Rock Lights tied to bed lights and reverse

[Rudyrum]

I might be missing it, I've read the thread three times still trying to understand. Did you make a " gang box" that it all ties into or did you just run a main line from battery. Or did you just pull all your power from the reverse , bed lights. I plan on doing this but just with the bed lights. I was going to add a master on off inside cab. For some reason I thought you would need to tie it all together in something like this with main line from battery.

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[FL Handle Guy]

I might be missing it, I've read the thread three times still trying to understand. Did you make a " gang box" that it all ties into or did you just run a main line from battery. Or did you just pull all your power from the reverse , bed lights. I plan on doing this but just with the bed lights. I was going to add a master on off inside cab. For some reason I thought you would need to tie it all together in something like this with main line from battery.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GBST5N...9Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I did not use a fuse block. I just tied into the existing wiring. Being that the draw of leds is so little and I had no intention of using the ground lights for extended periods of time I just spliced into the factory harness and soldered the connections and installed resistors to prevent the current from flowing back into other circuits.

You could use the bed lights to trigger a relay and run a dedicated circuit but with only a few lights I did not feel it was necessary.

 

[Rudyrum]

That’s what I thought thanks for confirming.

 

[bcunning82]

Would the only reason to connect this to the Aux switch be so you can turn the rock lights on without the bed light?

 

[FL Handle Guy]

Would the only reason to connect this to the Aux switch be so you can turn the rock lights on without the bed light?

Correct.

 

[bcunning82]

Thanks for the quick response. If I only wanted to tie rock lights into the bed light power and not the reverse light or Aux switch, There would be no reason for a diod or relay, is that correct as well?
Since the bed light come on when the doors are locked/unlocked, doors opened or with the dash button the rock lights would come on in all of these cases as well. Sorry for the questions, just want to make sure I have my head around this.

Thanks!

 

[FL Handle Guy]

Thanks for the quick response. If I only wanted to tie rock lights into the bed light power and not the reverse light or Aux switch, There would be no reason for a diod or relay, is that correct as well?
Since the bed light come on when the doors are locked/unlocked, doors opened or with the dash button the rock lights would come on in all of these cases as well. Sorry for the questions, just want to make sure I have my head around this.

Thanks!

Correct and correct. Splicing into either bed light will do what you want. That’s how mine works.

 

[takeitsleazy]

I think I might like the cool factor of tapping into the bed lights, but I’m really considering just getting this KC kit and wiring it all directly to Aux 1.

Your write up has inspired me, but I’m not quite on that level lol. Good work

 

[WillysJeepGladiator]

Hi! Thanks for the write-up. I’m wiring rock lights to my bed light right now. Is there a good reason I can’t just ground the led’s using the black wire, the wire beside the white and tan power wire?
Thanks!
-William

The simple project of wiring a set of rock lights to an aux switch turned into a project that was far more involved, but doesn't every jeep project? The project took me about 7 hours, that includes watching letter kenny while making the led harnesses.

I wanted to install a set of rock lights but decided I wanted them tucked up out of the way and mounted to the body but didn't want to drill holes. So I decided to mount my rock lights to magnets and then I could figure out where I wanted to mount them without turning the body of the jeep into swiss cheese (rust). So the first thing I did was come up with a set of goals and did some research to see what I need and how I would wire them up.

I have never been a fan of the angry eye lights, frowny face grill, crazy colored neon looking under car lights. I just like simple, clean and for it to look like it came that way from factory.


Goals

-Rock lights so I could see beside the jeep at night without having to roll down the windows (tinted windows prevented me from seeing the white lines while backing up)

-Turn on when unlocking the jeep

-No holes (magnets?)

