Great video, very resourceful ideas, clean setup and great detailed communication! Don't forget for larger items such as a descent size mini fridge, TV and or computer you can run a small 1500w (RMS) power inverter to convert your 12v DC source into a 120v AC auxillary option. You can also install a peltier device attached to a shallow heatsink inside the lining of a plastic ice chest, cut a hole slightly smaller than the size of a computer fan, mount to other side of the heat sink forcing cool air into cooler.
Brilliant! Exactly what I was looking for, for guidance getting started wiring my home office/studio to 12 volts (off a decent 12V Deep Cycle Marine battery charged from some solar and some hydro). Thanks Tim! 🙂
Perfect explanation. The drawing shows why it is so important to put the fuse so close to the positive terminal. I have seen numerous videos where they use an inline fuse to the negative AFTER the load. Very dangerous that way. Subscribed for sure on all this info for free.
@@Redlinesixtynine those lights probably only need 1/2amp. You can check the package to be safe. Fires from direct ground require the wire to get hot or burn so no amperage DC is “safe”
@@uprightfossil6673 Thanks for your reply. One more question if you don't mind. I'm in the middle of wiring up our little cabin here and it has a 120v and a 12 system. One son wants a basic 12V, the other wanted the option of bringing his generator to it and so he wanted 120v. As such, I have wired in a small panel, and a generator connector. Since the panel needs a proper ground rod, I'm wondering if I shouldn't also ground the 12v as well, just run a wire from the neg of the 12v fuse panel to the ground. I figure a car is grounded to the chassis, shouldn't this be grounded too? Wondering what your thoughts are on this. thanks!
@@Redlinesixtynine that car grounding is not the same as earth grounding for 120vac. Earth ground will save your life. “Common” ground on a car means anything you touch with a positive lead will be energized or sparks will fly. DC does not do “earth” ground. The “common” buss bar i the way to go as well as a FUSE between the positive lead and the positive buss bar. REMEMBER: DC will heat up dangerously quick. I generally put the fuse on the ONLY positive lead that feeds a buss bar. You can protect individual circuits remembering to keep the fuse as close to the positive source as possible. A quick fire starter is a nine volt battery and fine steel wool. That’s how dangerous DC is.
@@Redlinesixtynine the transformer you use should be grounded (3 prong) I use old extension cords for my DC solar projects. The very old two prong ones can only be plugged in one way for DC reference, but you MUST put a caution label on them or sparks will fly if connected to 120ac. (I know for a fact)
Hi! Good video and good info, one detail i would like to add would be that you have to calculate both (+&-) wire's when you are calculating the lenght of the wiring and which size wire to use.
Great vid! Technically electrons flow from negative to positive. I know confusing. Hundred years ago they weren't sure which way it travelled and assumed positive to negative. Fascinating and weird stuff hey
You will need a Solar Panel, Charge Controller and battery. You connect wires from the solar panel to the charge controller. Then you come out of the controller and go to a 12v Battery. Here is what I used: (SOLAR PANEL - Grape Solar MODEL:GS-Star-180W-US High Efficiency Mono-crystalline. I have this panel changing two deep cell 12 volt batteries.) (CHARGE CONTROLLER- MPPT Tracer 2210. Later on I decided to get an inverter.(INVERTER- Xantrex ProWatt SW 1000 Sine Wave Inverter.)
I snip the power cord from old vacuum cleaners for 12 VT wire and collect up the extension cords I find at least half of them work fine tossed out by tradies because they have wet paint on them or just badly tangled or scratched up if they don't work it goes to the scrappers for $$ I did it all for free because I was 14 years old and homeless but had an amazing abandoned home overlooking the water no neighbours and my own island the government purchased up the home's and left them to be reclaimed by the national park I lived off grid like this for a few years I had to acquire a truck battery from the Railway service vehicle and solar panels from the coastal ocean beacon out the front of the house car stereo and speakers were wired up water came from a garden hose and washing had to be done at laundromat no fridge just cool box but all free .
Hi Tim, Thanks for this video, it really does a great job giving anyone with some basic wiring knowledge a great start at how to go about a project like this. I'm in the middle of wiring up a bunkie here and it has a 120v and a 12 system. One son wants a basic 12V, the other wanted the option of bringing his generator to it and so he wanted 120v. As such, I have wired in a small panel, and a generator connector. Since the panel needs a proper ground rod, I'm wondering if I shouldn't also ground the 12v as well, just run a wire from the neg of the 12v fuse panel to the ground. I figure a car is grounded to the chassis, shouldn't this be grounded too? Wondering what your thoughts are on this. thanks!
