ARB in Bed - wiring

[Mjolnir]

Hey all,

Finally getting back to working on some final mods. One is mounting my dual ARB inside my bed using an 813 Fabrication mount and box.

My question here is: who has mounted theirs in the bed, and how did you get power to it? I'm trying to avoid purchasing extra wire to run the stock harness to the battery but I'm unsure if this is feasible. If I need to I will do this. However I would also like to avoid drilling a hole in my bed to run said wires to the battery.

Anyone who has suggestions I would love to hear!

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[James H]

Not an ARB, but I mounted mine in the bed. No need to drill any holes, just put a hole through one of the rubber grommets at the front of the bed.
To simplify my accessories, I used a bus bar near the battery. From there, you can take power to the ARB, a winch, lights, GMRS, etc. I prefer to add an inline fuse for each right after the bus bar. The aluminum scrap I used for the mount looks a bit jenky, but it works.

 

[Rockabillyroy]

No way it will reach the battery. You have to either make your own harness, which is very essy. You can buy a pair of delphi metri pack 5 pin connectors.
Or you need to buy a premade extension harness. Which means getting one of the correct length. Or two and doubling them up.
Unless you have a battery in the bed. Then disregard what I've said.

 

[ChrisNLA]

Its really ideal to get your fridge power direct from the battery, 10G wire recommended because of the amp draw but to help minimize voltage drop. The ARB harness that came with the outlet was long enough for me to install the outlet near the tailgate and run the wires to the battery. I just drilled a hole through the truck bed cause well it's a truck bed and its not a big deal to me.

But at minimum, I recommend a decent sized wire direct to the battery being used to power the fridge.

 

[Bioacid42]

I had Car Toys run a pair of 2 G wire from the battery to the back. I have the same setup with the 813 Fab box.

 

[Pickle_Bill]

I used 6GA wire from battery to the bed. I used the existing hole at the rear tie down mount. I also removed the ARB connectors and replaced with Anderson connectors. (personal choice).

 

[813 Fabrication & Design]

I had Car Toys run a pair of 2 G wire from the battery to the back. I have the same setup with the 813 Fab box.

This is what I did as well when I had mine in the bed. You can also run a shorter ground vs going all the way to the battery. There is a good grounding point on the frame just above the spare tire. For the wires, I ran them through the hole behind the tie down loop which puts them right by the enclosure. I can't remember if you have the medium or the large enclosure. If you have the large, you can set up a +/- busbar inside. Run + from the battery to the busbar and - from the frame by the spare. There is also the option to buy an extension harness, but they are a bit expensive.

 

[Gladiatorguy]

I ran my wires (fused positive) from the battery down behind the rt frt fender liner in flex wire wrap where it was exposed. Then into a solid plastic conduit tucked above the rock-rail brackets. Then up over inside the ft rear fender liner, again protected where it is exposed. From there, to the back right corner of the bed and through the hole near the tie-down. The plastic conduit is flexible enough to guide above the rock rail brackets. Tha most difficult part was fishing the wires over the rear fender liner. On my previous JT, I fished the wires through the rt frame rail, but that was a real chore. Why I went to conduit. If you have an aux switch bank, you could tie into the 40a circuit instead of directly to the battery, However, this will only have power when the ignition is on.

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