Hi all, I spend a lot of time on this forum and gain a lot of information , I don't post much but I do read a lot. My question is this. I am trying to install carbon fiber heat pads on my 2013 Road King 110th anniversary edition. The kit has pre-wired electrical harness with a relay and a high/low rocker switch. I have it connected to the auxiliary plug under the seat. When I put the bike on ACC and flip the toggle on the front of the bike The LED on the rocker switch does not light. If I switch the rocker switch from low to high I can hear the relay move and the LED temporarily lights but doesn't stay on. No voltage from the switch. If I connect the harness directly to the battery the rocker switch will light the red LED and the green LED of the switch. I rode the bike yesterday and the seat worked very well for about 30 minutes then it shut off. The heating pads our supposed to work at 12v +/- 3v. I checked the output at the connection of the switch with the bike running at 14.1 volts.

Sorry for the long story , but I don't know why it won't work of the extra plug under the seat. I don't want to wire it directly to the battery because it won't shut off when the ignition is off. Any ideas as to what is going on and how do I get this seat heater to work.

Thanks Bob

 

Did you check voltages with in the accessory plug under the seat? The one that is switch activated? Verify that you're voltage and continuity is good there first. If it is, I'd say you have a defective unit. Got a link to it?

 

Seat heaters typically have a thermistor that will regulate the heating element. (turn it on and off) Seat heaters are a very high current accessory that if left on at full voltage could seriously burn your backside. My guess is that the circuit you are trying to use under your seat is circuit breaker protected to a much lower amperage than your heating elements are drawing from the circuit. That would explain the light coming on, then going off. As a heating element warms up, current flow typically increases and probably exceeds what the circuit breaker is rated for.

 

You have to know the current pulled by that heater before using the assy switch contacts. Otherwise you could damage the switch contacts. If your kit is supplied with a relay and a switch, then why not use them? If you can't remember to turn it off, then use a second relay on the tail light feed that will make and break the voltage going to the coil of the heater relay. That kind of assy shud be connected directly to the battery for best results.

 

yup.

you could also post the current draw of the heater- if you know it.

if not rated in amps you can calculate;

for every 100 watts (at 12 volts) the heater will draw 8.33 Amps of current.

so a 1000 watt heater will draw 83.33 amps, which is more than the charging system can handle

as above, use the kit to wire to the battery, use a correctly rated fuse.

mike

 

Just a note to post a foloow up to my original question. I want to thank those who replied. It appears tha just2anoyu is correct. The acccessory plug under the seat has four pins, 2 are controlled by the switch and another combination is directly to the battery but is controlled by the ignition. I re-wired the plug and the unit appears to be working fine. By the way the seat draws 4amps on low and 5 amps on high, so I think it is fine on a dedicated circuit. It appears that the accessary switch is unable to handle that load. Thanks again for the replies.