Excellent video. Very easy to follow. Where would you connect an inverter if you had one? Would it be connected to the negative and positive terminals on the fuse box.
your inverter would run directly off your battery. Make sure you size the wire size to the potential amperage that your inverter will draw. And a fuse is neccessary as well.
If I understand your question ... you can not mix 12v and "regular ole ac wiring." I wired my cabin with two separate electrical systems. I can power with regular 110v house current into an electrical panel which then has circuits running to lights and recepticals just like house wiring. My 12v solar system is completely separate. The solar panel charges batteries. Then I ran a heavy wire to my 12v distribution center and from that, I ran wires to 12v lights and 12v cigarette plugs etc. Later, I decided to buy and inverter which converts the 12v from the batteries to 110v. the inverter has two outputs. I ran a wire from the inverter to my 110v panel and in this way I can now run my regular house current in the cabin. This was a learning project. If I had it to do over, I would forget running 12v wiring for 12v lights etc. I would run from the solar panel to the batteries then to the inverter then to a 110v panel box to power the cabin. Hope this answers your question.
I cant figure out which fuse is appropriate. For instance my fans will drawing about .4amp hrs. So a 1amp fuse would work but would that mean I'm over charging the circuit? Or say I use 5amp fuses, do I need to worry about sending too much electricity?
When specifying a fuse for an after-market application, the key consideration is that the fuse should be the weakest point (i.e. lowest rated component) so that it always blows before any damage occurs to other parts of the electrical circuit. However, you also do not want the fuse to keep blowing under normal operation (known as a nuisance blow), so the two elements to consider are: The current rating of the smallest cable in the circuit The current draw on the circuit under normal expected operating conditions The fuse rating should lie somewhere between these two values to allow normal operation but blow on overload. For example, if the normal expected current draw is 10A and the cable size is 25A, then a fuse rated at 15A would be appropriate.
Fuses are there to protect the downstream conductors (Your Wire) in the event of a fault. They do not care about the routine non-fault loading and should not be sized for it. (In other words, you determine your fuse size based on the size wire you are using NOT the device you are connecting up.) The proper way to select a fuse is to determine the rated continuous amperage capacity of your downstream conductors (Wire), and then select a fuse with a rating lower than that. The how much lower is up to the specific codes and industry, but picking a fuse with ~80% of the conductor rating is a good rule of thumb. Slow-blow for big inductive loads, fast-blow for anything else. If this results in a fuse that is too small to support the non-fault loads you plan to run on the circuit then this means you need heavier conductors (Wire). Just upping the fuse to support the load is asking for a fire. The wire gauge should be marked on the cord for your socket. Then a table such as this one www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm will help you to determine it's safe maximum amperage capacity. For example, if your cord is 18 awg wire then it is rated for ~16A as chassis wiring. De-rate that by 20% and you get about 12.5. The next lower standard size is 10A; so you want a 10A fuse. This will definitely protect 18ga wiring and still give plenty of head space so as to not blow in normal operation.
I can't remember so I searched online. www.amazon.com/Charger-Voltmeter-Jumper-Motorcycle-tplt/dp/B00LDSZQOI?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00LDSZQOI
Wow, a strong accent! I'm thinking Great Lakes. (block pronounced as black, ask as "eeyask". Not as strong as for most females of the Great Lakes, but still of that region. Am I correct?
I've got another question. My dad says we don't need switch relays and a busbar. Everything is going to be super low amp draw so he thinks we can direct wire from the fuse box with just a switch on the line. Would that work for low amp situations? I cant figure out why you would need switch relays and the busbar in the first place tbh. First time doing this
I am not a professional electrician so I pretty much oversized all my wire to make sure I would be safe. I ran from my battery through a fuse to the little 12v fuse panel block. Then, I ran several circuits for lights, a USB charging gizmo, a 12v port for cigarette style plug etc. I had never run 12v before and I did a lot of reading before I bought my solar panel, inverter etc. The internet is a great resource for learning.
@@TimTools99 yeah im.doing pretty much the same thing. I think it's a fairly safe set up if most of your stuff uses less than 5amps. I think the 12v cigarette charger and the two usb chargers all together might push around 15 amps but in a tiny house or in a boondock situation most of the load will be so insignificant that it's safe with fuses and oversized wire and basic 10amp switches
Great video, very resourceful ideas, clean setup and great detailed communication! Don't forget for larger items such as a descent size mini fridge, TV and or computer you can run a small 1500w (RMS) power inverter to convert your 12v DC source into a 120v AC auxillary option. You can also install a peltier device attached to a shallow heatsink inside the lining of a plastic ice chest, cut a hole slightly smaller than the size of a computer fan, mount to other side of the heat sink forcing cool air into cooler.
