help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

[jasguild]

I hate to see folks struggle with this stuff when the solution is so simple. Here ya go. The terminal numbers on this diagram may or may not match yours. But the key terminal is the ground terminal on the switch. Look for the ground symbol. That terminal is NOT the ground terminal for the device, it is the ground terminal for the lite in the switch.

This is helpful. I do have one question though. Can I connect the ground for the switch and the ground for the device together on the same grounding terminal?

 

[Lone Duck]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

This is helpful. I do have one question though. Can I connect the ground for the switch and the ground for the device together on the same grounding terminal?

Yes!

 

[Gradywhite3535]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

Does #2 in the diagram where you can see the red switch goto a fuse panel or to postive battery? An does the negitive wire from the device goto a negative bus bar or back to the switch?

 

[Don S]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

Does #2 in the diagram where you can see the red switch goto a fuse panel or to postive battery? An

2 goes to the fuse panel.

does the negitive wire from the device goto a negative bus bar or back to the switch?

It goes to the negative bus, It is the switch, it can't go back to itself ??????

 

[jasguild]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

Couple folllow ups.

I see some switches with four or more connectors. do those ones just allow more devices to be controlled by the switch?

How do I pick a fuse for a particular device. Should the fuse amps match the device amp?

Thanks

 

[Don S]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

There are all kinds of switches that do different things. Some can turn on different systems with the same switch.
The switch in the picture is a single pole, single throw. (on or off for one item). A double pole, single throw, would have twice the number of connections.

Fuses are normally sized for the wiring, 15A for 14 ga wiring as an example. But, you can go smaller in fuse size for that wiring to protect a small bilge pump for example. But never use a higher amperage fuse than the wiring will allow.

If the pump above draws 5 amps when running, then a 7.5 amp fuse would be used.


Look at page 35 in the link below, it shows the different pinouts and types of rocker switches.
http://sierramarine.com/pdfcatalog/2013sierra/2013searchmain.html

 

[Silvertip]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

The ground symbol is used in electrical schematics and wiring diagrams to denote that point is connected to ground. Using the symbol eliminates drawing lines for each ground wire that would just clutter the diagram. So when you see a ground symbol, continue running the wire leading to that symbol, to ground. Ground is wherever you find it but ultimately is the negative terminal of the battery. There may be many junctions in the ground system. These junctions are called busses, or junctions if they consist of only one terminal.

Regarding the question in this thread about where to connect the ground -- if you read the text for the diagram, it says "the ground is for the indicator light in the switch, not the ground for the device (the other light or whatever the switch controls). That ground terminal on the switch GOES TO GROUND -- it is NOT the SYSTEM GROUND. Yes -- they are both ground and are both at the same potential. But the ground system in your boat is about a #8 or #10 whereas the ground for the switch indicator is likely a 16 gauge because the only current it passes is for the light. Devices have their ground leads connected to the ground system or buss, not other devices.

 

[Gradywhite3535]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

So i get from this thread that the device gets grounded to whereever u can find it but where does #3 from the switch go?

 

[Don S]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

See if this helps. Depending on the switch used, the pinouts may be different from those in the picture

 

[jasguild]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

Regarding the question in this thread about where to connect the ground -- if you read the text for the diagram, it says "the ground is for the indicator light in the switch, not the ground for the device (the other light or whatever the switch controls). That ground terminal on the switch GOES TO GROUND -- it is NOT the SYSTEM GROUND. Yes -- they are both ground and are both at the same potential. But the ground system in your boat is about a #8 or #10 whereas the ground for the switch indicator is likely a 16 gauge because the only current it passes is for the light. Devices have their ground leads connected to the ground system or buss, not other devices.

I think i got you. In your most recent diagram, both the switch ground and the device ground go right back to the fuse block which is connected to system ground. Sooo if I understood your comment correectly, in this instance they are both grounded in the system ground but it does not have to be that way. Alternatively the switch ground does not have to be grounded via the fuse block to the system ground. correct?

 

[Don S]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

All negative wires in a 12V system are eventually connected to the negative terminal of the battery. The negative side is often called ground, but it's the same thing.

 

[tazrig]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

Yes. when anything has to go to ground you can run a wire all the way back to the neg post on the battery if you want, connect to a ground on the motor or connect to a system bus somewhere in between. Ground is Ground. It is just easier to run it to the closest ground and neater to run it to the nearest bus so you don't have wires all over the place.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

I think i got you. In your most recent diagram, both the switch ground and the device ground go right back to the fuse block which is connected to system ground. Sooo if I understood your comment correectly, in this instance they are both grounded in the system ground but it does not have to be that way. Alternatively the switch ground does not have to be grounded via the fuse block to the system ground. correct?

If that's not what you feel you want to do, how else would you do it? Please don't say run the wire back to the battery. Why use all that wire when ground can be found on the fuse panel at the helm, at the ground terminal on any gauge in the panel at the helm, at a ground buss at the helm, etc., etc., etc. What you want to avoid is grounding a high current device, to the ground of a low current device. An analogy would be that you cannot but 10# of stuff in a 2# bag. This is what a ground buss is for. You run one big wire from the buss to the battery. You can then hook a bunch of small ground wires from a bunch of accessories to that buss.

 

[jasguild]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

If that's not what you feel you want to do, how else would you do it? Please don't say run the wire back to the battery. Why use all that wire when ground can be found on the fuse panel at the helm, at the ground terminal on any gauge in the panel at the helm, at a ground buss at the helm, etc., etc., etc. What you want to avoid is grounding a high current device, to the ground of a low current device. An analogy would be that you cannot but 10# of stuff in a 2# bag. This is what a ground buss is for. You run one big wire from the buss to the battery. You can then hook a bunch of small ground wires from a bunch of accessories to that buss.

No I do like the diagram and the idea of minimizig wires. I was just trying to restate your comment about bus versus system ground. Maybe i did not understand it as well as I thought.

 

[tazrig]

Re: help me wire an illuminated rocker switch

System ground wire goes to the Bus.