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Inigo



Member Since: 13 Nov 2011
Location: Kent
Posts: 617

United Kingdom 2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Orkney Grey
Rear Worklight Wiring Confusion
Having read ALL of the various work light related posts on here, I thought I'd have a go.

Original plan was to have a relay mounted at the rear, feeding an LED worklight (but wiring capable of feeding standard Halogen in the future) switched from the front with an Off-On-On Carling switch so that it can be off, on with reverse or on independantly. Halfway through my headscratching and loom making I began to worry that I had not quite understood what I was doing.

End result: Beautifully mounted LED work lamp at the rear with the following situation:
Carling Switch Off: Work lamp on, indicator LED not lit.
Carling Switch On 1: Work lamp off, indicator LED not lit.
Carling switch On 2: Work lamp on when left turn indicator flashes, indicator LED flashes in time with work lamp and turn signal.

I can guess that I may have selected the wrong connection and got the indicator signal instead of the reverse light signal. But if I can successfully track down a reverse light signal, can anyone decipher from this what I need to swap over to get everything to work.

Previous posters have shown nice images of their wiring diagrams - is there an easy to use program that makes this simpler?
Post #178450 23rd Oct 2012 8:06pm
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custom90



Member Since: 21 Jan 2010
Location: South West, England.
Posts: 20580

United Kingdom 
Take out your reverse light at the rear and you will see the power and earth wires there for it. Engage reverse gear with ignition on so you have power to the reverse light. Then with a multimeter identify the power wire (should read between 12 - 14v or there abouts) then from there you will know the wire you require it will likely be a coloured wire with a different colour tracer to it. Can't remember what it was now but once you've identified the wire you can then trace it and take your trigger feed for your relay anywhere from the reverse light switch on the gearbox to the light it's self. As you have it now isn't correct as you've already figured out as a worklight should have no affect on any other lighting at all. KEEP CALM AND Drill ON
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Post #178458 23rd Oct 2012 8:17pm
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Inigo



Member Since: 13 Nov 2011
Location: Kent
Posts: 617

United Kingdom 2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Orkney Grey
OK, had a further fiddle and worked some things out.
I actually have an On-Off-On. So off position correct, On position 1 would be OK as soon as I swap over the connection from the turn signal to reverse, but I am struggling with On position 2 - it lights the work lamp fine, but the indicator LED does not light.
The carling switch, I believe is designed with a common power in and two separate power outs. I have connected the two seperate power sources to the power out connections to feed the relay from the power in position.
Relay works fine, but I guess one way, the LED does not let current flow.

I thought I could use the Off-On-On switch - but this activates both circuits simultaneously. My hazy thinking is concerned about connecting the reverse light circuit with a permanent 12V circuit. Should I be worried?
Post #178516 23rd Oct 2012 10:49pm
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WelshGas



Member Since: 01 Oct 2010
Location: Vale of Glamorgan
Posts: 935

Wales 2010 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Santorini Black
If I understand this correctly:-
In Pos 1 - Carling switch to Relay - Relay to work Light. ( Relay activated by Reversing Light )
If that is correct then you you don't need a relay for Position 2 which would be Carling Switch - Light.

My reading of your post is that the power to the light is supplied via the Carling Switch ?? and you have used the relay so that in Switch position 1 the circuit to the light is completed ONLY when the Reversing light is on. If that is the case there should be NO relay in the Position 2 circuit. Whistle LANDYWATCH

Neighbourhood Watch for Land Rover Owners

http://www.landywatch.co.uk/smf2/index.php
Post #178531 24th Oct 2012 5:48am
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df1



Member Since: 06 Aug 2011
Location: Ireland
Posts: 221

To do this via a relay would you need a relay that can be switched on by two diffent live feeds independently ?

This would mean a standard 4 pin relay would not work and you'd need something like a 5 pin, check the diagram on the relay to make sure it can be switched on by 2 different sources. That's assuming you want the worklamp to be powered through the relay only to allow to fit a standard halogen light in future.

My thinking anyway.
Post #178535 24th Oct 2012 6:04am
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diesel_jim



Member Since: 13 Oct 2008
Location: hiding
Posts: 6112

United Kingdom 2006 Defender 110 Td5 SW Epsom Green
Are you using the correct carling switch? you need an on-off-on version, not an off-on-on (just red your text, yes you have... i started typing this at 22.30 last night then finished this morning over toast LOL)

in short, there will be 3 pins on the back of the switch, a middle "common", and the other two "on" ones (plus, on a carling, the earth and sidelight, but they're usually the same two top pins anyway)


From the middle "common" pin, you take this to the coil of the relay, then to earth.

on one of the other pins, you'll take the feed to the reverse light... you can find this either at the light itself, or (easier, especially if you're fitting the relay in the battery box) from the switch on the gearbox... however you need to make sure you get the right "side" of the switch... one side will be powered from the fuse box and live all the time the ignition is on, and the other side will be the "switched" side, which only becomes live when you select reverse... this is the one you want.