-Automatically turns on with bed lights (I can hit the bed light switch to turn them on)

-Automatically turns on when put in reverse

-Could be wired to aux switch later if desired

-Not interfere with can-bus or back feed through system



Purchase list (some things I already had, but I'm putting them here anyway)

- 12 @ 3/4" threaded magnets (2 per light) and stainless screws that matched the thread
https://www.kjmagnetics.com/proddetail.asp?prod=MMS-D-C

- 6 @ 1,200 Lumen Rock lights (these were potted with epoxy so they shouldn't leak...)
https://www.etrailer.com/Lights/Buyers_Products/3371492139.html

- 6 @ threaded waterproof 2 wire connectors
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LCV97AY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- roll of duplex jacketed wire
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MDEV9C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- waterproof solder butt connectors
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KBXL17K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- 2 @ 15 amp diodes
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079KK5KXN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- roll of cable sleeve (I bought 1/4", if I had to do it again I would have bought 3/8" or 1/2")
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074GM1PK1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- fabric wiring harness tape
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I2MLN2Q/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Misc connectors, zip ties, liquid electrical tape, heat gun, crimpers, wire cutters, wire strippers, socket set for ground bolt, beer


First thing I did was make a wiring harness for each led light and wired them to one of the 2-wire threaded connectors. I chose this incase I damaged a light or it burnt out I could replace it without cutting into the main harness again. I connected the side with the nut to the light and the threaded portion to the harness I ran through the frame. I covered all wires where they went through the frame with the cable sleeve and taped or heat shrunk the ends. The cable sleeve is surprisingly tough, It's kind of like a Chinese finger trap. I figured I could wrap them again with fabric tape if it becomes necessary.

I ran the duplex wire through the frame in short sections to where I wanted to mount each light. That saved me a lot of headache with trying to run the wires all the way through. I mounted a light under each door and had the rear one mount to the outside of the frame where bumper attaches. I could have gotten away with one light at the B-post and one in the rear but more is better... Right? For the rear I wanted them to mount in the same place on each side and the muffler blocked all the good options on the driver side so I had to compromise.

After wiring all the lights inline towards the rear of the truck I left about 4 feet of wire hanging out for my final connections.

There is a harness that goes from above the rear wheel well on the passenger side to the bed light harness. I removed the harness by sliding the grey tabs back and removing the connectors and used a door panel removal tool to pop the plastic frame connectors out. This allowed me to splice into the harness on a workbench instead of on the jeep. There are three connectors you will have to disconnect to remove the harness.

There is a white and tan (beige) wire that goes to the connector closest to the bed light (the smaller 2 wire connector in the photo above). I tested every splice with a positap before making any cuts. I spliced a single 14gauge wire into the harness to power the lights when the bed lights turn on and soldered in a diode to prevent the power from the backup lights back-feeding into the bed lights or the other way around. I double waterproofed every connection with heat shrink, covered the wires with cable sleeve or fabric tape and secured to existing wires under the bed running along the rear bumper. I did not want any of the wires to get damaged by rubbing, hanging low or uv.

For the reverse light power I tied into the reverse wire for the trailer hitch plug. I disconnected the 7 pin from under the truck and splice a wire into the middle wire of the 7 pin plug. That is the reverse wire. Once again, I wired in a diode to prevent any back-feeding and sleeved the wire.

For all the positive (hot) wires I used a single red wire since I would be grounding to the frame.

If you wish to wire this into one of the aux wires you could run a single hot wire from the engine bay to the first led on the passenger side with minimal effort.

You will need to find a suitable grounding location, I used one of the bolts used for the heat shield that goes around the spare tire on the driver side. It was meant to be temporary but will most likely be a permanently temporary solution. If I have any issues with it I will redo it at a later time.

Now you will have 2 power (hot) wires (one from the bed lights, one from the reverse trailer lights), 1 ground wire and 2 duplex wires running to the leds (1 positive/1 negative each). I soldered all the positive wires together and all the negative wires together at the back of the jeep next to the 7pin harness (under the bed). I made sure that any heat shrink or cable sleeve I was going to need was already on the wires before I connected them.

After connecting everything, and making sure it works dress the wires and use zip ties to connect them to the license plate light wiring harness to clean everything up and keep them out of the way.

NOTE: When exposing the wires in the factory harness you must cut away the fabric tape from the factory. I took my time with a fresh razor blade in an easy to handle razor knife and made sure not to damage the insulation of any other wires.

I will post more pictures this weekend, I did not do a great job of documenting the process.

