Sprinter Van Electrical System Phase I - Prewiring the Lights, MaxxFan & 12VDC Air Conditioner
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ก.ค. 2024
- Sprinter Adventure Van Build Series Episode 12: In this installment of the Sprinter #VanLife Build series we are taking steps towards illuminating the space inside of our Mercedes Sprinter and making a dent on the other things attached to our roof by prewiring our MaxxFan and 12VDC Dometic Air Conditioner. We decided it would be best to do this work prior to insulation. The is the first installment for our Electrical System build out as we trying to break things down into small manageable chunks!
*IMPORTANT: When running electrical wires in your van it's very important to understand and consult a wire gauge table or calculator. Our favorites are listed below and remember that the length is the total run both positive and negative to make the complete loop. If you are unsure please ask questions and seek professional advice. Aside from the lighthearted intro... electricity is no joke.
- BlueSea Wire Gauge Table - tinyurl.com/bluesea-wgt
- BlueSea Circuit Wizard - circuitwizard.bluesea.com/#
** NOTE: We are not professional builders and this video is for entertainment purposes only. We base our decisions on our own research, decades of knowledge gained from building other things and always with an engineering mindset. You should always follow the manufacturers instructions, do you own research and ONLY attempt projects like this at your OWN risk.
**NOTE: Some of the links below are affiliate links and we receive a small commission for purchases products through those end points. We will never recommend a product we don't stand behind and use ourselves. Everything listed below we used for our own build and weekly, if not daily, for our other ventures. Thank you for your support!
Recommended Supplies:
- Acegoo 12VDC Puck Lights Warm White Black Trim - amzn.to/3FsNcwj
- Lunasea Lighting RF Receiver - tinyurl.com/rf-dimmer
- Lunasea 4-Zone RF Touchpad - tinyurl.com/lunasea-4zone
- 1/4" Braided Sleeving - amzn.to/45wOXUc
- 14g Marine Grade Wire - RED - amzn.to/3LP79B7
- 14g Marine Grade Wire - BLACK - amzn.to/45j3Rg4
- 14g Duplex (Alternative Wire Option) - amzn.to/45FvFvw
- Rust Bullet Paint - amzn.to/45kZ0em
- DT 2 Pin Connector Kit - amzn.to/4088Gbk
- 12-18g Posi-Taps - amzn.to/3tfalzj
- Adhesive Lined Shrink Tubing Kit - amzn.to/41T8M66
- Grommet Kit - amzn.to/45kroxx
- Tesa Tape - amzn.to/3H95Kmp
- HushTape - amzn.to/3P0UuwK
- Winged Chassis Cable Ties - amzn.to/3N6BLiY
- Trim-Lok Edge Protector - amzn.to/3PLUWhP
- Edge Clip Zip Ties - amzn.to/3Q4VfWn
We know the LunaSea is a bit pricey so here's a less expensive alternative from SBL. Unfortunately they don't have the 4-Zone Controller though. I have plans to see if we can mate one of these to the LunaSea touch pad though. PS: We haven't tested this and it's not an affiliate link:
- SuperbrightLEDS RF Receiver - tinyurl.com/sbl-rf-reciever
- SuperbrightLEDS Single Zone Controller - tinyurl.com/sbl-rf-controller
Tools Used in this Video:
- Wire Strippers - amzn.to/3S5XLgb
- Cheap DT Connector Crimper for "Solid Contact" DT connectors - amzn.to/3RK9IIe
- Dewalt Heat Gun - amzn.to/3H94Fv4
- Small Scissors - amzn.to/3LNiQbi
- Brady M210 w/Shrink Tube Cassette - amzn.to/45hjUvJ
- BoiLite 330 Headlamp - amzn.to/3AjGiH4
- 30VDC Adjustable Power Supply - amzn.to/48CGp0n
- TEMCO TH1818 Lug Crimper - amzn.to/3tC7cd4
Video & Sound Equipment Used to Make this Video:
- SE Electronics Neom USB Microphone - amzn.to/3Aac34P
- Rode PSA1 Mic Stand - amzn.to/3H96FmR
- Shure VP83 Shotgun Microphone - amzn.to/3pzc8Kw
- DJI Wireless Microphone (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) - amzn.to/3fK0DhZ
- DJI RS3 - amzn.to/3E7yTgU
- Sony AR7II - amzn.to/3CmDN9c
- Sony FE 16-35 F4 Lens - amzn.to/3ClzhI8
- Sony FE 85 F1.8 Lens (super crispy close-ups) - amzn.to/3DRMXeu
- Gitzo Traveler Tripod - amzn.to/3RfJ8U6
- SanDisk Extreme Pro SDXC Memory Card 128GB - amzn.to/3TpNlXa
- SanDisk 2TB Extreme Portable SSD - amzn.to/47GXpSw
- MacBook Pro w/Final Cut Pro and Apple Motion - amzn.to/3Te9k1V
- iPad w/Pencil - amzn.to/3Q1v2I8
Video Contents & Chapter Markers:
0:00 - You're not as punny as you think you are (Intro)
0:41 - Moonraker Design Co
1:00 - Electricity - Phase I
1:58 - Overhead Lights Wiring
6:26 - Overhead Lighting Wiring Recap
7:54 - Overhead Lighting Control
10:06 - Air Conditioning Wire Routing
12:17 - MaxxFan Wire Routing
13:12 - Products We Used & Alternatives
15:01 - Wrapping Up
15:36 - Outro
Tunes:
Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!):
uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/tropicana
License code: 1IUKO4M0TZ92ZOMZ
Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!):
uppbeat.io/t/oliver-massa/inn...
