Heated Seat Question...

[justgary]

1 hour ago, DkLkSkr said:

Try this link.  Sorry not able to post pics.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/SOJOY-NEW-Universal-Carbon-Fiber-Insert-Heated-Warmer-Seat-Kits-2-seats-11x19-/262801977601

These pictures on this listing give a closer look, plus one of the pictures talks about the preassembled cable set comes with a switching relay.  Sounds like it should have one....

Do you have the unit in hand already, or are you still waiting for delivery?

@shawndoggy most likely has it correct (except he meant low current light, not low voltage).  The catch here is that whatever you hook the red wire to *must* be able to source 15 Amps along with whatever it was already designed to provide.  I recommend a direct connection to the battery (or your battery switch) with the red and black wires, including a fuse if the harness doesn't already provide one.  So that's probably:

Red:  High current +12V

Black: High current common

Orange:  Switched +12V to enable relay; turning this off should ensure that the heaters turn off even if the dash control was on)

Yellow:  Illumination lamp; I drew this inline with the main power so that it would be on when the circuit is energized, but you might want it on your "Dash Lights" circuit.

[DkLkSkr]

Here are some pictures....

 

[shawndoggy]

one would think that that control box has to have an integrated relay, but that's not the sort of setup I've worked with in the past.

[DkLkSkr]

I'll have to ask the manufacturer about that being a relay.  If we assume that is a relay how would the wiring flow?  Really just wondering the accessory and illumination wires.  It was once mentioned to combine those together.

[justgary]

Wow, somehow we went from four wires to eight....

Pop the top of the little black box at the connector.  You will find a relay underneath.

[shawndoggy]

13 hours ago, DkLkSkr said:

I'll have to ask the manufacturer about that being a relay.  If we assume that is a relay how would the wiring flow?  Really just wondering the accessory and illumination wires.  It was once mentioned to combine those together.

Maybe just ask the manufacturer about the current draw from those two wires.  My guess would be that the ACC wire is the trigger wire for the relay (so the heated seat will only work at "key up" if you install on the ignition acc wire) and that the illumination wire is wired directly to the light circuit on the switch, so it would also have a low current draw.

Assuming my guesses are right, (a) tying the two wires together and (b) wiring them to whatever trigger circuit you want would probably be OK.  But you know what you get for assuming.

[justgary]

1 hour ago, shawndoggy said:

(a) tying the two wires together and (b) wiring them to whatever trigger circuit you want

That trigger circuit *must* be able to source the additional 15 Amps!

15 hours ago, DkLkSkr said:

I'll have to ask the manufacturer about that being a relay.  If we assume that is a relay how would the wiring flow?  Really just wondering the accessory and illumination wires.  It was once mentioned to combine those together.

I can see in your photos that the top of the black box will pop off.  You should find a relay underneath.  I showed you how a relay works in the circuit already.  The larger red wire has a fuse holder, which should have a 15 Amp fuse installed.  That wire goes to "BATT +" in my drawing.

Perhaps you could verify operation on your bench with a battery to see if it works.  You won't blow anything up.

[shawndoggy]

1 hour ago, justgary said:

That trigger circuit *must* be able to source the additional 15 Amps!

Agree, I'm assuming that the RED wire will be wired direct to B+ with a fuse.  I'm just talking about the ACC and ILL (orange and yellow) wires.

[DkLkSkr]

Did the battery test.  When all the positive wires were connected to positive on battery and the negative to negative, everything worked just fine.  Without the accessory wire connected there was no lights and no operation.  Illumination wire only controls lights on switch. 

Since I am installing a new 15 amp circuit breaker for this, would it be ok to wire all the positives directly to the breaker and then the negative to a negative bus bar?  That would keep it all on it's own dedicated circuit which wouldn't hurt or alter any other boat electrical systems.

If necessary for an accessory power for the illumination wire and accessory wire, could this be installed?  Concern is that it only has 7.5amp fuse, however likely ok considering these wires needs...  This could keep everything dedicated and away from rest of boat electrical.

[justgary]

You don't need a breaker unless you want one.  The fuse in the provided holder is good enough.  You don't need any extra power for the illumination or accessory wires.  I would hook the illumination wire to your interior light switch, and the accessory wire to your accessory tab on the key switch. 

The seat heater switch will then only work when the key is on. 

[Going4Six]

I installed seat heaters in my 2001 Closed Bow Response to the drivers seat as well as the passenger seat.  At first I did not put relays in, but after a dead battery my buddy Ken helped me install relays.  I don't think I installed the waterproof type as the drivers seat heater went out after only a few months.  The passenger seat though works great.  At first I installed the passenger side into the flat flip up seat back, but most people sit in the corner, so I moved the element to the corner seat back.  For the passenger lift up seat bottom, I have about 4 foot of wire on it so I can remove it and set it aside.  I wired them into blank toggle switches on the dash and put the passenger switch on the LH of the steering wheel and the drivers seat heater switch on the RH side.  The little round switches that come with the seats I just turned on high and hid them behind the dash and side panels.  I'm going to repurchase the drivers seat elements in the waterproof style and reinstall.  I have had them in for about 6 years.  I was lucky enough to find the toggle switch covers for the left and right sides while they were still available, so it looks like it is a factory install so to speak.