanks!

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DIY HOW TO: LED Strip Bed Lights

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DIY HOW TO: LED Strip Bed Lights

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Blackdawg Dr. Frankenstein

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