P1000 Dual voltmeter/what rocker switch? question

[GGreen]

Running a True AM dual battery isolater with on/off relay, with their dual voltmeter (two voltmeters in one round gauge) on my 1000-3.

Eveything works fine. I'm taking power from the main/factory fuse block using a fuse tap on the switched acc. fuse.

What I *want* to do is take power from my auxillary/2nd batt. fuse block and simply switch both meters on and off with a single rocker switch.

Does anyone have an idea what I need for a rocker switch? I need something with at least 2 power in/power out, but where I get lost is how I wire in/connect the relay so it isn’t powered 24/7. I need power to go to the relay and the gauge when the rocker is turned on, as if it was an ignition switched circuit. I guess what I'm saying is I want the rocker to substitute for the ignition switch, if that makes any sense.

Thanks!

 

[Admin]

 

[OnTheJob]

It sounds like close to what I did. Go to post #4 for how I did it and maybe that'll give you an idea how you want to do yours.

P1000 - OnTheJob's P1K-3 Build: "The Pie-O-Near"

 

[GGreen]

It sounds like close to what I did. Go to post #4 for how I did it and maybe that'll give you an idea how you want to do yours.

P1000 - OnTheJob's P1K-3 Build: "The Pie-O-Near"

Thanks! GREAT thread, with a ton of ideas I'll be incorporating into my build. (I was wondering what to do next.) Can’t say I understand the voltmeter wiring, but I'll study on it. I think it's more sophisticated than what I'm going for, but it may be what I end up doing - if I can figure it out! Thanks again!

Oh, and a question - why the separate grounding buss bar? Why not just use the ground lugs on the Blue Sea fuse block? (I ask, because I also installed a Blue Sea, and that's what I've been using for grounds.)

 

[OnTheJob]

Thanks! GREAT thread, with a ton of ideas I'll be incorporating into my build. (I was wondering what to do next.) Can’t say I understand the voltmeter wiring, but I'll study on it. I think it's more sophisticated than what I'm going for, but it may be what I end up doing - if I can figure it out! Thanks again!

Oh, and a question - why the separate grounbding buss bar? Why not just use the ground lugs on the Blue Sea fuse block? (I ask, because I also installed a Blue Sea, and that's what I've been using for grounds.)

All the ideas I used and documented I got from other guys on here so most of what I did is not original. No way I could have done the wiring myself without seeing how others before me did there's. It takes a while before it sinks in!

It is completely unnecessary but just to keep the wiring neat and organized. I had some large gauge wires to ground that had nothing to do with the Blue Sea block. I didn't want to stack 4-5 grounds to one connection. That buss bar goes directly to the engine ground point that the main battery uses. Everything the Blue Sea fuse block powers is also grounded at the Blue Sea fuse block.

 

[GGreen]

When I finally realized that what I was trying to do was get a switch to do the job of the ignition (switch!), I solved my problem. Instead of trying to puzzle out the wiring without understanding it, once I pictured what I was trying to do, it became clear. Sometimes, it's just a matter of perspective!

Ultimately, a simple on/off rocker (pos in/pos out/neg) worked just fine. Just routed the power from the fuse block to the switch and then out to the relay. Now the relay is unpowered until the switch is on. Since the ground from the relay had to go to the dual voltmeter, I just ran a separate ground from the switch to ground. Now the light on the swicth works. Success!

 

[OnTheJob]

When I finally relaized that what I was trying to do was get a switch to do the job of the ignition (switch!), I solved my problem. Instead of trying to puzzle out the wiring without understanding it, once I pictured what I was trying to do, it became clear. Sometimes, it's just a matter of perspective!

And Jim Beam

 

[GGreen]

And Jim Beam

Ah, yes, my good friend, Jim!