12v LED van lights

[daisy]

Hi

I have just wired up 4 LED lights in my van. They are all linked and then positive runs to the switch which then runs to the fuse box, negative runs straight to the fuse box. When I put the fuse in, all 4 lights come on and stay on, regardless of whether the switch is on or off. When I take the fuse out, I can use the switch to turn them on and off, however when I turn them off they stay on very dimly.

Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated

 

[poni]

should the negative just go to ground ?, and not back to the fuse board

 

[binky]

Is the switch shared with other lights?

Sounds like you have a permanent supply via another circuit, hence they work with fuse out.

 

[Richard-the-Ninth]

Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated

daisy, a car is not wired the same as a house. What you would normally do, is take a wire from a spare fuse, (This is the positive +ve) take this wire to one side of a switch.
From the other side of the switch go to the first light's +ve connection.
From here you then go to the 2nd, 3rd & 4th lights +ve terminal.

Each light now has a wire that goes +ve when the switch is turned on. The lights will NOT work as we have not yet connected the negative. (-ve) Since the car is metal, if you secured each light with a screw or two, you probably screwed into the steel work of the car. All you need do is connect the -ve of each light to the screw that is securing the light, there by you are connecting it to a permanent
-ve.

If you have not screwed each light to the steel work of the car, you will have to run another wire from each lights -ve terminal and find somewhere you can attach a screw, and connect the wire to this. Obviously do not drill through a side panel or the roof. (It will work, but you will have a leak and a hole you do not want.)

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Hi

I have just wired up 4 LED lights in my van. They are all linked and then positive runs to the switch which then runs to the fuse box, negative runs straight to the fuse box. When I put the fuse in, all 4 lights come on and stay on, regardless of whether the switch is on or off. When I take the fuse out, I can use the switch to turn them on and off, however when I turn them off they stay on very dimly.

Any suggestions or advice would be much appreciated

It sounds like it is wired wrong..

And if something is staying on, "but dimly", then it sounds like your lights are wired in series with other items?

Some actual voltage readings with respect to earth at critical points, (e.g. both sides of the switch, and both sides of the lights when the switch is both off and on), may help evaluate what you may have done wrong?

Remember if you have connected 12V to both sides of a light there will be Zero volts across the light as 12v-12v=0v.

As has been mentioned earlier wiring in Cars / Vans / Caravans / Motorhomes etc.. generally use the metal chassis as the negative/ground.. So a negative to the fusebox is not normally required?