 

[FL Handle Guy]

Hi! Thanks for the write-up. I’m wiring rock lights to my bed light right now. Is there a good reason I can’t just ground the led’s using the black wire, the wire beside the white and tan power wire?
Thanks!
-William

You can. I just chose to ground to the frame because that is how I was always taught. Just like jumping a vehicle

 

[takeitsleazy]

I ended up getting the KC 6 light kit- connected to aux, but not the bed lights/reverse. I have an ARE cap coming with leds, which will be plenty of light... but still, this was a super slick mod. I’ll probably return to this thread several times the next couple years until I finally cave in and try it lol

 

[FL Handle Guy]

I ended up getting the KC 6 light kit- connected to aux, but not the bed lights/reverse. I have an ARE cap coming with leds, which will be plenty of light... but still, this was a super slick mod. I’ll probably return to this thread several times the next couple years until I finally cave in and try it lol

The nice thing is it's easy to add a wire and a diode any time

 

[Strider62]

I installed the KC rock light kit a while ago, using the KC install instructions which has each of the six lights wired individually to a bus bar under the hood, and I connected that to an aux switch. I attached the lights to the frame using magnets. Now I’d like to have the four side lights (one under each door) come on when a door is opened or when I use the remote start.

I’m guessing I could tap into the bed lights as you have done, but since each rock light is wired separately to the bus bar I’d have to run a separate hot wire with a diode from the bed lights to each of the four lights , right? (Seems obvious, but I’m a total newbie to wiring...)

I’m also guessing that since the bus bar is grounded I don’t need any additional ground when I run those hot wires from the bed lights, right?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Reebtnawi]

I installed the KC rock light kit a while ago, using the KC install instructions which has each of the six lights wired individually to a bus bar under the hood, and I connected that to an aux switch. I attached the lights to the frame using magnets. Now I’d like to have the four side lights (one under each door) come on when a door is opened or when I use the remote start.

I’m guessing I could tap into the bed lights as you have done, but since each rock light is wired separately to the bus bar I’d have to run a separate hot wire with a diode from the bed lights to each of the four lights , right? (Seems obvious, but I’m a total newbie to wiring...)

I’m also guessing that since the bus bar is grounded I don’t need any additional ground when I run those hot wires from the bed lights, right?

Thanks for your help!

You don't have to go to each of the four lights. You can connect a single wire to where the positive wire from each light terminates - at the connection where the aux switch is. If they are wired in parallel, you could actually just connect to the nearest positive wire. But I prefer to have a common junction.

 

[hawkijon]

The simple project of wiring a set of rock lights to an aux switch turned into a project that was far more involved, but doesn't every jeep project? The project took me about 7 hours, that includes watching letter kenny while making the led harnesses.

I wanted to install a set of rock lights but decided I wanted them tucked up out of the way and mounted to the body but didn't want to drill holes. So I decided to mount my rock lights to magnets and then I could figure out where I wanted to mount them without turning the body of the jeep into swiss cheese (rust). So the first thing I did was come up with a set of goals and did some research to see what I need and how I would wire them up.

I have never been a fan of the angry eye lights, frowny face grill, crazy colored neon looking under car lights. I just like simple, clean and for it to look like it came that way from factory.


Goals

-Rock lights so I could see beside the jeep at night without having to roll down the windows (tinted windows prevented me from seeing the white lines while backing up)

-Turn on when unlocking the jeep

-No holes (magnets?)

-Automatically turns on with bed lights (I can hit the bed light switch to turn them on)

-Automatically turns on when put in reverse

-Could be wired to aux switch later if desired

-Not interfere with can-bus or back feed through system



Purchase list (some things I already had, but I'm putting them here anyway)

- 12 @ 3/4" threaded magnets (2 per light) and stainless screws that matched the thread
https://www.kjmagnetics.com/proddetail.asp?prod=MMS-D-C

- 6 @ 1,200 Lumen Rock lights (these were potted with epoxy so they shouldn't leak...)
https://www.etrailer.com/Lights/Buyers_Products/3371492139.html

- 6 @ threaded waterproof 2 wire connectors
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01LCV97AY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- roll of duplex jacketed wire
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MDEV9C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- waterproof solder butt connectors
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KBXL17K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- 2 @ 15 amp diodes
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079KK5KXN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- roll of cable sleeve (I bought 1/4", if I had to do it again I would have bought 3/8" or 1/2")
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074GM1PK1/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

- fabric wiring harness tape
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01I2MLN2Q/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Misc connectors, zip ties, liquid electrical tape, heat gun, crimpers, wire cutters, wire strippers, socket set for ground bolt, beer


First thing I did was make a wiring harness for each led light and wired them to one of the 2-wire threaded connectors. I chose this incase I damaged a light or it burnt out I could replace it without cutting into the main harness again. I connected the side with the nut to the light and the threaded portion to the harness I ran through the frame. I covered all wires where they went through the frame with the cable sleeve and taped or heat shrunk the ends. The cable sleeve is surprisingly tough, It's kind of like a Chinese finger trap. I figured I could wrap them again with fabric tape if it becomes necessary.

