slot above stereo

[xtwoonamatchx]

i just had an idea i may follow through on.... wire up a couple leds to turn on when you open the slot above the stereo's "door"

i would need some sort of mini doorpin switch, but dont know where to start looking for them, i mean, i could fashion something to do it, but would probably be easier with a premade switch.

any ideas?

[BBISHOPPCM]

What are you trying to turn on? I would use a magnetic switch. The switch could be mounted under the floor of the compartment near the door, and a small powerful magnet could be mounted to the inside bottom lip of the door.

[xtwoonamatchx]

im trying to maybe wire in an led or 2 to light up when you open it.

[xtwoonamatchx]

also... would i need a normally open or normally closed, if i wanted it to turn on when the "door" is open

[jfanaselle]

It would be difficult, because you need a switch that actually interrupts the circuit when it's engaged (so that the light turns on when the door lifts off of the switch and turns off when the door closes back down on it). The are available (similar switch to you refridgerator light or your dome light in your car) but you'll probably have a difficult time finding one tiny enough to use for this application. Try radioshack.

[xtwoonamatchx]

yeah, or i could possibly use a relay? where when the magnetic switch is opened (no current) it would turn on the switch... what relay would i need for that?

[XterraVersa]

If you are using LEDs, why worry about a switch. Very little draw & virtually no heat. You would probably not even see the light when it is closed.

[jfanaselle]

a basic spst (single pole, single throw) relay would work, but you just need one that switches on when the current from the switch is interrupted. I'm searching the web but can't seem to find anything. It's funny, because I know there are a milliion applications where something like this is used, but I can't seem to find one!

[xtwoonamatchx]

well i know it will be possible, cause when i turn on my dome light, i can see the light reflecting off of my sunglasses in there, which means light goes throug =p... and jfanaselle.... i realy appreciate your help =]

[jfanaselle]

" TARGET="_blank">http://cgi.ebay.com/5-PACK-12V...124

http://cgi.ebay.com/Reed-Magne...wItem

These look like they'd work. They are double throw, with one of the throws being normally open and one being normally closed. You'd use the normally open, meaning that when the magnet is engaging the reed switch (the door is closed), it sends a ground signal to the relay which interrupts the circuit (the light will be off). When the magnet moves away from the reed switch (the door is open), it'll "open" the reed switch, which will interrupt current to the relay which will actually switch on the lights.

Seems like alot of wiring, but it could definately be done!

[xtwoonamatchx]

well... with the relays... would those be the same i would use to wire my fogs to the headlights? cause if so, thats an AWESOME buy.... but what would i do with those Reed switches, it looks like just one piece of glass, how does that switch things? like do i use 2 of them or another kind of magnet or what?

sorry... im getting into a realm of wireing ive never been in before =\

[jfanaselle]

The reed switch is a little switch that turns on when it's near a magnet and shuts off when the magnetic field goes away: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reed_switch

You would ground out one side of the switch, and run the other side to the relay. Then you would mount it underneith the little pocket in the dash, and you would glue or stick a little magnet on the door of the pocket.

When the door is closed, the magnet would be right above the switch and would cause it to "close" which would start sending current to the relay, which would shut off the lights. When the door opens, the magnet would be away from the reed switch, which would make it "open", which would stop sending current to the relay, which would turn the lights on.

[xtwoonamatchx]

wow dude.... you are amazing. haha, all i need to know is if i can use those relays to install fogs to my headlights =p if i cant, then ill just get them at RS or something, thanks for your help tho!

[jfanaselle]

Yes you can. Since it's a "double throw" relay, it would switch one way when it gets current, and would switch the other way when it doesn't. Just don't hook any wires up to the side that it switches to when there is no current to the relay - hook your fogs up to the side that it switches to when the relay is receiving current (you flip the switch in the car, it sends current to the relay, which engages the circuit between the battery and the fogs and turns them on).

I've never actually wired one of these relays before, but I would hope they come with some instructions on which side is "open" and which side is "closed" and where to hook everything up. If not, I'm sure you could find some stuff on the web. Good ol' internet!

[Julz]

you'll need a resistor or two if you want the leds to last. I've put leds in all the air vents, and have had to replace quite a few... (not due to temp)there's also a separate set along each side of the windshield thats directly routed into the dome light feed wires.There's a bit of math involved in which resistor and how many, depending on the # of leds. I got lazy and just kept swappin'em out till the leds lasted more than a few weeks... about 4 months now so far so good...

also as an added flare to the amp in the trunk, I installed a 20" neon light under that rising rear sill cover that's tapped into the trunk lights power feed. (that light's available from "Optx", which i found at AdvanceAuto Parts)

[monkeybear]

sounds sweet, got any pics?

[xtwoonamatchx]

yeah, that i did know, ive been working with leds for years... i was an xbox modding nerd... haha but yeah, i guess i would have to find out... ill probably get on this after i install my headunit im getting and i can see what im dealing with. ill definately keep everyone up to date.

[phikapbob]

anyone know how hard it would be to permanently remove the door to this thing? I've considered mounting a Sirius player there, or a GPS. would there be some fugly holes left to hide?

[xtwoonamatchx]

i was just thinking, could putting a magnet above my stereo interfere with it at all? whether it be cds, stereo interference, or anything at all... was thinkin about this. haha

[Ever Victorious]

Not likely. Stereos don't rely so much on variable magnetic coils to tune to stations like they used to.

Now, if you had, for instance... one of those Pioneer NAV stereos w/30GB drive, you COULD corrupt the hard drive.

[xtwoonamatchx]

alright, thank you... ill keep everyone up to date with this project.