You don't state what vehicle you've got, but the Td5 is a green/brown (green main, and brown trace) wire that is the "switched" one from the gearbox right back to the reverse light at the back.(indicators are green/white RH, or green/red LH, which i suspect you've picked up instead of the green/brown)

So, you can now switch between "off" and "on-auto"

You now need to get a permanent 12v feed from behind the dash somewhere; you can now decide if you want it ignition fed, or permanent. Take this feed, via a 5a fuse (The reverse light feed is protected by the reverse fuse on the factory fusebox), to the other spare pin on the carling switch.

And there you have it, the 3 way switch. Obviously you'll need to then take a beefier 12v feed from the battery/your own fuse box, through the switch contacts of the relay, up to the reverse lights.
Post #178543 24th Oct 2012 6:44am
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Inigo



Member Since: 13 Nov 2011
Location: Kent
Posts: 617

United Kingdom 2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Orkney Grey
Thanks for the answers.

WelshGas: I haven't explained it very well - would work much better with a wiring diagram, but that would take me forever to do neatly. Basically the work light is only fed from the relay and the relay is fed from either the switch in on position or switch in "reverse" position.

df1: Yes, that would work - I shall investigate different relays.

diesel_jim: I think I have done what you describe (and I also think I have mixed up the Green/red cable for the green/brown one). But when I switch to on (not on with reverse), the work light lights, but the led indicator in the switch itself does not. However it does work with the reverse switch.

I initially thought that I had somehow been switching the earth path for the on (non-reverse) position, but that wouldn't make sense.

Is the LED indicator fed from only one of the supply pins and switched with the switch? Eg, if it is fed from the reverse pin, then it might only light when power is upplied there, even though power is being fed from the permanent live pin?

I'm finding it tricky to track down detailed wiring diagrams of the Carling switches.
Post #178561 24th Oct 2012 8:17am
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Go Beyond



Member Since: 30 Jan 2012
Location: Headcorn, Kent
Posts: 6678

United Kingdom 
Simon of X-Eng has the wiring diagrams on his website here:

http://www.x-eng.co.uk/X-Switch.asp
Post #178562 24th Oct 2012 8:29am
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Inigo



Member Since: 13 Nov 2011
Location: Kent
Posts: 617

United Kingdom 2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Orkney Grey
Great!

That explains it. LED only connected to one side. So only illuminates in one of the two possible on positions. Which seems peculiar to me.

Hope it's ok to post Simon's image here:


I also ran a signal cable back from the worklight to illuminate the LED when the worklight was lit (until I realised that the LED was connected internally in the switch). I don't suppose there is an easy mod to the switch to connect it up this way?
Post #178566 24th Oct 2012 8:52am
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diesel_jim



Member Since: 13 Oct 2008
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Posts: 6112

United Kingdom 2006 Defender 110 Td5 SW Epsom Green
Inigo wrote:

diesel_jim: I think I have done what you describe (and I also think I have mixed up the Green/red cable for the green/brown one). But when I switch to on (not on with reverse), the work light lights, but the led indicator in the switch itself does not. However it does work with the reverse switch.


Is the LED indicator fed from only one of the supply pins and switched with the switch? Eg, if it is fed from the reverse pin, then it might only light when power is upplied there, even though power is being fed from the permanent live pin?

.


Yes, mine does the same, the LED only lights on one of the "on" positions, not both. It is to do with the way that the power goes through the switch. Not sure there's much you can do about that, apart from take the switch apart (if possible?) and try to add a second LED in the gap, and run it off of the other feed.
Post #178625 24th Oct 2012 2:11pm
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LandRoverAnorak



Member Since: 17 Jul 2011
Location: Surrey
Posts: 11324

United Kingdom 
If that's the case, wire it so that the position where the LED does come on is the manual setting, so you can see it, and the other one is the 'reverse light' setting. An LED indicator would be less critical for the latter as you can't forget to turn it off. Darren

110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak

"You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia
Post #178630 24th Oct 2012 2:21pm
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Inigo



Member Since: 13 Nov 2011
Location: Kent
Posts: 617

United Kingdom 2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 USW Orkney Grey
Ok, that sounds like a plan.

Thanks all.
Post #178637 24th Oct 2012 3:09pm
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udderlyoffroad



Member Since: 18 Jul 2011
Location: Bristol
Posts: 124

United Kingdom 
Carling Switch Circuit diagrams are here:
http://www.carlingtech.com/sites/default/f...agrams.pdf

As for which switch/lighting circuit letter/number your switch corresponds to, have a look at the carling partnumber of the switch. The second digit will be the circuit type, the fifth digit will be the lamp circuit. So, if your switch is this one:
http://www.dun-bri.com/carling_switch_rang...e/3736123/

From looking at the manufacturer's part number on the top right, we can see that the circuit is type G and the illumination circuit is, confusingly, also type G.

HTH

Matt Real trucks don't have spark plugs
Post #178642 24th Oct 2012 3:37pm
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