Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeB
<<<<<<<<<<<SNIP>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Not sure what you mean by the second statement. As I mentioned above, the headlight switch gets power from the fuse panel BAT bus.
But thanks for your comments and suggestions.  |
Mike, you mentioned that there's 30 - 35 amps going through the fuse panel. I was pointing out that any amperage passing through the headlight switch, or any other circuits would be additional to that figure. In a factory harness, the main feed wire splits with one "leg" going to the fuse panel, one going to the headlight switch.. The wire coming from the alternator also joins this wire.. All of these wires are typically 12 gauge wires from the factory.. Every single drop of current used by the electrical system has to pass through these wires at some point. If any aftermarket electrical items are added, the gauge of the wire section between the alternator and battery should be increased, no matter where the item is "married" to the original system.
The idea for the modifications is to provide sufficient wire sizing in the charging circuit to handle the higher output produced by the alternator.
Current flow through a wire is similar to water running through a hose.. The hose can very easily be too small to provide sufficient flow for the job at hand, but there won't be any problems if the hose is too large. As you mentioned, the 6 gauge wires are probably "overkill" for your application, but on the other hand, 10 gauge might not be big enough..