License code: OQEWGL6NUUFAMVMB - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
At the CURRENT moment, this channel is my favorite. These videos are superior. Your uploads line up perfectly with my van build. Right before I start a project, you put out your version. All the fresh ideas are truly appreciated!⚡️
Haha, well played @cody_hines! Thanks so much for the continued support, the continuation of the puns and the compliments. That's exactly what we are trying to do, provide some fresh perspectives and alternatives here! Of course we are so lucky to stand on the shoulders of the people that came before us, but that doesn't mean we or anyone else has to do things exactly the same 🙂
Loving your sense of humour and you make everything look so easy! But I have two left hands and I'm positive I should outsource our build to a professional. The question is will I. 😅. I love a challenge
Thanks a bunch that means a lot to us! There's a lot of hats you have to wear when building a van, it's a pretty in depth project, but if you take your time and sift through the bad stuff there's a lot of info online to make it happen! The hardest part really is finding the time :)
So impressive the time you guys put into your work and professional finish you end up with!
Thank you! We really appreciate that. It's definitely something that takes quiet a bit of effort to film especially, but I think people are getting some valuable use from it!
Thank you for the fabulous details! I am trying to do some things myself, but very complicated for the electrical. Do you have a,list of and a source for the pisitacks and other time saving items?
Well done! Janice in Port Angeles, WA
Hey Janice thank you so much! You can find all the items we use in the videos in the description section for each of them! Let me know if there's something you aren't seeing in there that you are specifically looking for. The Posi-Taps you referenced I used are here - amzn.to/3tfalzj
The electrical system can be quite complicated if you have any questions on what you are looking to do you can reach out to me via email at hello at farrframeworks dot com. I'd be happy to help you out in any way I can.
Super helpful and appreciate your attention to detail. I just used all your links to buy all the gear to wire up my 12v gear. How do you label that shrink wrap for the cables? Or is that just a plain label?
Hey @omjaye, thank you so much for the kind words and we know you didn't have to use our links but really appreciate that you did! It means a lot to us that you'd be so intentional about that. I'm also excited to hear how your electrical system goes.
For the shrink tube labels, great question! We use a Brady M210 labeling machine that allows you to get a shrink tube cartridge with it (I've found the 0.645" size is the best for vans). Fortunately I already had this device from some past work I was doing so it transitioned to this project quite nicely. My only complaint now is that the cartridges are kind of expensive it's up to ~$70.00 for 7ft of shrink tubing. I would say each label is about 2.5" long so that's ~42 labels at $1.60 each. As I just typed that out it seems a bit crazy as I've never looked at it that way. Still worth it IMO.
Anyways, I just had to buy my second cartridge and when I saw the price I started looking at alternatives. If I were starting from scratch I might look at the Epson LW-PX700 - amzn.to/3QpqTxI. It's a little over $100 for the unit, but the advantage is the shrink tube labels are about $50 for 7.5ft and the printer is optimized so the cutter is right on the edge. You'd conservatively save about 0.75" for every label compared directly to the Brady M210 for a total of ~51 labels at $0.98 each.
