Blue Sea Fuse Block

[4xFar Adventures]

Ok, I didn't want to derail the dual battery thread so I figured I'd make a new post here.

All of this was connected to my main battery!


A 150A MEGA fuse is bolted in front of the red bottle jack. It's kinda hard to see, but the bolts for the holder are just above the battery.


My buddy made the bracket to hold the fuse block and relays. It's about the only space available.



Here is my Blue Sea 12 block fuse box setup. You can see the thick main positive and negative wires from the MEGA fuse going into the box.


The relays are from Hella and they are secured with self tappers. The open space is for an LED light bar that is sitting on my shelf. The original wiring in the first pic had a positive lead for each LED in the binnacle switches, they were slowly added over the years. Now there's one main wire just for those LEDs out of the fuse box. In the cabin they are split to power each LED in the binnacle switches (rear work, inner and outer roof rack lights). Since this pic was taken, the ARB fridge and HAM radio have been added to the block, for a total of 7 circuits.

 

[4xFar Adventures]

Here's the first wiring diagram I made for the rear work light. The light was originally a dual 55W halogen, so it was wired for lots of juice.



The four numbers around the Fused Relay and C/C Switch diagram are marked on the relays. You'll need to figure the pin outs for what ever switch you use, but the Hella can be followed from the diagram. For the Land Rover D2, the only switch that acts the way you want is the cruise control switch. The faceplates are removable so you can pick a different one that better represents what the light does (some of them may need to be flipped). When the C/C switch is pressed, it in turn passes current through pin 4 to pin 86 on the relay (green wire). This is a small current that just needs to energize the switch in the Hella Fused Relay. That is the clicking you hear when you power something on. If the light isn't working, and there's no click sound, you have a bad relay. When the relay switch completes the main circuit, it sends the real power to the lamp (pin 87 and 85).

It seems confusing at first, but you can make all of this work before routing and mounting everything on the vehicle. Just make temporary connections with a little wire on the terminals and see how it all connects. You can then use the diagram for other lighting, or switched power needs. Connecting the fridge or radio is even easier. You just need to run the + and - wires from the device straight to the fuseblock. If you're not sure of the wire gauge needed, there are calculators out there.

 

[Captain Josh]

How do you like your panel? I was looking at getting one for my own nest of wires.

 

[4xFar Adventures]

Now that I have it, I should have started with it. But, of course, I didn't know how many things were going to be added over the years. Organization, labeled circuits, and fuses all in one place make it a no brainer.

 

[Scott]

Great stuff. I have a 6 position blue seas box I need to wire soon. But I can't with the weather the way it is.

Sent from my LG-H810 using Tapatalk

 

[4xFar Adventures]

I like the compactness of the 6 fuse block, it can fit almost anywhere. By the time I added the block, the 6 wouldn't have been enough.

 

[Justin Moss]

I have one of the Blue Sea Fuse Blocks in my Expedition Trailer. I was actually quite surprised at the quality of the panel. It seems very sturdy and is easy to work with.

Also, I love the idea of tapping into the CC switch to operate auxiliary lights. I'm going to have to think about that some more. Thanks.

Justin

 

[Teague]

@Disco2Guy In the last picture, are the three blue boxes to the right more fuses?

 

[Overland-Indiana]

@Disco2Guy In the last picture, are the three blue boxes to the right more fuses?

Those are relays.

 

[VCeXpedition]

I have had a BlueSea fuse block under my hood for several years now. It doesn't seem to weather very well.
No failures yet but it doesn't appear to be weather resistant, seems it would do better in a covered location.

When the time comes, I'm going to replace it with a more robust panel that's designed for this kind of exposure to the elements.
When I find that magic panel, i'll post up here, no joy yet. Suggestions welcome.

 

[Flipper]

Go to Home Depot , electrical dept, get a can of CRC 2-26, every once and a while spray your terminal block down, hit the crimp connectors also, if you want to waterproof a block get CRC heavy duty corrosion inhibitor and spray it down when new, also when you strip your wires back spray some on the bare wire and into the connector before you crimp it, it great to spray on battery terminals when new, you can come back 3 years later and it will look like the day you put it in, Blue Seas is high end you just have to maintain it, I used to do high end marine electrical and electronic installs before I retired , get the CRC you won't regret it


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[fire_chaser207]

Flipper, That's a great tip with the CRC. I have a split 12 block blue sea and am about to head up and am definitely going to pick some of that stuff up! I'm in Maine, so the weather doesn't always cooperate, something like that is a godsend!