Help with Rigid Lights Wiring
- Thread starter osceola
- Start date
limamike
New member
Looks like Grant had you covered. As stated, grounding is important, and now I think I understand why you were getting different results with the truck on and off. You have a lot of stuff running through that one 18 AWG, so you definitely need to beef it up on the ground side if you want to use a common ground. In the end, as others have suggested, it's best to use a factory ground and you can simply do that by running your black all the way back to negative battery terminal. That way you don't have to chase wires to remember where you grounded specific things, and as Grant pointed-out, it's a factory ground point which is a "known good" ground location. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.
GrantK
New member
One thing I've learned from helping friends with automotive electrical is that most problems are caused by poor grounding. With modern cars and all the computers (ECUs) they use a bad ground can actually fry them.
Some rules I've learned that make trouble shooting things easier:
*) It draws more current than you think.
*) Yes, you need to fuse that separately.
*) The wire isn't heavy enough.
*) Yes, the wire will chafe if you don't put it in split loom. That means ground wires as well.
*) Always use at least as heavy a ground wire if not heavier than the positive side.
*) No, you can't just put the wire under the screw. It's needs a connector.
*) Crimp, solder and protect all connections with heat shrink or quality electrical tape.
*) When in doubt, go to the battery for both power and ground.
I do a mini-hypergrounding my vehicles. Every time I find a factory ground I disconnect it, check the crimp, add solder and reconnect it using corrosion inhibitor such as Noalox or Penatrax-A. This doesn't have much affect at the time but it prevents the ground from oxidizing over time, especially with grounds that are exposed to the elements.
Some rules I've learned that make trouble shooting things easier:
*) It draws more current than you think.
*) Yes, you need to fuse that separately.
*) The wire isn't heavy enough.
*) Yes, the wire will chafe if you don't put it in split loom. That means ground wires as well.
*) Always use at least as heavy a ground wire if not heavier than the positive side.
*) No, you can't just put the wire under the screw. It's needs a connector.
*) Crimp, solder and protect all connections with heat shrink or quality electrical tape.
*) When in doubt, go to the battery for both power and ground.
I do a mini-hypergrounding my vehicles. Every time I find a factory ground I disconnect it, check the crimp, add solder and reconnect it using corrosion inhibitor such as Noalox or Penatrax-A. This doesn't have much affect at the time but it prevents the ground from oxidizing over time, especially with grounds that are exposed to the elements.
Ducmonsta
New member
FWIW, we've had a couple of these issues with the truck turned off. We've come accross this problem with 40" SR light bars. One of them was mine. Originally, we thought that there was a bad connection within the light bar itself. Bear in mind, the 40" only has one set of wires coming out. So I don't think you're necessarily dealing with a ground issue. LED bulbs are sensitive to voltage input. Even at the slightest change below 12v will make them flicker. That's why you are not having the issue with the truck running. Mine still does it occassionally. But I generally don't have the light bar on unless the truck is running. And, yes, I have it wired with a relay.
The funny thing is, the 40"SR is a combo flood/spot/flood. The furthest flood section from the wiring input is the only one that flickers with the truck off. Is your furthest (from a wiring perspective) Rigid light the one flickering?
The funny thing is, the 40"SR is a combo flood/spot/flood. The furthest flood section from the wiring input is the only one that flickers with the truck off. Is your furthest (from a wiring perspective) Rigid light the one flickering?
Duc, it is the farthest light.
*UPDATE*
I ran a new ground (6 gauge) and power (12 gauge). I connected the ground directly to the battery and grounded each of the lights, separately, to this wire. LIGHTS WORK LIKE A CHARM! No flicker and no cut-off, with engine on or off.
Thank you to everyone for the help. I learned a lot with this task. I'll add picks when I get a chance.
FYI, 6 gauge wire is a b*tch to work with but the guys at Skycraft (electric parts store) assured me I would have no issues.
