off topic wireing question (non e30)

[Tree18is]

lets just say i had a gooood day at the junk yard. but not for the e30.
for the van.
goodies i found

12v 6" tv that screws into the ceiling (free)
class 5 hitch reciever deal (30)
one of those swivel cop lights (free)
one of those lights cops use to wright tickets in there car (free)
sick ass custom cup holder (free)
nice fog lights off an ambulance (free0

So i was wondering. which was the safest way to run some of this wiring. I wil try and locate the closest hot wire, but its a van so sometimes its still three feet away, Im gonna try to keep the hots short and the grounds short to, but if need be long. I rather have a long ass ground than a hot.
Has anyone seen a Bus bar i dont have to order off the internet? and i also need a voltage regulator that you can wire inline, i need to get 24v down to 12. Thanks alot if you read. all your input will be greatly appreciated.


yea yea, i messed up the spelling in the title FUCK!

[franco90]

dude PM me on this I can help

[Rigmaster]

You can ground all that shit to the body or frame- anywhere that you can find some good clean metal and make a good connection. You can use a relay for the heavy-duty stuff (high amp draw- foglights and maybe the cop light??)- this will keep the heavy duty wire short- since you don't have to run it to the switch, only from the battery or fusebox to the relay and then to the light. Plenty of info online how to wire basic lights with a basic relay system. TV, etc shouldn't need any special wiring.


Bret.

[Jscotty]

If you are running several added accessories like that its a good idea to install an auxiliary battery with an isolator so that way the excess power draw does not pull on your main battery and alternator. Any standard car battery will do, however, for $30 to $40 more you can get a deep cycle battery (used on boats) that will power your equipment for extended periods of time when the vehicle is not running.

A standard car battery will loose its voltage long before it loses its amps so even if you run the radio a little too long causing it to drop belove 12 volts, there is still enough power to start the car. In contrast, the marine deep-cycle battery maintains 12 volts consistently until it completely discharges. So it does a better job of converting all of those extra amps into voltage so you can watch TV all night long without worrying about a voltage drop.

[Tree18is]

thanks

ill get into it tomorrow and see whats up.
where woud i get that isolator?
ill pm some time soon. its late right now.
Thanks alot.

[Jscotty]

ill get into it tomorrow and see whats up.
where woud i get that isolator?
ill pm some time soon. its late right now.
Thanks alot.

A sure bet is from a boating store. You can sometimes find it where they sell RV parts and accessories. And then you might luck up and find one at Sears or Walmart. Its one of those things that most people will have no idea as to what you are talking about but if you look hard enough it might be sitting on the shelf somewhere.

[Tree18is]

hmm

so im guessing the isolator will charge the battery, but when you draw from it or put a load on it, it isolates that battery from the main battery a'?

sweet. if i could find this consider it done, because i love my van.