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Relay Wiring Issues

Old 06-27-2013, 08:38 AM
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Question Relay Wiring Issues

So im wiring in my KC lights which is pretty straight forward. Ground the lights, ground the relay 85, & ground the switch so it lights up. Wires from lights go to 87 on the relay & the relay gets powered with an inline fuse to 30. Last is to run 86 to the switch with an inline fuse & a power wire to the switch & all should be good.

Not so as there not lighting up. So I check every ground & all are solid. Then i check the power wires to the relay & switch & both have current. The light wires are good & so is 86 to the switch. Blown relays are not common so I go get a new one & same issue, so I bypass the relay & wire the lights directly to the switch & walla we have light. Of course this isn't proper as the switch & the fuses get super hot even with 12g wiring & 15amp inline fuses.

So im scratching my head & turning to u guys for assistance!
Old 06-27-2013, 08:55 AM
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Originally Posted by SeniorXJ
So im wiring in my KC lights which is pretty straight forward. Ground the lights, ground the relay 85, & ground the switch so it lights up. Wires from lights go to 87 on the relay & the relay gets powered with an inline fuse to 30. Last is to run 86 to the switch with an inline fuse & a power wire to the switch & all should be good.

Not so as there not lighting up. So I check every ground & all are solid. Then i check the power wires to the relay & switch & both have current. The light wires are good & so is 86 to the switch. Blown relays are not common so I go get a new one & same issue, so I bypass the relay & wire the lights directly to the switch & walla we have light. Of course this isn't proper as the switch & the fuses get super hot even with 12g wiring & 15amp inline fuses.

So im scratching my head & turning to u guys for assistance!
Hmmm, sounds like you have it wired correctly. Are you hearing the relay click when you send power to it?

Are you checking behind your connections with a volt meter?

If you hear the relay click and you have a voltmeter nearby then you can use the process of elimination and figure out what's missing.

If you have 12 volts on one side of the relay and not the other while the relay is powered then the relay is bad. If you have 12 volts on the output then something isn't right with the wiring between the lights and the relay... etc etc.


Last edited by Lowrange2; 06-27-2013 at 08:58 AM.
Old 06-27-2013, 09:16 AM
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Yes, its wired exactly like that. I took a multimeter to the power of the relay & to the switch & both had proper current. I didn't hear any clicking going on but like I said, I bought a new one to eliminate a bad relay & got the same results...
Old 06-27-2013, 10:24 AM
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With the Voltmeter on hand check every connection on the relay base, remove the relay, and check for

12V on terminal 30 (using the Volts on DC function)
Ground on terminal 85 (using continuity measurement and the other probe to the chasis)
12V on terminal 86 when the switch is on (using the Volts on DC function)

One of the above may be faulty

another test is to run a small wire in between the wires of the relay base, from terminal 30 to terminal 87, the KCs should light up right away

The relay can be tested as well, one wire to terminal 85, and another to terminal 86, test that on the battery, you should hear and feel the click on the relay

Good luck and keep us posted

Last edited by lualchro; 06-27-2013 at 01:15 PM.
Old 06-27-2013, 11:57 AM
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All is sound advice.

It should be pretty simple to troubleshoot.
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