Changing ignition circuits

[Jeremy Parrett]

Question: is it possible to change the ignition keyed circuits to an auxilliary position.  Items like the dash radio/navigation system etc???

[Gerald Farris]

Jeremy,
It is possible to change the circuits that you mentioned to the auxiliary position, however it will require a considerable amount of rewiring and the addition of another solenoid in the LF electrical bay.

The circuits that you want to change are not wired through the ignition switch. They are wired through the solenoid in the LF electrical bay. The solenoid is controlled by the ignition switch. You will need to add another solenoid in the LF bay to control the desired circuits and control it with the accessory position of the switch.

Gerald

[Jeremy Parrett]

Thanks Gerald. Not such a difficult task . I am quite handy with electronics.  Jeremy

[Joel Weiss]

My dash radio is wired through the "Accessory" position of the ignition switch (counter clockwise).  Is this the intent of the OP?  If not, please explain what you are seeking to do.

[Gerald Farris]

Joel,
Some coaches have minimal load items like the radio wired through the ignition switch, however a lot of coaches do not. The ignition switch controls items that draw to many amps to run through the switch, so the loads are powered by a solenoid and the ignition switch turns the solenoid on and off.

There are some coaches that have the radio and GPS wired directly from the ignition switch and if yours is wired in this manner, you can just transfer the power feed to the terminal that you want. However most components are powered through the solenoid in the LF bay because the ignition switch life expectancy drops as the amp load increases.

Gerald

[Jeremy Parrett]

Hi Joel and Gerald,
Yes, this is exactly my intent.  I do not know why Beaver didn't wire the radio this way in the first place . All vehicles I have owned, allow use of the radio/cd/navigation system while parked, by switching to the 'auxiliary position.
Gerald, you mention adding a 'solenoid' as the power source for the ignition switch auxiliary position.  Could a relay do the job, or better could I just run the radio/cd/nav.system directly to the 'auxiliary' position on the ignition switch ??
                 Jeremy

[Gerald Farris]

Jeremy,
Yes you can run directly from the radio and GPS to the accessory terminal on the ignition switch, however you need to keep the amp draw below 10 amps or even better below 5 amps. If the total amp draw is between 10 and 30 amps, you can run the loads through a relay and use the accessory terminal of the ignition switch as a control circuit for the relay. A current draw above 30 amps will need a solenoid or multiple relays.

In your original question you stated (Items like the dash radio/navigation system etc???) so since I did not know what the meaning was of the term (etc???) translated into in amp draw, I took the safe way out and said to use a solenoid.  

Gerald

[Jeremy Parrett]

Gerald,
The Pioneer AVIC-K5 installed in my coach, draws 10 amps max.  This includes the motorized pop up screen.
I assume it actually draws 5 to 7 amps when running.  I am going to connect it directly to the ignition switch 'auxiliary' position.  
  Thanks for your help....again !!    Jeremy