Sorry, this is turning into a novel, but the other option I'm seriously considering going forward is using wire wrap type labels instead. These have a extra flap of vinyl that allows you to wrap around the wire and the label face to protect it. The nice thing is can you apply this after the fact as opposed to the having to pre-plan all your shrink tube labels. For the Brady M210 this would be cartridge Part #M21-1500-427 - amzn.to/46CLEf2 - 2/3rds the price for 2x the number of labels ~67 at $0.62 each. Scroll down to the bottom of that page and there's a great infographic showing how these work!
Unfortunately the Epson only goes up to 5.4mm diameter on their wire wraps Part #224VSLPX which might not be ideal for van wire gauges. Hope this helps!
Not only are you funny, but you do such a great job detailing all the steps in an easy to follow and super informative way! Thank you for continuing to deliver great quality and especially for the links to the products you are using! Hope the pennies in commissions are stacking up from me ;-)
Quick question - can you do a video that includes all the different wires sizes you use throughout the entire build? I see 14AWG here but wonder what different sizes I should consider buying in bulk for my build.
Again, thank you sooooo very much!!!
DC
Hey @olddominioncollisionrepair2652 thank you very much we really appreciate you stopping by and taking the time to comment this. It means a lot to us and we are glad you are enjoying the content! Also thanks for using the links.... yeah we don't get much... but it does help a little bit here and there so thank you for that!
Yes of course! I can look at putting a short or video together on that soon. But real quick here's what I did. I made a table of all my DC connections in Google sheets, I added their amp draw for each and I then went out and measured every wire run adding 1-2 feet for margin. I then used the Bluesea circuit wizard - circuitwizard.bluesea.com to calculate the wire gauge using 3% voltage drop for everything. The important thing is you factory in your total loop the calculator takes the value for both the positive and negative wire, so an 10ft direct run would actually be 20ft here. You want to make sure you use a high quality wire like Ancor too that has a 105ºC insulation rating because that will also impact your results. After your results are calculated there's a little drop down that says "explain results." There you can see the condition for amp rating and the voltage drop using ABYC standards.
Anyways after all that data was in the table I started looking for lowest common denominators. It doesn't hurt to go up (lower number) for wire gauge on any of the circuits so I wanted to order spools and have them divide out the best I can. For example if I needed 60 feet or 14AWG for one circuit and 35 feet for 16AWG for another, I'd just order 100ft of 14AWG and run both circuits with that.
I hope this helps and I'll try to find some time to make a video of this soon!
@@moonrakerdesign daayyuuummmm!!! That’s what I call going above and beyond! Thank you for this great explanation! I appreciate you and your killer content! Looking forward to any and all your content ❤️🤘🏼❤️🤘🏼❤️
Hi Todd and Colleen, we’re really enjoying your content and in particular the engineering you’re applying to build in maintenance. We just received our 144 AWD and have an Outfitter to help us as we spec out out our multi-use modular vehicle ideas. I just purchased your hood strut kit 🙏🏻. I have a couple of questions: 1) Total Stereo Speakers - how many total speakers are you installing and where are will the rearward ones be placed? 2) Heated Steering Wheel - we live in BC CAN and live at Silver Star in the winter without a garage and grown fond of heated seats and mostly heated Steering Wheels. We were saddened that only the E-Sprinter has heated steering wheel option and our ‘23 did not have the option. My question is are you interested in seeing if the E-Sprinter’s heated steering can fit and work in the 4 cyl or v6 cyl vans? I would be very keen to help out in any way!
@@garryvansoest8726 hey Garry first off thank you for the compliments and thank you so much for supporting us with the purchase of the Strut Kit! We really appreciate it and it helps us continue to make this content!
1) For the total number of speakers we have the 3-way components up front obviously, we are going to put a sub-woofer behind the drivers seat in the wall with the @diyvan solutions and then we will have a 2-way component speaker system in the rear doors. With that much distance between the speakers we are going to have to add a DSP to solve the timing issues and such so that will be Part 2 of the audio system install as we get a few other projects out of the way. Our master plan is to also have a Mediamaster in the living space to use the system separate from the factory head unit, another feature made possible by the DSP too.
2) I was a bit bummed when I found out that wasn't an option in the Sprinter as well! I'd need to dig into this one a bit more. I have seen people put AMG steering wheels into their sprinter so it might be something along those lines?