Brilliant! Exactly what I was looking for, for guidance getting started wiring my home office/studio to 12 volts (off a decent 12V Deep Cycle Marine battery charged from some solar and some hydro). Thanks Tim! 🙂
Thanks Tim for this video, I'm wiring up a small fiberglass camper for the first time. This video is sending me in the right direction. :)
I really liked watching this video. It explained things clearly and gives me more confidence to do my own projects in the future. Thanks!
That's great. Glad it was useful
Nice simple explanation. 12V wiring is fairly simple, just make sure your wire size is appropriate as this video explains.
Perfect explanation. The drawing shows why it is so important to put the fuse so close to the positive terminal. I have seen numerous videos where they use an inline fuse to the negative AFTER the load. Very dangerous that way. Subscribed for sure on all this info for free.
What size fuse would I use just to run a few 12V lights? thanks.
@@Redlinesixtynine those lights probably only need 1/2amp. You can check the package to be safe. Fires from direct ground require the wire to get hot or burn so no amperage DC is “safe”
@@uprightfossil6673 Thanks for your reply. One more question if you don't mind. I'm in the middle of wiring up our little cabin here and it has a 120v and a 12 system. One son wants a basic 12V, the other wanted the option of bringing his generator to it and so he wanted 120v. As such, I have wired in a small panel, and a generator connector. Since the panel needs a proper ground rod, I'm wondering if I shouldn't also ground the 12v as well, just run a wire from the neg of the 12v fuse panel to the ground. I figure a car is grounded to the chassis, shouldn't this be grounded too? Wondering what your thoughts are on this. thanks!
@@Redlinesixtynine that car grounding is not the same as earth grounding for 120vac. Earth ground will save your life. “Common” ground on a car means anything you touch with a positive lead will be energized or sparks will fly. DC does not do “earth” ground. The “common” buss bar i the way to go as well as a FUSE between the positive lead and the positive buss bar. REMEMBER: DC will heat up dangerously quick. I generally put the fuse on the ONLY positive lead that feeds a buss bar. You can protect individual circuits remembering to keep the fuse as close to the positive source as possible.
A quick fire starter is a nine volt battery and fine steel wool. That’s how dangerous DC is.
@@Redlinesixtynine the transformer you use should be grounded (3 prong) I use old extension cords for my DC solar projects. The very old two prong ones can only be plugged in one way for DC reference, but you MUST put a caution label on them or sparks will fly if connected to 120ac. (I know for a fact)
Excellent video. Cool house. Your ingenuity is inspiring.
Thanks. Glad you like my crazy ideas.
In very simple way you have explained 12v wiring. Thanks
You are welcome
This is awesome!
I really like the cake pan light.
MacGyver would approve.
Injust want you to know, this is exactly the video I was looking for!
Come try the Rizzle app
Great video. Love the cake pan. I have one I was going to give away after I went tiny. I may just do the same thing. Pretty cool.
Hi!
Good video and good info, one detail i would like to add would be that you have to calculate both (+&-) wire's when you are calculating the lenght of the wiring and which size wire to use.
Yes, that is right. I should have mentioned that.
Simple but very instructional and helpful. Thank you.
Thank you for this! I currently have an emergency 220v power set up but I'm looking for this simpler
This is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for making this video!
That cake pan light fixture is awesome!
Thanks ... Salvation Army store is one of my favorite places to get good stuff for these kind of projects (:
You did a great and excellent job explaining how to wire . Thank you
You're an amazing man! Thanks for sharing your project.
You are very welcome .... and thanks for the comment
thank you for this video, just what i needed for guidance on my tiny 12v system
Great video, very clear instructions and diagrams. thank you
That LED light fixture ... wow ... bright idea. Thumbs up!
Thanks! That thing is working great. It's really all the light I need in the cabin
Thank you so much, this is just what I wanted to do in my cabin !
Glad you found it helpful.
Good luck with your cabin!
i loved this. Thanks for the no frills information!
Thanks for sharing. This is a great idea for the camping light on a car battery.
Glad you liked it. Thanks for watching.
I also ran a ground wire from the negative post on the battery to a ground rod which is pounded into the earth next to the cabin.
I think I will do that as well
No need to do that, but it doesn't hurt either. I would only ground a 120 v system, even then only if connecting to shore power.
This video was a life saver! Thanks!
Amazon: Blue Sea Systems 5025 Blade Fuse Block. 6 circuits with negative bus and cover
Raised panel
Awesome! that's probably the most helpful youtube video i've seen
Thanks for sharing! That was really helpful!
