It is my understanding, closer to the battery the fuse is, the better. I am a far cry from an expert on this subject. There are some real nice inline fuses available that allow you to literally cut your cable a few inches from the battery. Strip the insulation back, insert the battery cable, tighten allen set screws, snap a cover on.
As for bundling the wires, I seldom do, especially if they are hidden. The tighter the bundle, the more likely they are to heat. Another down side is that if any one of the wires shorts and melts through the insulation, it will probably damage every wire in the bundle.
Folks that like things real neat may disagree with me on this, but my question is "What purpose does tight bundles of wires serve other than aesthetics?" I can offer support for my position on not bundling wires.
see the fuses in this link... from my solar install I like them very much.. I also used this type in my inverter system.
They are normal used by industrys that include very high end sound systems... delicate electronics... etc, where you want the cleanest power possible. The distributer is nearby... I went directly to them... they are an online company.
I hope this helps
btw... I agree with Wayne... I don't bundle for a couple of reasons... 1) modifications or repairs are a pain in the future.
2) from my old time auto wiring days... wires running along side each other interfered with each other... so right or wrong... I don't like to parellel wires... AC or DC...
Reddog1 wrote: It is my understanding, closer to the battery the fuse is, the better. I am a far cry from an expert on this subject. There are some real nice inline fuses available that allow you to literally cut your cable a few inches from the battery. Strip the insulation back, insert the battery cable, tighten allen set screws, snap a cover on.
As for bundling the wires, I seldom do, especially if they are hidden. The tighter the bundle, the more likely they are to heat. Another down side is that if any one of the wires shorts and melts through the insulation, it will probably damage every wire in the bundle.
Folks that like things real neat may disagree with me on this, but my question is "What purpose does tight bundles of wires serve other than aesthetics?" I can offer support for my position on not bundling wires.
Wayne
National Electrical Code Article 110.12, Mechanical Execution of Work, "Electrical equipment shall be installed in a neat and workmanlike manner".
Sorry Wayne I couldn't resist. You make a good case. You better hope the tie wrap manufacturers don't see your post.
Sabconsulting, I have been following your work, you make even the largest of jobs seem plausible and easy. Great work! Dennis
* This post was
edited 02/16/12 11:36am by shooted *
I worked from home today - the main reason was so I could check out what the solar panels were doing during the day. It occurred to me yesterday that I had wired them up and though covered I hadn't checked that they were OK during daylight.
So when I got a chance I went out and checked on the charge controller. I was surprised when all three LEDs were illuminated:
It was a winter morning, partly-cloudy and the camper was in a shaded area WITH ALUMINUM FOIL COVERING THE PANELS! So how was that first green light illuminated?
I put the voltmeter on the inputs to the charge controller and got this:
So even in these lighting conditions enough light was getting through the aluminum foil to generate nearly 12v.
I checked the battery voltage - as measured at the charge controller:
I then went up on the roof and removed the aluminum foil off the front panel. Measuring the battery voltage then showed this:
So, back up on the roof and I removed the foil from the rear panel - looking good now:
And the battery voltage now shows this:
Here is the view of the finished roof with exposed solar panels:
This evening I thought I should tidy up the wardrobe. So I cut the wardrobe floor around the charge controller:
And with the panel then fitted:
So the electrical connections are now nicely hidden underneath, but the display and power button are accessible from the wardrobe.
Phew - that is another major job done, and winter isn't even over.
This time last year we were thinking we might still be replacing the roof now, and probably righting the whole summer off - where-as in truth we are now ready to go again when the weather improves. Hooray - camping here we come !
Steve.
'07 Ford Ranger XLT Supercab diesel + '91 Shadow Cruiser - Sky Cruiser 1
'92 Suzuki Samurai 4x4 1.6
'09 Fiat Panda 1.2
'10 Citroen DS3 1.6 turbo
And a job VERY well done! Congratulations on completing your project! Doesn't it feel good when you know how it's done, it's completed and you can now enjoy it?! Kudos!
Dak
1995 Weekender model 910 extended cabover
Calvin, the 1996 creampuff Chev Silverado 3500 extended cab dually
sundowners wrote: Thats a nice neat job Steve-------whats next ? --replace the charger??
Nigel & Pamala
I'll replace that at some point. Actually replacing that is a lower priority now as the battery will be charged by solar or the truck alternator most of the time so I can leave the battery charger unplugged.
Next priority - I'm thinking of adding airbags to the rear axle.
good choice... I really like our air bags... they were TC dealer installed... I have no idea what all those other after market "fixs" are... I apparently haven't needed them.
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