Wiring a switch....

[Tony Payne]

OK, this is basic stuff, but for the life of me i'm drawing a blank...



Mounting my "Stan Sloan" lights... have them run in series around the boat... black to black, red to red.



Get to the battery compartment, black to -, red - positive.



Add the switch... take red to one side of switch, nother wire from switch back to battery, and the third terminal on the switch is for ground?



Ground back to battery negative? This keeps blowing fuses!



What am I missing?



I've attached a picture of the switch I am using... it didnt include any diagrams. you cant see the third terminal from the picture, but it is up top... I assumed the top two were power (1 side to device, 1 side to battery positive) and the third was to ground.



Help!

 

[Tony Payne]

Here is the lights...
http://stansloanzorrobaitco.com/blklght/cordless.htm

 

[Greg Meyer]

Sounds like your "in series" is not in synch with your black to black and red to red.



Unlike AC power which is a "bus"... DC power distributed to multiple devices has to be in a series, a loop, with a switch breaking the loop...



Say two light bulbs and a switch... Start at the positive terminal of the battery... to the first post of the bulb... then from the second post of the bulb... to the first post of the second bulb... then from the second post of the second bulb... finally to the first post of the switch... then from the second post of the switch to the negative post of the battery... A big "loop"...



If you have two lights with wires, black and red, you either have to have a single loop with that bulb and the poles of the switch and a second switch for the second light (or a double pole switch, actually two switches with one knob or handle) or you must wire them in series as described above (hopefully in an understandable way)....

 

[Carl S]

 

[Carl S]

One of the (3) terminals on the switch is a ground. But its only a ground to complete the circuit for the light on the switch only.

Check to see if all the terminals are the same color. If there is a different colored one it is possible that that is the ground for the light on the switch. Also look for symbols that may be on the plastic housing of the switch by

the terminals. Is there is one with a few horizontal lines with one perpendicular on the bottom, that is the ground terminal and the other (2) are the ones that "make or break" the positive wire or hot wire for the lights you added. Chances are you may have the ground connected to a positive terminal thus creating your short. If the terminals are numbered 1,2 & 3, try your hot + wire from battery to 1, hot or red + wire from your lights to 2, and 3 run wire to ground. Run the black wire or ground from your lights to a seperate ground source or tie it into the ground wire your using for the light on the switch. If not, a continuity tester is what you really need to determine what terminal is what if they are not marked.. hope this may help you and is not to worded to confusing. Carl

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Your like me Simmy....I know just enough about wiring to be dangerous

 

[Tony Payne]

Thanks guys...



The back of the switch is numbered, but the numbers are useless without a "code"...I'll look again for symbols, but I dont remember seeing any.



Carl,



I was using the (-) post on the battery as the ground... I'm guessing that is not a good idea? Where else is good to ground on a boat?



Otherwise, I think your right, that the one of the top 2 must be ground and the two on the side are the "make/break" the circuit.

 

[Tony Payne]

Greg...



I thought that was what the black wire was for, to finish the loop from the (-) of the battery.



So... Red is one side, all the way to the switch, switch back to battery (+), black picks up from the battery (-) and continues back to each light.



I think my confusion is on "ground"... probably just have the back of the switch confused...

 

[Gene B]

You need to wire the lights in a parrallel circuit not series. You won't get full brightness out of your lights.



Gene

 

[Tony Payne]

by paralell you mean each light gets its own "run" back to the battery?

 

[Gene B]

Yes. run both wires to each light. Hit the first light with both wires then continue on to the next, and the next. the switch goes in the positive side (red wire) before the first light.



Gene

 

[Greg Meyer]

Gene,



Unless those are very heavy draw lights, it should be possible to wire them in a series... Also, 14-16 ga wire should be fine... They aren't spot lights, as far as I know. Once again, if the switch is a double throw (two circuits, one toggle/knob) then you can use one switch and each light on its own circuit...

 

[Gene B]

The wire positions on the switch may be different but this should do it.



Gene

 

[Tony Payne]

Thanks Gene... that is exactly what I am attempting to do...



It is the swtich itself that is causing me a headache!!!!



I'll buy some more fuses tonite and start trying different switch positions!

 

[Tony Payne]

Got it figured out tonite... as was thought... I had done everything "right" but the switch.



The two terminals you can see in the picture go to battery and the "device" (in this case the lights) Numbered 1 and 2. (top goes to the lights)



The other terminal goes to ground for the indicator light. (numbered 4 on the back of the switch)

-----

|1 4|

|2 5|

|3 6|

-----



1 - to device

4 - to ground

2 - to power



(3-5-6 not used on this particular switch)



It's amazing how many fuses you can go thru thinkin' the other way around! (or not thinking at all, as the case was!)



Now that we're all set for nite fishing, the temps drop to the 30/40s for the weekend!!!!

 

[Bruce Freeman]

Gene's drawing is dead on. the post marked (-) on the switch is the ground for the switch light. the other two make or break the circuit and does not care which side is the light and which side is the batt. leave the ground off of the switch untill you get the lights working, then it will go on the post left over. If you try to run them in series when on light goes out they all go out because the bulb will become a switch.



BF

 

[TrepMan]

Sim - Where are you mounting these? Just interested, went to the site, they look like permenant black lights for night fishing?



Trep

 

[Tony Payne]

The jacks are permanent...you put them in the gunnels.



I have 4 locations, 2 fore and 2 aft.



This way you can be very selective about where you put the light(s).

 

[TrepMan]

Sim - do the jacks mount flush or at least out of they way? So when you are not fishing at night, they aren't a hinderance? Or course in that 911 AIRCRAFTCARRIER you'd never even notice!!!!LOL

 

[Tony Payne]

Yes, they are more/less flush mounted...when the lights aren't mounted, you won't even notice them!



I'll snap a pic later.