[psu1]

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Hi all,

I have a question about a recent modification. Actually a remodification. Have a 1500 to which I added an aux. fuse block to the aux. terminals on left side of bike. To this I added the 12v piece to service gps, ups etc. Worked fine.

After purchasing Rudy's Smartlight I needed some changes. Rudy recommended keeping the aux. connection at 5A while attaching his product to it.

As such I disconnected my aux. fuse block and connected it directly to battery. The 3 in 1 (plus USB) is now always "on". I can tell because a blue LED light is always on.

Is this a major drain? My 3 in 1 adapter is cemented to the single added 12v port in the left fairing pocket. If this blue light is a drain, I'm sure I could separate the 3 in 1 adapter from the single port. It its not an issue, I'll leave as is. Thanks!

psu

 

[Rudy]

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The blue LED will add about 20 MA drain to your battery if it is on all the time. Although this isn't much it is still 4x over the max drain spec Honda specifies for it's backup power usage.
You should keep the aux fuse at 5 amps but if you need more than that on a switched circuit, go ahead and add a relay for that purpose.

To do that, connect the coil of the relay across the aux power terminals (make sure you have the spike suppressing diode installed for the SmartLight since it runs even when things normally shut down).
Then get a fuse and connect the battery + through the fuse and then through the relay contacts.

That way you have the features of the aux power system at greater current than the aux power system was designed for.
Post any questions you have about that and I'll watch this thread for the replies.

 

[psu1]

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Rudy,

Thanks for the prompt response. I understand AC circuits well but not as comfortable with DC. What you describe is what I need. Higher amps but switched controlled.

I must say I don't have any experience or knowledge with relay or how they work. Is it like a transformer but addressed amps as opposed to volts? Can you provide a link to comparable rely products?

psu

 

[Rudy]

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Think of a relay as a current amplifier.
You control it with low current and it passes higher current through it's contacts to whatever you want to drive.

Typically the relay will have 4 terminals. Two to go from the aux terminals , one to come from the battery (through a fuse) and one to provide high current switched 12 volts to whatever you wanted to provide power for.

There is a simplified diagram of one around here someplace but here is a dual system (front and rear) from my aux power page:

PS an easy way to do this is to buy this kit... http://www.cyclemaxohio.com/inc/sdetail/129/23042

Or you can get just the relay here or at any auto parts store... http://www.cyclemaxohio.com/inc/sdetail/129/53145

 

[psu1]

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Rudy,

Simplified will be necessary because I don't fully comprehend the one provided. There is no hurry. I can easily detach the 3 in 1 with the LED, but my long term goal is to make all additions switch controlled.

BTW - Smartlight has been a great addition.

psu

 

[Rudy]

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Thanks. I just appended my last post with some links that may help.

 

[AZgl1800]

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Rudy, you da man. I just keep adding on bookmarks for future folk's questions.... :claps:

 

[ALEX BERECZKY]

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On my first bike I added a blinking 12v LED to make a phoney "Alarm" light... looked cool, but always drained my battery after about 2 days of sitting!

Personally, I'd get rid of the LED... as a bike battery is just too small to handle any amount of drain over an extended time.


ps: On a related note, a friend of mine and mercedes mechanic says that many modern cars have the same problem... the batteries go dead after 2 weeks of being parked, due to all the tiny parasitic lelectric oads from clocks, alarms, etc.

 

[sctrucker]

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that diagram can get kinda confusing, psu, if you can do a/c then this will not be a problem, go get a relay from the parts store or any junk yard and there shuld be a diagram on the side of it, hook it up and go

 

[psu1]

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Hi again everyone,

Just wanted to let you know that I didn't drop this job. Got a relay and corresponding terminal with attached wires from ebay. Received and installed today. All works fine.

I did do some further searching to assist in the installation. I found a site which provided the # codes related to the pins. This helped me understand things a little better. I guess I need to know "why" and "what" each connection does to better understand the total task. Here is the page I used to assist me:

http://www.canyonchasers.net/shop/generic/relay.php

Again, thanks for all the guidance!

Oops, forgot to add that I didn't use a singular distribution box. I used the separate fuse block and grounding bar that I added previously when I first installed the 12v accessory lighter adapter.

psu