Wanted: relay installation guide

[Mattb]

Anyone willing to create a relay installation guide? I want to install a relay so that the power supplied to my Powerlet is dependent upon the ignition being on.

I'm not even sure which relay to buy.

 

[Rocky]

Google "Fuzeblock". I would sent you a link but am not that computer savy.

 

[tawilke46]

http://www.fuzeblocks.com/index.php

This will work.

 

[Mattb]

Excellent. Thanks gents.

 

[Rotorhead]

Here's another guide that will work for relays:

 

[Rmcapozzi]

Depending on what you want to run off that Powerlet, the Fuzeblock MAY work just perfectly for you. The Fuzeblock is limited to 10amp draws per circuit. Running small items like MP3 or other audio/GPS devices and most lighting will work just fine. If however you want to run heated gear off the Powerlet, the Fuzeblock is not big enough to handle a full set of gear at 15amps.

Rotorhead's link to the relay is very good. Simply size the relay to what you need to run and buy some connectors to fit the prongs. A 40amp relay for example would likely be sufficient to run any/all add-on electrical devices.

If you're looking to add quite a few additional items to your bike, however, I'd strongly suggest going with a fuse panel. Just make sure you pick a panel that has the capacity you require.

Here are 3 very nice fuse panels. The Centech and PC8 have larger capacity than the Fuzeblock and are capable of running circuits of continuous 15amps (if you desire to run heated gear off of a fuse panel this is important).

http://www.fuzeblocks.com/index.php

http://easternbeaver.com/Main/Products/Fuseboxes/fuseboxes.html

http://www.centechwire.com/catalog/panels/ap1.shtml

Good luck!

Excellent. Thanks gents.

 

[RedLdr1]

For those new to wiring here is a link to an excellent "How To" book that will answer a lot of your questions.

 

[elizilla]

A lot of the relays you find in auto parts stores have diagrams on the package that show what to hook to what. I cut that out of one of the packages that has gone through my garage, and taped it in the cover of my box of connectors, along with a half dozen other diagrams for other similar things. That way they're always there to refer to as needed.

 

[Mattb]

Thanks for all of the informative replies, folks. I can always count on this community to come through! I have opted to go with the fuzeblocks.com solution. I just placed the order.

 

[rcase13]

There is an alternative to the Fuzeblock. I built my own for $15 and it handles more current. Just buy a standard automotive relay with harness and then purchase a fuse block of your choosing. It's a little more work but a lot cheaper solution. If your handy with wiring building your own is a lot cheaper. I have nothing against the Fuzeblock I just think its a lot more expensive than it needs to be and it doesn't handle enough current for what we need it for.

 

[Mattb]

There is an alternative to the Fuzeblock. I built my own for $15 and it handles more current. Just buy a standard automotive relay with harness and then purchase a fuse block of your choosing. It's a little more work but a lot cheaper solution. If your handy with wiring building your own is a lot cheaper. I have nothing against the Fuzeblock I just think its a lot more expensive than it needs to be and it doesn't handle enough current for what we need it for.

I am NOT handy with automotive wiring.

 

[Rmcapozzi]

Doing it yourself does provide additional flexibility. However, the PC-8 and the Centech both offer more capacity than the Fuzeblock and enough capacity for just about anything I could think you might want to run on a motorcycle. What are you running that requires over 60 amps of total current on the fuse panel or more than 15 amps of continuous draw per circuit?

There is an alternative to the Fuzeblock. I built my own for $15 and it handles more current. Just buy a standard automotive relay with harness and then purchase a fuse block of your choosing. It's a little more work but a lot cheaper solution. If your handy with wiring building your own is a lot cheaper. I have nothing against the Fuzeblock I just think its a lot more expensive than it needs to be and it doesn't handle enough current for what we need it for.

 

[rcase13]

Doing it yourself does provide additional flexibility. However, the PC-8 and the Centech both offer more capacity than the Fuzeblock and enough capacity for just about anything I could think you might want to run on a motorcycle. What are you running that requires over 60 amps of total current on the fuse panel or more than 15 amps of continuous draw per circuit?

I was specifically referring to the Fuzeblock's 10amp limitation per circuit. A full set of Gerbing's could easily draw more than that. According to their web site it could draw more than 15amps. http://gerbing.com/Info/FAQ.php#Q10. Also a nice set of air horns would draw a lot more than 10 amps... I mean you have to have air horns right? LOL high on my farkle wish list!

But for heated clothing and air horns you can easily just wire it straight to the battery but that kind of defeats the purpose of the Fuzeblock (IMHO). That is the only thing I can think of that would draw that much current. My power socket came with a 15 amp fuse so I certainly would not want to wire it up to a 10 amp fuse. It would work fine but why limit my choices of accessories to plug in? I might want to run my AC converter or an air pump to add air to my tires... Ok so maybe I'm not the average Fuzeblock customer...

