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Old 07-18-2017, 08:25 PM   #1
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USB Socket Charger

Good afternoon,

While I am putting the front wall of my Sunny, I had an idea. There was a set of wires capped off in the wall (black and white). I was wondering if it could be used to hookup a USB socket charger? I could only find one related thread but could not tell how the unit was to be connected. If the wires can be used, I need to route the wires before the front wall is complete.

Thanks,
Tommie

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Old 07-19-2017, 02:15 PM   #2
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Tommie,
There's usually a cigarette lighter style outlet in your trailer somewhere near the TV. I use that for a double USB cigarette lighter plug ($10) that slides right in for all of our USB stuff.

As a former IT professional, I highly recommend not hard-wiring USB outlets to any application because when the next thing comes along that replaces USB, you'll have to it all over again.

If you do hard-wire something in, you'll need to use a multi-meter to test if the wires are household 110 Volt AC or 12 Volt DC, then you'll need to know if your new hardware is 110 V AC or 24 V DC for a match. The description of the item will tell you the latter.
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Old 07-19-2017, 02:55 PM   #3
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Hi tony17112acst,

Thanks for the response. It appears that if this trailer had a cigarette lighter type plug, it is long gone now. Maybe that's where the wires came from. I could just add in a cigarette type plug and go from there. We have adapters that we use in the car. I will give it some thought.

Thanks again.

Tommie

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Old 07-19-2017, 03:22 PM   #4
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Tony, per my records, the TV antenna booster (which the 12v plug and booster together as) didn't become an option until 1987, but only on the Satellite/Solaris/Seville trailers, and fifth wheels.

It became available on Saturns as well (but still an option) sometime around 1990/91.

It became a standard feature on all Sunlines in 1994.
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Old 07-19-2017, 04:25 PM   #5
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I say go for it. Like you said, now's the time to relocate the wires. I'd bet money those are 12 volt wires.
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Old 07-19-2017, 05:05 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by johnnybgood View Post
I say go for it. Like you said, now's the time to relocate the wires. I'd bet money those are 12 volt wires.
Thanks Johnnybgood. I probably will as we have cell phones and tablets and only 3 wall outlets. Gotta have the TV and stuff. [emoji51]

When technology changes as Tony17112 stated and you know it will, I can swap it out. The way I plan to run it, it should be a simple swap out when the time comes. I have a couple of multimeters but can't seem to find either one of them.[emoji53] But I will test the wires when I get a chance.

Thanks again.

Tommie

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Old 07-19-2017, 05:12 PM   #7
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I may not need the multimeter. It looks like those wires are coming from the light. So basically there is wire coming from the roof to the light and then another set of wires coming from the light back out and those are the wires that are just hanging here.

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Old 07-19-2017, 05:21 PM   #8
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Do you have a utility light outside on the front, just below the window? If not, they may have run the wires to allow that to be added later.
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Old 07-19-2017, 05:30 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunline Fan View Post
Do you have a utility light outside on the front, just below the window? If not, they may have run the wires to allow that to be added later.
I don't have a light in the front. Do you think I would be able to use those wires to hook up the device?

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Old 07-19-2017, 07:41 PM   #10
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Ho Tommie,

Since you have the wall open now, this is the time for additions if you need them.

"IF" those are DC wires, and you confirm that, you can use those wires to wire in an outside hitch light and your inside USB stuff. The fuse will protect the amperage. The amps draw is low on these and if you have an LED hitch area light, it is even better but in this case even the standard 921 bulb will work and it really is not on a lot or very long. The hitch light is handy for night time hitching or fiddling with the LP tanks. I have the hitch light and do use it from time to time. I would miss it if I did not have it.

Ideally on the inside put a wall outlet box if you can. Then if USB goes out, the box is there and you can change the fixture to what ever you need at the time. Point is, the wiring and box is in place now while the wall is open.

Good luck

John
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Old 07-19-2017, 08:20 PM   #11
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Thanks to all.

The dinette already has an existing outlet. I plan to run the wires through the bunk support on the driver side and drill a hole in the top to pull the wires through. The wires appear to be long enough. I plan to build a box out of some of the wall board and pine strips to enclose the device and hide the wires. For now, I'll just run the wires through.
Thanks for all of the input.

Thanks,
Tommie
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Old 07-22-2017, 06:55 PM   #12
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Good evening,

I was able to confirm that the wires are DC and functional. Now just need to decide what I want to do with it. My mind seems to change daily.

Thanks,
Tommie
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Old 07-22-2017, 07:54 PM   #13
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Great! Now to decide on the many options you can create!
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Old 07-23-2017, 06:57 AM   #14
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As long as your black and white wires are loose (no jacket) they are 12 volt. I would fuse the new panel with a fuse of lesser value than the lights if it does not have one so if anything went wrong with the panel you would still have lights. A 10 amp fuse would be plenty big enough for the USB outlets.
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Old 07-30-2017, 03:06 PM   #15
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Good afternoon,

I hooked up the USB socket charger that also has a voltmeter. I bought a couple of LED bulbs to test.

No lights on.


With old light bulbs.


With LED bulbs.


I was advised that LED bulbs drew less power but this seems to be a big difference to me. I like the lighting from them a lot better too. Ordered the cool white. I will definitely be ordering more.

Old bulbs


LED bulbs


Very pleased.

Thanks for looking.

Tommie
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Old 07-30-2017, 07:44 PM   #16
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Hi Tommie,

Yes, the LED lights draw a lot less power then the older incandescent bulbs. In some cases, 5.2 times less....

A heads up in case you did not realize this. Your battery needs a charge or your new volt meter may have a problem.

See this chart for what the percent of charge verses what voltage in a resting battery state in a lead acid battery. Scroll down to the testing section and under "II Open Voltage test" there are directions on taking the open voltage test and a chart under it for voltage = what percent state of charge
Battery Maintenance | Trojan Battery Company

What triggered my thoughts on this is, 100% state of charge is 12.73 volts for an open voltage. 11.81 volts is 30% state of charge for an open voltage. If that new volt meter is correct, your battery is close to dead and needs to get on a charger soon. Check the liquid level too.

Also to add to this, to get a true open or resting voltage reading on a battery, it the battery needs to be at rest. The Trojan site did not mention this in this section. Meaning there is nothing drawing current from it and it has had some time to stabilize from charging. Stabilize, meaning it has been taken off the battery charger or unhooked from the truck charging for at least 8 hours. You can get tricked with a high surface charge when just being unhooked from a charger. The charge voltage is 13.25 (float mode) and above. 13.6 volts is standard charge, while 14.4 V if you have a 3 stage charger is boost mode. That high surface charge will bleed down once unhooked from the charger over time and settle out at what the real state of charge is about 8 hours later.

Your lights looks really nice. Thanks for sharing

John
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Old 07-30-2017, 10:08 PM   #17
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Thanks JohnB. Yes, the battery is low. I actually plugged it in for a little while today and plan to plug it in again tomorrow. I will check it again tomorrow after it has been on charge. I will also check out the battery maintenance link you provided.

Thanks again.

Tommie
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