Todd, thank you for the stereo install plan update. I also saw OWL change out steering wheel to AMG but unfortunately it was not a heated version. We have a E63 wagon with heated SW. The on/off is spring loaded twist knob at the end of a short stalk on the left side of the steering column. I’m planning on ordering the E-Sprinter heated wheel when it become available. The wiring is my fear and it’s not even Halloween anymore!
any chance you can give a little bit of info on how you used the 12V power supply to test your lights? Ie setting for Volts and Amps
Hey @dennym, thanks for reaching out! I use an adjustable power supply that’s up to 30VDC and 10A linked in the description above. There are two sets of knobs that allows for either steady (set) voltage or steady (set) current. We want to be in steady voltage mode so you should only adjust the voltage knobs and do it when nothing is connected to it and the voltage setting is 12V and the amp draw should be 0A. I always make sure to check this before connecting this to anything. Then I use the switch on the back to turn it on and off since it will remember its previous setting.
As long as your connected load pulls less than the max amperage the power supply can produce (10A in my case) the amps will automatically adjust to support that load in the set Voltage setting.
Let me know if this makes sense if not I can put together a YT short when I get home from my current business trip next week.
And alternate option is to use a set voltage power supply. I didn’t want to do this because I wanted some flexibility for using the power supply for different projects besides just the van. Here is an option - amzn.to/3FNR0se. With this you don’t have to worry about making adjustments all you’d need to do is hook up a plug like this - amzn.to/3QQ0vgB to 120VAC (usually denoted by L, N and the ground symbol) and then hook up your 12VDC load to one set of the + and - terminals.
Perfect sense. Thanks@@moonrakerdesign
Whats that adhesive that you used (Black) holding the roof to the ribs? did you do that to make sure they didn't come apart for noise reduction?
Hey John! Thanks for stopping by and the question. Mercedes did a terrible job with the factory adhesive in our van for both the roof ribs and side panels. Some adhesive from the factory was missing and others had so little that it didn’t do anything and things were flapping around metal banging on metal.
So for the roof panels to the braces I used 3M 08323 seam sealer. This is a body panel sealer that dries a little faster and I liked better for overhanging surfaces. You can see how I applied this in our Sound Deadening Video - th-cam.com/video/hFDmN5kshK8/w-d-xo.htmlsi=EATuBJXQVm3uhG2L
For the walls and slider doors I used 3M 04274 which is a little thicker and can fill gaps up to 1 inch. If I had to pick only one I’d use this for both. You can see how and were I used it in this YT short we made - th-cam.com/users/shorts8sIdC-9hhiE?si=_nfcS-jbl60XA7vB
Hope this helps. It quieted our van down a ton. Let me know if you have any other questions!
@@moonrakerdesign I have the same issue. I bought Sikaflex 252. It's sitting in my office until it gets warm enough to apply it. May try put the 3M stuff as well. Thanks for the info
@@JohnDrach Sikaflex 252 would probably work as well since the joints aren't under heavy load. However, the reason why I chose the 3M is because it bonds well to 2K auto paint and specifically says it can be applied over existing NVH without prep.
If you look at the SIKA docs it wants you to scuff the paint and apply 207 Primer for the best bond. But back to my original point it's probably okay for these joints without that extra effort and a long as the area is clean.
@@moonrakerdesign Hmm I may get some of these 3M products. I have huge gaps though. My van only has 3k miles. How many of these tubes did you end up using? It doesn't look like you get a whole lot in those containers for your money. Thanks for the info though. I'm just about at the point in my conversion where I need to do this step. Its freezing out so Its been on hold.
@@JohnDrach It really depends on how many ribs in your van are detached and how big the gaps are. I hit every single one on the roof but the gaps were tiny there so a little bit went a long way. Down on the side panels I would say I had to do about 30-40% of them mostly around the wheel well and on the doors. Some of them were almost 3/4". In total I used 2 cartridges.
Will 16 gauge works instead of 14?
Hey Melinda. Depends on the lights you are using, their total amp draw and how long your wiring run is. Are you familiar with wire gauge tables. My favorite is from Bluesea www.bluesea.com/support/articles/Circuit_Protection/1437/Part_1%3A_Choosing_the_Correct_Wire_Size_for_a_DC_Circuit
Let me know if you need more help or explanation here.
I wish you install and show what is needed to jumpstart the van whit the house batteries
See other vans use a button