Again I have no issues with the Fuzeblock or any of the other units available. It only takes a little more knowledge to wire up a relay and we have a lot of people here that are more than willing to help those that want to save $80. Heck I'd be more than willing to wire it up and send it out for free.

 

[Rmcapozzi]

I agree, the 10amp/circuit limit on the Fuzeblock is why I don't run one. I too wanted to run heated gear off the fuse panel. I wanted minimal battery attachments. The PC-8 from Eastern Beaver and the AP1 and AP2 from Centech have a 60amp total capacity and a 20amp (15amp continuous) limit per circuit. Both more than capable of running a full set of Gerbing's.

I run the Centech AP1 on my Wing with individual circuits independently triggered by dedicated relays. I run 2 full sets of Gerbing's off that fuse panel along with extra lights and other "essentials" including an air compressor to pump up tires. The only reason I didn't go with the PC-8 is due to switched unswitched configuration that it forces you into. I didn't want to eat up 30 of the 40amps of switched capacity on the heated gear alone. The Centech AP1 let me run the fuse panel 100% unswitched for maximum configuration freedom.

I went with the PC-8 on the NT since the 20/40 amp split between switched and unswitched wasn't limiting since only 1 full set of Gerbing's needed to be run at a time. I prefer the ATM fuses on the PC-8 and think its build quality is better than the Centech AP1.

I'm almost finished with the wiring of the NT. It's been quite the project.

I was specifically referring to the Fuzeblock's 10amp limitation per circuit. A full set of Gerbing's could easily draw more than that. According to their web site it could draw more than 15amps. http://gerbing.com/Info/FAQ.php#Q10. Also a nice set of air horns would draw a lot more than 10 amps... I mean you have to have air horns right? LOL high on my farkle wish list!

But for heated clothing and air horns you can easily just wire it straight to the battery but that kind of defeats the purpose of the Fuzeblock (IMHO). That is the only thing I can think of that would draw that much current. My power socket came with a 15 amp fuse so I certainly would not want to wire it up to a 10 amp fuse. It would work fine but why limit my choices of accessories to plug in? I might want to run my AC converter or an air pump to add air to my tires... Ok so maybe I'm not the average Fuzeblock customer...

Again I have no issues with the Fuzeblock or any of the other units available. It only takes a little more knowledge to wire up a relay and we have a lot of people here that are more than willing to help those that want to save $80. Heck I'd be more than willing to wire it up and send it out for free.

 

[KathyL]

Fuzeblock is not big enough to handle a full set of gear at 15amps.

I have read on a few forums where people suggest splitting the load for 15A over two wires using 7.5A fuses - is there any problem with this approach if everything is connected properly?

 

[elizilla]

I have read on a few forums where people suggest splitting the load for 15A over two wires using 7.5A fuses - is there any problem with this approach if everything is connected properly?

But then you run out of circuits. (At least, if you're me you do.)

I ran my NT's heated grips and my jacket, on one circuit using a dual controller, through the Fuzeblock with a 10 amp fuse, and never blew the fuse or melted any wiring. The Powerlet jacket is 105 watts, and I think the grips are 35 watts, divide by 12 and it's just barely over 10 amps with both on full power. I did turn them both up all the way occasionally, and never blew the 10A fuse. I took the Fuzeblock out of the NT when I took out the rest of the farkles. That permanent mount heat troller is still on the NT but it isn't running through a Fuzeblock anymore, so no worries.

On the Super10 the heated grips are on a separate circuit, different from the jacket. But I am running the same jacket, and now I'm plugging the gloves into the plugs at the ends of the arms, so they run off the same circuit. They are 14 watts, for a total of 119, which just barely squeaks in under the 10A limit. I haven't turned them all the way up yet; it hasn't been that cold. But yeah, I suppose that rather than pushing maximum load, I ought to take the jacket off the Fuzeblock, and free up a circuit for something with lower draw. Maybe at some point I will.

YMMV.

 

[Rmcapozzi]

Do you mean that you take a single wire and then split it just before the panel and feed it to 2 lugs? That wouldn't work. You'd just have 15amp power going to 2 lugs.

The correct way to do that would be to completely separate the devices so that no one circuit can draw more than the maximum specified draw (perhaps this is what you were meant?). That works okay if you have multiple devices on a single circuit and want to need to reduce the continuous draw. You just move the devices to multiple circuits to reduce the draw on any one circuit. But if you have a single item that draws 15amps, you are stuck. Now for heated gear you could divide the suit up since it is made of several connected "devices" but that would mean that you would have to have two plugs per passenger for heated gear and then run two separate controllers per passenger. That wasn't an acceptable option for me when there are products on the market that will handle 15amp circuits.

It is better to buy a product that can handle what you need rather than trying to do a work around for it. If you plan ahead and see that you'll need 15 amp circuits (a full heated suit is about the only single accessory I can think of that requires that much power), then buy a panel that can handle it (Eastern Beaver's PC-8 or the Centech AP1 or AP2).

 

[rcase13]

It really should not hurt anything to do it. But I agree with above you should purchase the proper tool for the job.