I ran the duplex wire through the frame in short sections to where I wanted to mount each light. That saved me a lot of headache with trying to run the wires all the way through. I mounted a light under each door and had the rear one mount to the outside of the frame where bumper attaches. I could have gotten away with one light at the B-post and one in the rear but more is better... Right? For the rear I wanted them to mount in the same place on each side and the muffler blocked all the good options on the driver side so I had to compromise.

After wiring all the lights inline towards the rear of the truck I left about 4 feet of wire hanging out for my final connections.

There is a harness that goes from above the rear wheel well on the passenger side to the bed light harness. I removed the harness by sliding the grey tabs back and removing the connectors and used a door panel removal tool to pop the plastic frame connectors out. This allowed me to splice into the harness on a workbench instead of on the jeep. There are three connectors you will have to disconnect to remove the harness.

There is a white and tan (beige) wire that goes to the connector closest to the bed light (the smaller 2 wire connector in the photo above). I tested every splice with a positap before making any cuts. I spliced a single 14gauge wire into the harness to power the lights when the bed lights turn on and soldered in a diode to prevent the power from the backup lights back-feeding into the bed lights or the other way around. I double waterproofed every connection with heat shrink, covered the wires with cable sleeve or fabric tape and secured to existing wires under the bed running along the rear bumper. I did not want any of the wires to get damaged by rubbing, hanging low or uv.

For the reverse light power I tied into the reverse wire for the trailer hitch plug. I disconnected the 7 pin from under the truck and splice a wire into the middle wire of the 7 pin plug. That is the reverse wire. Once again, I wired in a diode to prevent any back-feeding and sleeved the wire.

For all the positive (hot) wires I used a single red wire since I would be grounding to the frame.

If you wish to wire this into one of the aux wires you could run a single hot wire from the engine bay to the first led on the passenger side with minimal effort.

You will need to find a suitable grounding location, I used one of the bolts used for the heat shield that goes around the spare tire on the driver side. It was meant to be temporary but will most likely be a permanently temporary solution. If I have any issues with it I will redo it at a later time.

Now you will have 2 power (hot) wires (one from the bed lights, one from the reverse trailer lights), 1 ground wire and 2 duplex wires running to the leds (1 positive/1 negative each). I soldered all the positive wires together and all the negative wires together at the back of the jeep next to the 7pin harness (under the bed). I made sure that any heat shrink or cable sleeve I was going to need was already on the wires before I connected them.

After connecting everything, and making sure it works dress the wires and use zip ties to connect them to the license plate light wiring harness to clean everything up and keep them out of the way.

NOTE: When exposing the wires in the factory harness you must cut away the fabric tape from the factory. I took my time with a fresh razor blade in an easy to handle razor knife and made sure not to damage the insulation of any other wires.

I will post more pictures this weekend, I did not do a great job of documenting the process.

Incredible write up, thanks for taking the time to do this… I had considered doing something similar but got under the hood and started looking at the fuse panel to see if I can do a wire tap to an applicable fuse that operates the bed lights.. F26 (40a green) does exterior lights, but unfortunately it is a maxi/cartridge fuse and there aren’t fuse taps for those… You mentioned a 30 amp fuse for the bed lights, just curious which one that is for reference?… Looking at the fuse box lid, I don’t see anything specific for the bed light switch on the dash (cargo or bed lights). Since I have a AUX controller box for my LUX rock lights under the hood, it would be convenient to power it from the fuse panel versus running another wire all the way to the rear just to tap into the bed lights.. I assume the dash switch and the door open/unlock switch at one point in time are open on the same circuit, but can be operated separately, which means the fuse that powers the bed light by itself will actually receive power at the time that the vehicle door is unlocked or opened… Or at least that’s what I assume. Let me know if you have any insight. Thanks

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