Another LED Bed Light Thread

One additional switch I may add later on, is a spring loaded hood pin type switch, or the magnetic one as the OP used, but mine will be for the tonneau cover opening. I would wire it in series with the toggle switch so I can override the power to the lights if I take the tonneau off to haul tall items.

 

x2... This weekend maybe.

 

Changing the fuse doesn't bring the available power down, unless the fuse is lower rated than the load and then it pops. The fuse is there to protect the wiring, switch, etc. from an overload and should be calculated based on the entire circuit. A resistor does lower power and LEDs must have them, they are built into the strip so that your 12v. power is internally regulated.

 

Im awaiting my light stip to come in, doing my homework still on the install process. Im really curious how you made your corners look so neat?

EDIT: Just found out what the corner connectors were . Looks super easy, thanks for your info and help

 

Nice write up and mod Critical B !! Finally someone come out and posted a bed light write up that doesn't cost $120!! You did it for less then $50. I did the same with a switch and eBay and Amazon deals for under $45! I just don't get why TW members are paying a certain person $115 and $120 for a bed light kit, 60% mark up on some china parts we all are getting from the same place. You should make kits and under sell him, super clean work you did, looks great! Keep it up and way to stay honest.

 

Ya I'm not trying to knock the guy but I purchased enough parts to light up 2 truck beds for about 30-40$ on eBay . But I guess he is cutting them to length . If people want to pay an additional $80 for that then let them .

 

Just bought all the items to do this mod. Gonna get done next week!!! Thanks for the write up!!!!

for those that did this mod, what AWG wiring size where you using and how much do you need? I bought 16AWG...hope this works.

 

16 ga. is more than enough. As for length, depends on where you tap into. If you have a 7 way trailer plug it should have power so that would be the shortest and easiest access. You could also tap into taillight power, it'll force you to run the parking lights to illuminate the bed, but will guarantee they can't stay on unwanted draining the battery. Fuse it to no more than 5a. to protect the wiring of the strips which is very thin.

 

I've read several bed light install, and I think this is the best one.

I really see no point in paying up to 5x premium if you end up having to do the hard part (the actual install) yourself anyway.

OP, that fuse tap in the engine compartment fuse box is a constant 12v source, right? I like the magnetic switch idea.

thanks for sharing without asking for anything in return.

 

Glad this has been useful. You're right about the constant 12v tap.

 

I took some time this weekend to help a friend setup his own set of bed lights and thought I'd share his solution. We did the same setup described above, but this time I pre-measured each strip and soldered the LED leads to the pins in the connectors. I wanted to test all the soldering and a 9v battery on my desk caught my eye. Sure enough, it powered all 3 strips. It was getting late so we installed the lights, but powered them via the 9v battery and stashed the battery in one of the cubbies. Since the lights will only come one when the tailgate opens, the battery should last a while.

For the record we used one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Leather...98688659&sr=8-1&keywords=9v+battery+connector

If it works, he may just throw a few spare 9v batteries in the glove box and roll with it.

I've also got one of these which would work well in the same application:

http://www.amazon.com/HitLights-Rec...88692&sr=8-4&keywords=12v+rechargable+battery

It's a full 12v, the one I have hooked up to to a light strip on my deck hasn't run down since I bought it in October, but having it in something mobile like a truck where you might need it and not have it charged could be a problem. In any case, this is definitely a good solution for someone who might not be comfortable running wiring to the engine compartment or messing around with their fuse box.

 

Nice job but what if u have to spend a day w the tailgate down or use a bed extender. Ur reed switch is really nicely done but I still feel like the only fool proof way is to tap the dome light wires and run from there.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2n...bed-lights-thread-cycle-w-dome-light-pix.html

 

I started out with this version, but ended up with a slightly combination of best of all versions.

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/li...ome-light-circuit-lots-pics-wire-routing.html

instead of a switch, I ended up hooking up to the dome light circuit. The original dome light circuit mod has an override switch that connects to ground. I did not do that since that only introduces a way for me to forget to turn off the switch. I just leave the door open if I need the light on longer. So it ended up as a really minimal circuit.

one thing I found out though during the install, it is easier to route the wire on the passenger side than the driver side. If wire needs to go inside the cab, it is also easier to go through the firewall where the hood release latch is.

 

Subd

 

I just popped the fuse for interior lights under the hood and pushed back down with wire under it to power mine. On the corners use some 3m molding tape. I also used the flex conduit and added some wire ties with mounting holes. Put the wire ties on and pull up to put upward tension at corners.

 

Good point - I don't anticipate having to leave my tailgate down that long, but if I ever did it's an extremely low draw on the battery and if I was really concerned about it I suppose I could just pop out the fuse.

I recognize for others that could be a problem, so for them I'd recommend just putting a toggle switch somewhere in the circuit and mount it inside the bed where it's easily accessible. That way you could switch the lights off when the gate is down if needed, otherwise they'll come on for you automatically. Best of both worlds

 

How many of the Hitlights connectors did you use??? I am thinking that you used two to connect the three light strips together and then one to connect them to the magnetic switch. Is that correct?
Thanks

 

You're right about the two connectors for the three strips, but the strip comes with leads already built into one end, so that wires directly to the switch behind the hole I drilled in the bed.

 

Speaking of those connectors, I noticed the lights dimming from time to time and becoming increasingly erratic. I checked the wiring and found some of the crimp connectors that I had wrapped in flex tubing and electrical tape had mostly corroded to powder. I pulled them out this weekend to rewire the whole thing (at least everything in the bed) with solder and shrink tubing. I took the opportunity to shorten the hit light connectors and I think they ended up looking a lot better this time.

 

Very good solution as well as looking good. Got my lights from Amazon the other day and waiting on the connectors.