Great vid! Technically electrons flow from negative to positive. I know confusing. Hundred years ago they weren't sure which way it travelled and assumed positive to negative. Fascinating and weird stuff hey
Yes. Very weird.
True, but "hole current/electrones" flow from positive to negative
Great video thank you for explaing that so concisely
Thank you for taking the time!
Thanks for the video. My question is what size fuse did you use for each item? Because all the fuses are different colors.
Great video for a simple system. Thanks
I would include ammeters too. There's nothing like knowing what's going on everywhere.
Good move using 14 gauge wire. If you have to switch to AC for some reason you don’t have to pull new wire for 15 amp circuits.
Perfect great job ,building a cabin off grid.Thank you
Just what I needed thanks
thanks for sharing, good job, So how are you charging the battery? If solar how are doing that?
Id like to try a similar project
You will need a Solar Panel, Charge Controller and battery. You connect wires from the solar panel to the charge controller. Then you come out of the controller and go to a 12v Battery. Here is what I used: (SOLAR PANEL - Grape Solar MODEL:GS-Star-180W-US High Efficiency Mono-crystalline. I have this panel changing two deep cell 12 volt batteries.) (CHARGE CONTROLLER- MPPT Tracer 2210. Later on I decided to get an inverter.(INVERTER- Xantrex ProWatt SW 1000 Sine Wave Inverter.)
I snip the power cord from old vacuum cleaners for 12 VT wire and collect up the extension cords I find at least half of them work fine tossed out by tradies because they have wet paint on them or just badly tangled or scratched up if they don't work it goes to the scrappers for $$ I did it all for free because I was 14 years old and homeless but had an amazing abandoned home overlooking the water no neighbours and my own island the government purchased up the home's and left them to be reclaimed by the national park I lived off grid like this for a few years I had to acquire a truck battery from the Railway service vehicle and solar panels from the coastal ocean beacon out the front of the house car stereo and speakers were wired up water came from a garden hose and washing had to be done at laundromat no fridge just cool box but all free .
Great video sir!
Hi Tim, Thanks for this video, it really does a great job giving anyone with some basic wiring knowledge a great start at how to go about a project like this. I'm in the middle of wiring up a bunkie here and it has a 120v and a 12 system. One son wants a basic 12V, the other wanted the option of bringing his generator to it and so he wanted 120v. As such, I have wired in a small panel, and a generator connector. Since the panel needs a proper ground rod, I'm wondering if I shouldn't also ground the 12v as well, just run a wire from the neg of the 12v fuse panel to the ground. I figure a car is grounded to the chassis, shouldn't this be grounded too? Wondering what your thoughts are on this. thanks!
Awesome video. Very helpful! Thanks
Nicely done thank you Tim.
Great job my friend.
REALLY digging that setup and the Cake pan light LOVE it, did the neighbors rat you out causing the move?
No rats in the neighborhood and it would have been too late anyway. I had it moved to my camp in about 10 minutes. lol
Excellent video. Very easy to follow. Where would you connect an inverter if you had one? Would it be connected to the negative and positive terminals on the fuse box.
your inverter would run directly off your battery. Make sure you size the wire size to the potential amperage that your inverter will draw. And a fuse is neccessary as well.
Question please. What if my tiny house is much bigger and I already ran regular ole ac wiring to a circuit box?
Can I still connect a solar system?
If I understand your question ... you can not mix 12v and "regular ole ac wiring." I wired my cabin with two separate electrical systems. I can power with regular 110v house current into an electrical panel which then has circuits running to lights and recepticals just like house wiring. My 12v solar system is completely separate. The solar panel charges batteries. Then I ran a heavy wire to my 12v distribution center and from that, I ran wires to 12v lights and 12v cigarette plugs etc. Later, I decided to buy and inverter which converts the 12v from the batteries to 110v. the inverter has two outputs. I ran a wire from the inverter to my 110v panel and in this way I can now run my regular house current in the cabin. This was a learning project. If I had it to do over, I would forget running 12v wiring for 12v lights etc. I would run from the solar panel to the batteries then to the inverter then to a 110v panel box to power the cabin. Hope this answers your question.
Thank you, good work.
I cant figure out which fuse is appropriate. For instance my fans will drawing about .4amp hrs. So a 1amp fuse would work but would that mean I'm over charging the circuit? Or say I use 5amp fuses, do I need to worry about sending too much electricity?
