D&C Designs Side Marker

[cecaa850]

OK, I've got to ask. Why in the world would you put a fuse on the ground side?

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[Aberk]

OK, I've got to ask. Why in the world would you put a fuse on the ground side?

I'm glad you asked. I have been wondering the same thing.

 

[staying_tuned]

I love that these have been designed to function as actual ditch lights without having to dedicate a new bracket/lighting setup only to turn them outwards (which visually looks wonky). I've only seen 1 or 2 ditch light implementations used as actual ditch lights, most just point them straight and call them ditch lights : o ).

These are fantastic, nicely done!

 

[StingGrayJT24]

OK, I've got to ask. Why in the world would you put a fuse on the ground side?

I'm glad you asked. I have been wondering the same thing.

I wondered the same thing when I did my installation. I remember doing some initial research, putting the fuse on the negative wire protects only the equipment, while fuse in positive lead protects the equipment and the voltage source. Since I have it connected to my JL300 Voswitch, there’s already a fuse on the positive side. I assumed placing the fuse on the negative side was added insurance to protect the electronics in the side markers.

With that said, go easy on me. I’m not an electrician nor do I know if this is technically the correct answer.

 

[Aberk]

I ordered a pair earlier this week. I like the idea of using the amber as a marker and turn signal, but not sure which wire/s that would be. I'll probably use a relay to cut the amber wire power when I turn on the ditch lights so I don't have the amber bleed over.

I found the wiring diagram on the JL forums. I could use a diode to run it off the turn signal wire and another, but I'm not sure if the other wire should be the DRL or park wire. Anybody know the difference in functionality between those 2?

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/JL-Wiring-Diagrams/LAMP-DRL-LEFT-PREMIUM-connector-details.pdf

 

[Aberk]

Upon further investigation, it looks like it wont be an easy job as the parking light stays on while the turn signal flashes, so even with a diode the new amber side lights would stay on instead of blinking when the turn signal flashes.

 

[SteveInOrlando]

OK, I've got to ask. Why in the world would you put a fuse on the ground side?

This is a DC circuit. Without the ground there is nowhere for the power to flow. It truly doesn't matter if you put the fuse on the power or the ground side. By placing it on the ground side, you remove one more connection between the power source and the light.

I have seen switches put on the ground side of a circuit also.

I have known engineers that would tell you the power flow in a car is actually negative to positive.

I am just a shade tree mechanic. I can tell you it doesn't matter where you interrupt the circuit, no ground no working lights.

 

[cecaa850]

This is a DC circuit. Without the ground there is nowhere for the power to flow. It truly doesn't matter if you put the fuse on the power or the ground side. By placing it on the ground side, you remove one more connection between the power source and the light.

I have seen switches put on the ground side of a circuit also.

I have known engineers that would tell you the power flow in a car is actually negative to positive.

I am just a shade tree mechanic. I can tell you it doesn't matter where you interrupt the circuit, no ground no working lights.

Obviously but I always thought the fuse was installed to protect the battery. If you have a short to ground before the load device and nothing to protect the circuit by opening it the battery is toast.

 

[SteveInOrlando]

Obviously but I always thought the fuse was installed to protect the battery. If you have a short to ground before the load device and nothing to protect the circuit by opening it the battery is toast.

Valid, so you would place the fuze as close to the battery as possible to prevent battery meltdowns then. Would explain the location in modern cars.

 

[Aberk]

I think I realized why the fuse is spec'd for ground. There are 2 positive leads for this (turn signal and light) with a common ground. if you fuse the ground, you protect both positives with one fuse instead of fusing both positive leads.

 

[cecaa850]

I think I realized why the fuse is spec'd for ground. There are 2 positive leads for this (turn signal and light) with a common ground. if you fuse the ground, you protect both positives with one fuse instead of fusing both positive leads.

After looking at it again, I'm thinking that the other two wires are protected by factory fuses and additional fuses aren't necessary..

 

[Aberk]

After looking at it again, I'm thinking that the other two wires are protected by factory fuses and additional fuses aren't necessary..

I would think the same too.

 

[Aberk]

I've removed these cowling pieces in the past more than I thought I would, so I decided to wire some plugs in case they needed to be removed.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0160G7IH...abc_18R4ENNSMXRHERCM42SX?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[OVRLND_G8R]

Upon further investigation, it looks like it wont be an easy job as the parking light stays on while the turn signal flashes, so even with a diode the new amber side lights would stay on instead of blinking when the turn signal flashes.

was this a dead end or did you find out how to do it? There has to be a way without making it too complicated.

If/when I get them I might wire in the white lights into my reverse light switch as well. Depending how well the new Oracle back up lights do on their own.

once you get them installed let us know how you like them!

 

[Aberk]

was this a dead end or did you find out how to do it? There has to be a way without making it too complicated.

If/when I get them I might wire in the white lights into my reverse light switch as well. Depending how well the new Oracle back up lights do on their own.

once you get them installed let us know how you like them!

I am pretty sure I figured it out, but I am not sure I will move forward with the idea. I'm not sure how well some of the components I found will fair in an automotive scenario. The amber light is pretty bright and I'm not sure if it will be distracting to have it on while driving. I plan to hook the lights up like normal for now and see how bright the turn signal really is at night before trying this out.

Since we're powering the amber light from two sources, we'll need a diode so we don't back feed either of the sources. The next part is what I am not sure will hold to automotive use. I would use a timer based relay. This relay would normally power the amber light with the parking light power. The turn signal wire would be connected to and used as the trigger to cut the parking light power connection for a specified time period (likely 1s based on some of the comments I read). Each time the turn signal flashes, it would reset the timer thus keeping the parking light power disconnected from the amber light. While the parking light is disconnected by the timer relay, the turn signal is allowed to flash the amber light. When the turn signal stops flashing the timer can expire and reconnect power from the parking light to the amber light.

Additionally, I thought of another addition I'd want to make. If the amber lights are going to be on with the parking lights, then they will be on at night when I want to use the ditch lights. I'd prefer not to run both at the same time (not sure why, I guess I think it would look better or have cleaner light). So I'd use a normal automotive relay near the new lights that would disconnect the amber light power if the ditch light was enabled.

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