Quote:
Originally Posted by DanSTL
Pics of frayed wire going inside
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The previous owner of Dan's TM had issues with the factory installed 'cigarette ligher' ports - and added a pair of badly done add-in ports, near the microwave area, to augment/replace the factory ports.
TM's cigarette lighter ports form those older model years had two major issues:
- The diameter of the socket was too small (narrow) for most plugs to fit in and reach all the way to the "+" pin at the bottom of the socket.postive rrow) Snarrow for a lot of plugs to fit any aul diZAmeter
- The units each contained a tiny fuse - extremely hard to replace, and allowing for only small amperage.
The 'upgrade' ports are connected on twin lead "lamp cord" wire pairs, in a confusing way. The upgrade port units are simple, and they do not contain any fuses. They depend of an external fuse to protect the sockets from short circuit, and the prior owner (as far as I can tell) DID NOT put fuses in the lamp cord "+12v" wires back to the battery.
Lamp cord is indoor only, and the insulation is very easily cut. The underside of the TM floor would not be a safe location for such wire, even if it HAD BEEN properly fused. (Wrapping in electric tape is not sufficient).
The cigarette lighter sockets themselves seem somewhat OK, although the grounding terminals are only 1/4" male connectors (rather than screw-down terminals), and the "+" connections were probably made without lugs. For any amount of current above 6A continuous, I prefer to use a high-current twist lock socket with good screw-down wire connections. (Not a mere cigarette lighter "press in" plug and socket combo.) But those sockets and plugs (NEMA L2-20, un-grounded with only two poles) are very expensive. You must purchase and install both the TM socket and the equipment line plug to make it work - and the equipment will no longer be usable with a regular "12v socket".
I have one socket in my TM for such equipment, here's a view of the plug involved:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/235192494546
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The current sockets can be fixed for lower current devices (10A maximum, 7A maximum continuous). The routing of the propane powered cabin heater "12v" supply wire (used for the fan and ignition) might run along the lower side wall or floor before crossing underneath the door, that would avoid having twin-lead pairs wires hanging all the way from the front battery box.
But if that's hard to find, then just a SINGLE red leasd should be run underneath the TM floor, and it must be fused immediately following the battery terminal connection (inside the battery box). That fuse should not be higher than 20A for both sockets, and the wire should be 10-AWG.