When specifying a fuse for an after-market application, the key consideration is that the fuse should be the weakest point (i.e. lowest rated component) so that it always blows before any damage occurs to other parts of the electrical circuit. However, you also do not want the fuse to keep blowing under normal operation (known as a nuisance blow), so the two elements to consider are:
The current rating of the smallest cable in the circuit
The current draw on the circuit under normal expected operating conditions
The fuse rating should lie somewhere between these two values to allow normal operation but blow on overload. For example, if the normal expected current draw is 10A and the cable size is 25A, then a fuse rated at 15A would be appropriate.
Fuses are there to protect the downstream conductors (Your Wire) in the event of a fault. They do not care about the routine non-fault loading and should not be sized for it. (In other words, you determine your fuse size based on the size wire you are using NOT the device you are connecting up.) The proper way to select a fuse is to determine the rated continuous amperage capacity of your downstream conductors (Wire), and then select a fuse with a rating lower than that. The how much lower is up to the specific codes and industry, but picking a fuse with ~80% of the conductor rating is a good rule of thumb. Slow-blow for big inductive loads, fast-blow for anything else.
If this results in a fuse that is too small to support the non-fault loads you plan to run on the circuit then this means you need heavier conductors (Wire). Just upping the fuse to support the load is asking for a fire.
The wire gauge should be marked on the cord for your socket. Then a table such as this one www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm will help you to determine it's safe maximum amperage capacity.
For example, if your cord is 18 awg wire then it is rated for ~16A as chassis wiring. De-rate that by 20% and you get about 12.5. The next lower standard size is 10A; so you want a 10A fuse. This will definitely protect 18ga wiring and still give plenty of head space so as to not blow in normal operation.
@@TimTools99 thanks a ton
Great video! Where did you get the voltage reader with USB ports and the cigarette lighter?
I can't remember so I searched online. www.amazon.com/Charger-Voltmeter-Jumper-Motorcycle-tplt/dp/B00LDSZQOI?SubscriptionId=AKIAILSHYYTFIVPWUY6Q&tag=duckduckgo-d-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=B00LDSZQOI
www.amazon.com/dp/B072FJRYSK/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B072FJRYSK&pd_rd_wg=ZcWfB&pd_rd_r=F3H5JZXNQVFQS4SR0BT7&pd_rd_w=hyncj
thank you. very nice video, 👍
Do you think it's possible to remove the fuse box from a junk vehicle for the wiring block, so I don't have to spend money?
where did you purchase your wiring block
no charge controller?
Yes I have one of those
@@TimTools99 Does your charge controller come right after your solar panels and before your battery? Great video. Appreciate it.
@@TheRancherAndTheWife Yes that's right
How big of solar panels did you have? I’m putting two led lights on a deep cycle battery and I’m on a tight budget
It wouldn't take much of a solar panel to charge a battery for powering two LED lights.
Great video
Very Informative; how do you charge the battery?
I have a solar panel
Nice job
loved the video!
What is the name of the combo unit?
Why my light won't turn on.. Does it need the fuse?
Great ! Thnx,, ❤
Nice!
good job
Thanks Ben. There is so much to all this stuff. I just tried to do a basic video to get people started. I learned a lot doing the 12v job.
You’re a cool cat
Ha! Thanks!
Wow, a strong accent! I'm thinking Great Lakes. (block pronounced as black, ask as "eeyask". Not as strong as for most females of the Great Lakes, but still of that region. Am I correct?
I never thought of myself as having an accent. Ha! You aren't one of those yaaaawwwlll southern boys are you?
@@TimTools99 Eyes one of dem southerners LOL, we know y'all Nawtherners
👍😎
how to calculate fuse size?
I've got another question. My dad says we don't need switch relays and a busbar. Everything is going to be super low amp draw so he thinks we can direct wire from the fuse box with just a switch on the line. Would that work for low amp situations? I cant figure out why you would need switch relays and the busbar in the first place tbh. First time doing this
I am not a professional electrician so I pretty much oversized all my wire to make sure I would be safe. I ran from my battery through a fuse to the little 12v fuse panel block. Then, I ran several circuits for lights, a USB charging gizmo, a 12v port for cigarette style plug etc. I had never run 12v before and I did a lot of reading before I bought my solar panel, inverter etc. The internet is a great resource for learning.
@@TimTools99 yeah im.doing pretty much the same thing. I think it's a fairly safe set up if most of your stuff uses less than 5amps. I think the 12v cigarette charger and the two usb chargers all together might push around 15 amps but in a tiny house or in a boondock situation most of the load will be so insignificant that it's safe with fuses and oversized wire and basic 10amp switches
@@TimTools99 I will post again when it's all done. Let everyone know if it caught on fire lol