Scooterotica

druist wrote:

J1MS wrote:You could wire a relay to the battery via a switch (the switch using the batteries power), this could be used to isolate the battery when the switch is in the off position... the relay is a very low draw switch that uses milliamps to maintain an electrical contact through the battery once the switch is open circuit the relay looses its switching current and the battery is left open circuit... nearly all cars use these, there pretty much fool proof...

this type of thing sounds good after checking up on it. Though wont i lose power with your description of how it works?

No cus the latching voltage is only on when in use there is no current drawn with the switch in the off (open) position.

well i tried a relay, and something isnt right, all works on wired to the battery, but as soon as i put in the relay unit with correct setup according to reverse of packet which has diagram - i just get a ticking sound.

Wired + appliances pos with fuse to correct numbered spade terminal
Switch on(+) - com on(+) to correct numbered spade terminal
Wired earth to correct numbered spade terminal
Wired fuse inline, break glass 1amp, then 12v 6ah
Also tried com off switch to other coms then also to relay

Damn i was so proud of my wiring, i really took my time and did it according to the diagram.

Could it be the type of relay? Or that i have the wrong switch. ALL I WANT is to be able to switch off my aux battery and lighting. I managed without a relay before but dont know how.

http://www.wilcodirect.co.uk/images/med ... 0A_MED.jpg

Maybe I have misunderstood what you want your system to do but I cant see the need for you to even have a relay.
If all you want is a switch that will liven the terminal that all of your aux equipment is connected to then all you need is a switch that has one side of the + wire from your battery connected to it and then a continuation of that same + wire going out to the terminal that the equipment will be connected to. You will also need to connect a wire from the - of the battery to another terminal for the - part of the auxilary equipments wiring to be connected to.

Relay's simply act as a switch. One side of the relay is the coil which will have a + and a - terminal. The coil acts like a switch in that when a + and a - voltage is detected the coil 'latches' in and switches the 'contact' terminals of the relay. (they will usually be on the opposite side from the coil terminals)
One of the 'contact' terminals will have a + (12v in this case) voltage connected to it all the time. The other 'contact' terminal will have a wire that goes to the + terminal of whatever you want to liven (in this case the terminal strip or directly to the aux equipment).
So the when the coil detects a + and a - voltage, it switches and the voltage that was already on one of the 'contact' terminals will now continue on through the other 'contact' terminal and onto whatever you want to liven up.

The clicking sound you are hearing is the coil latching in and switching the 'contact' terminals.

All of this could be done with a switch that will turn the power on or off whenever you flick the switch.

i did try the switch method when i first started this project last year and it all worked - starting off with a toggle. For some reason it stopped working a few weeks back. I had a push type on-off-on (+ - +) where again i just wired up the same sequence as before. For some reason - perhaps fault on the switch or "me" not seeing a fault, as there are now a lot of wires which i should have laminated their meaning - either way it wouldnt work. Yes it was the sort you just press and it stays in not the push once and it goes back up.

Anyway I posted on here and someone suggested a relay, so i thought it sounded a good idea hence trying it. I thought it would make things a little more visible and then i can see exactly what is going on should failure happen.


The system:
I have indicators 2 at the back 2 at the front, LEDs for gauges, and thought i would add socket for 12v like cig lighter. And a two pronged charger - Hence the amount of wires has now built up. i think where i am going wrong with previous system now is the battery is feeding instead of cutting out eg the other wire for the aux equipment. Thanks for writing I knew it could be done as i had done it before but it wasnt the best made system.

Another reason i incorporated the relay was that i was thinking of making the system go on from the ignition and once i started it would connect the aux equipment, eliminating the need for two switches - hence the relay.

Fitting a relay is just complicating things and isn't needed unless the switch is too small to carry the the current required. Get a decent switch, fit it in the correct place and it cannot fail to work.

firekdp wrote:Fitting a relay is just complicating things and isn't needed unless the switch is too small to carry the the current required. Get a decent switch, fit it in the correct place and it cannot fail to work.

Ive got to agree, a Relay does complicate things and isnt necessary on most scooters.... But there is one advantage if you decide to fit one, in that the battery can be isolated so that it wont discharge through the electrics once switched off... as happens on my TV the battery will discharge over about a month if its not used no relay in use....

The standard ignition switch can be usde to latch the relay into its working position and when the ignition is turned off the circuit is left open... MSC used to do a similar thing with there Motoplat ignition system as this used an energised rectifier so they sent the latching current through the lighting side of the ignition switch which allowed the battery to be used to trigger the rectifier similar way of switching but no relay on there system, but the ignition switch working the rectifier instead...

But as stated, its more to wire up and can be more to go wrong... but it can have its advantages...

The ticking sound you describe, it sounds like you have purchased a flasher relay... A relay switch is usually one thats used for Spotlights in car accessory shops but there are many types and makes...

most switches will have a c (common to both no or nc) terminal a no terminal and an nc terminal.
one wire conects to the c the other to either the no or nc
the no or nc terminal will just decide what position the switch is in to make or break the circuit, maplins do them, with just 2 terminals so you cant go wrong

i cant beleive all the hours i spent doing this, i just connected a push -on-off-on :: the real moment i sussed how it should work was when i saw a larger throw type switch with on/off which i had in my electronics kit, which had spade connectors, then I just put my alliances on one side of this + with a fuse, and same to the battery with fuse. Perhaps someone suggested this but also maybe i didnt explain how this worked. I suppose i could have gone the relay route with ignition and relay, but i had already drilled a hole above my toolbox lid - if only i had wrote down how i did this a couple of years ago - my brain is starting to get too many volts, or was that vodkas?

Slightly worried about battery still draining if not in use with this method as opposed to relay. Still ok at the moment and i have one of them cheepo solar trickle chargers.

Anyway does anyone see any problem in this, just incase i have a potential electrical shock trap with exploding petrol low sensor (thankfully i wired this up on a common low volt system separate to the other.


thanks for all of your help.

J1MS wrote:

firekdp wrote:Fitting a relay is just complicating things and isn't needed unless the switch is too small to carry the the current required. Get a decent switch, fit it in the correct place and it cannot fail to work.

Ive got to agree, a Relay does complicate things and isnt necessary on most scooters.... But there is one advantage if you decide to fit one, in that the battery can be isolated so that it wont discharge through the electrics once switched off... as happens on my TV the battery will discharge over about a month if its not used no relay in use....

The standard ignition switch can be usde to latch the relay into its working position and when the ignition is turned off the circuit is left open... MSC used to do a similar thing with there Motoplat ignition system as this used an energised rectifier so they sent the latching current through the lighting side of the ignition switch which allowed the battery to be used to trigger the rectifier similar way of switching but no relay on there system, but the ignition switch working the rectifier instead...

But as stated, its more to wire up and can be more to go wrong... but it can have its advantages...

The ticking sound you describe, it sounds like you have purchased a flasher relay... A relay switch is usually one thats used for Spotlights in car accessory shops but there are many types and makes...

I would have prefered to fit the this system but perhaps cuz of my odd system anyway it doesnt like my setup. Also, the company sold me one that is cheaper for the same price as the "A" version. Notices the lack of a pin but the number is there. Looks like thats going. back

I wouldn't be too worried about your battery draining on you. Batteries drain all by themselves if they aren't used and the best way to prevent it happening is to use them and then charge them. The trickle charger should do the job but charging on a decent battery charger or battery conditioner once or twice a year would extend the life of the battery.

Sounds like you've got it sorted now. The good thing about having a basic system is that there are less parts to go wrong which makes it easier to fix (fingers crossed you dont have to any time soon)