Lil help with dome tappin

[orionlion82]

Originally Posted by ScreamingYellowZX3

I have done some electrical stuff. I have read over the thread I understand how to wire it and all, but I unsure about what kind of LEDs to use, or what kind of resistor to use( I have never really done anything with LEDs.) What is the MAX amount of amps I can safely do and not fry the GEM?? Thanks orion

I would shoot for about 10W on the GEM/fader circuit - but i have to confess i am a watt or two over that.

that all depends on how you do the LED circuit.
i did mine pretty wastefully - over half my load (i recon offhand) is resistors . all resistors do is take up slack in a circuit and make heat with your power...

i used groups of 3... 5mm LED's in paralell with a 150 OHM resistor.
there IS a better way. i would not do it this way if i had to do it again. i would be alot less sloppy and alot less wasteful calculating the resistors.

there are LED calculators everywhere on the internet you can play with to help design your circuit.

allso, though... remember LED's LOVE to be undervolted - so that frees up some options too...

i guess this came out a little disjointed but its the general idea.

[orionlion82]

Originally Posted by goldse

WOW.... 3 Pages and NO Answer ???

Ok, Just to let you know you don't have to use a Relay for powering up your cathodes. Each cathode transformer draws about 0.7 amps of power at 12 volts.
So unless your running 8-9 transformers a relay is OVERKILL.

You can run 1 wire (The switched Ground wire from the dome light) to the ground of the transformer directly, Then use a Constant Hot from the fuse block under the dash. That's how I did mine when I had my focus, then I wanted the Ability to leave them on all the time so I put switches in later.

Hope this helps !

Troy.

id like to see how this isnt false, but im not having any luck...

there is no switched ground wire in the dome light circuits. period.

there is a constant hot, a constant negative (switched AT the light) and a fader negative.

[orionlion82]

Originally Posted by spots25

to put in LEDs, you can either use a resistor, or a voltage regulator. My first dome light version burnt out, so I used a voltage regulator for V2. Also, 24 superflux led's are really bright.

http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...a/IMG_2798.jpg
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1...a/IMG_2796.jpg

those look to be 24 5mm LED's calling them superflux is a bit of a stretch. just good bright white ones. superfluxes - i dont think came out in 5mm packages.

i would be surprised if heat werent an issue now...

just as a reminder, you cant have 24 in the dome, 6 in each maplight and 15 around the rest of the car and ballpark 10 watts...

[goldse]

Originally Posted by orionlion82

id like to see how this isnt false, but im not having any luck...

there is no switched ground wire in the dome light circuits. period.

there is a constant hot, a constant negative (switched AT the light) and a fader negative.

Mkay.....

Here, Let me explain.....

the ground is Removed from the light and it shuts off the light, No ground, No completed circuit, the ground is the trigger on most vehicles today, Chrysler is VERY famous for using this system as well as Ford.

The ground is Switched on the Ford Focus.

DIRECTLY FROM the 12 Volt dot com for the focus (05 to be specific but all foci are the same as far as negative triggers.)
http://www.the12volt.com/installbay/....asp?TID=86993

If you look at the door triggers and the dome light they are both NEGATIVELY Triggered........

Hope you find this info useful !

Troy.

[orionlion82]

Originally Posted by goldse

Mkay.....

Here, Let me explain.....

the ground is Removed from the light and it shuts off the light, No ground, No completed circuit, the ground is the trigger on most vehicles today, Chrysler is VERY famous for using this system as well as Ford.

The ground is Switched on the Ford Focus.

DIRECTLY FROM the 12 Volt dot com for the focus (05 to be specific but all foci are the same as far as negative triggers.)
http://www.the12volt.com/installbay/....asp?TID=86993

If you look at the door triggers and the dome light they are both NEGATIVELY Triggered........

Hope you find this info useful !

Troy.

youre still stretching it. there is a multiple page history here that you arent looking at fully.

if you want to play that everything is switched.
everything gets cut off with the 45-90 minuete battery saver.
BUT

tapping the dome power has NOTHING to do with the door trigger.
totally seperate circuits if im not mistaken...

the door trigger/locking-sys acts as a switch on a soleniod/relay with two outputs.
can you tap it for CCFL? sure to a point...

the soleniod/relay is IN OUR CASE the GEM (whatever you want to call it)

trigger it with the door trigger/locking sys - and it wakes up from the battery saver and gives NEGATIVE, HOT AND fader right to the dome CIRCUIT.

again the hot, constant and fader are NO PART of the door trigger circuit. its on the other side of the wall, the "gem" as i understand it to be.

thats great for the CCFL guys, but LED's are a different beast - please understand. especially with the fader.
please look more closely bud.

[goldse]

Originally Posted by sleestak

I am in the process of installing cathodes up under the dash. I am hooking them up with a relay, so they act as the dome lights do...unlock car, open door, turn on dome and cathodes go on.

Everything is wired up similar to this diagram Foci_Fosho did in a post by Jabber (link 2 post):




My problem is I cant find the right spot to tap on the dome light to trip the relay. Anyone pull this one off already? I tried measuring with a multimeter and only ended up a lil confused, lol.



sorry for the crappy phone pic...

#1/#2 - Never has power on meter, lights on or off
#3 - Always shows power, lights on or off
#4 & #5 - I thought these looked promising, but no dice.


I am about out of ideas here....anyone pull this off? [???]

I was Responding to the Thread Starter..... Your talking about LED's and they Still apply to what I said, the GEM module is used for Interior lighting and the door locks / windows. The GEM uses NEGITAVE TRIGGERING. The battery Saver Feature and the GEM module has NOTHING TO do with him hooking up some cathodes OR LEDs to the Dome light. Yes his Cathodes will shut off when the battery saver feature activates but it will do what he wants.

Open the door, Cathodes on, Close the door Cathodes fade away and turn off.

The switch thing with him turning on the cathodes with the dome light switch is different.... He would have to tap into the wiring directly from the dome light and get Power AND ground from it. Right before the bulb on the Dome light because he wants the switch on the dome light to control the cathodes as well.

I've done this many times, it works EVERY time with NO problems.

Why did this thread get off topic anyway ??

Irrigardless the way he wants to hook them up still works as a Switched power supply for whatever you want to hook up to it (LOW AMP DRAW ONLY) Be it Cathodes or LEDs.

Let's not complicate somthing this Easy, just tap into the Dome light - POWER AND GROUND and run it to the Source that way it does what he wants.

[spots25]

Originally Posted by orionlion82

those look to be 24 5mm LED's calling them superflux is a bit of a stretch. just good bright white ones. superfluxes - i dont think came out in 5mm packages.

I dunno, i typed superflux in ebay, and this is what I got. I thought superflux was more of the packaging, these are square.

I don't think heat is going to be an issue. Maybe if I intended to leave the dome light on for hours at a time, but we're looking at 30 seconds max

[screwdiver]

Ebay superflux isn't alway superflux. The real ones are made by philips.

[rbrommel]

shoot a pm to MJasinski, he did this in his car and mine. ask him.

[spots25]

Originally Posted by screwdiver

Ebay superflux isn't alway superflux. The real ones are made by philips.

well right, these are obviously generic, but the technology and operation behind them are close enough for me

[orionlion82]

Placeholder for video! (i promised pictures, but...)
editing!