Heavy-duty Toggle Switch: How Does it Work on an Auto Wiring Harness
Michael Niu
Business Development Manager| Focus on Custom Cable Solutions| One-stop Services
About Heavy-duty toggle switch, When working on an automotive wiring harness project, a switch is one of the most common components you will need.
?While there are many designs of switches, the “toggle switch” is the most popular.?
We have compiled this guide to help you understand how a heavy-duty toggle switch works on an automotive wiring harness.
Table of Contents
Where is a heavy-duty toggle switch used in a Vehicle?
A toggle switch turns a specific accessory, featuring OFF and ON.
It works by connecting or interrupting the current flow to a specific accessory.?
Turning the toggle On places the metal contact to the circuit, closing the circuit and allowing the flow of electrical current.
On the other hand, turning the toggle switch OFF removes the contact from the circuit, breaking the current flow through it.
You can get toggle switches on all types of electronics, including audio equipment, electric toys, fax machines, etc. As for the automotive industry, heavy-duty toggle switches are common in older cars.?
Meanwhile, most recent cars only have heavy-duty toggle switches because car drivers and owners like the feel and look of toggle switches.?
So, toggle switches are customizable and come in different sizes, styles, and colors.
Here are the common uses of toggle switches in automotive:
Connecting a toggle switch is a common upgrade among automotive owners and drivers.
Besides, a toggle switch can be a perfect fix for broken switches since it is easy to install and cheap.
Also, connecting a toggle switch gives you the freedom to include additional modifications, such as an ON delay timer.
Wiring a heavy-duty toggle switch (take the power windows, for example)
What you require:
Step 1: Kow about how power windows work first
A toggle switch is a momentary switch that works via a push button or projecting lever that moves sideways or down and up.?
Other than the ON and OFF positions, the toggle switch doesn’t latch in a set position, making it a perfect switch for power windows.
The power window motor has two wires connecting its negative and positive terminals through a toggle switch to form a power source, usually a battery.
When you flip the toggle switch, the window motor’s polarity is reversed, causing the window to ascend or descend depending on the wiring of your power window.
Step 2: Test your power window using a jump starter
You do not need to remove the motor to do this.
If the window moves up, swap the positive and negative wire connections and observe the movement of the window. If your window moves down, your power window motor is fully functional.
Step 3: Add connecting wires to your power window motor
In this step, you will use a red wire for the power connection and a yellow wire for the ground wiring.
Step 4: Wire your power window motor to a toggle switch
Connect the window motor’s yellow (ground) and red (power) wires to the ground and power wires on your toggle switch.?
Usually, the white and black wires on the toggle switch represent power and ground wires.
Make wire connections on either end of your toggle switch.
Step 5: Lowering and raising the window
Make multiple wirings on your toggle switch, which will allow you to raise or lower the windows.
You can do this by connecting one of the power wires to the other side of your toggle switch. Repeat this on the ground wire.
Step 6: Connect the in-line 20 amps fuse
When there is a power surge, a fuse will protect your switch from breaking.
Therefore, make sure you install a fuse between the red wire coming from the positive terminal of the battery and the white wire coming from your toggle switch.
Link the fuse by wrapping one of its ends to one terminal of your positive wire and the other end wrapped to another wire. This forms one continuous electrical line, thus the name in-line fuse.
You can insulate your connection points using duct tape to ensure optimal safety.
Step 7: Connect your toggle switch to a 12V battery
The power window motor needs a power source to work. Therefore, strip around one inch of the insulation on the black and white wires from your toggle switch.
Then, attach the white wire to a red alligator clip and hook it to the positive terminal of the battery.?
Next, attach the black wire to a black alligator clip and hook it to the negative terminal of the battery.
Step 8: Test your power window
Test your toggle (momentary) switch by pressing the toggle on one side to see if the window moves up or down.?
Flip it again to the other side and observe the movement of the window.
The inclination of the toggle lever that moves your car window up represents the ON position.?
The other inclination is the OFF position. A toggle can either move to the ON or OFF position, and it can not get stuck.
Depending on your specifications, you can choose to solder things up or maintain wire nuts in the wires’ connection points.
Moreover, you can prevent any confusion that may cause short-circuiting by using the standard AWG color codes.
Want to change your toggle switch wiring harness?
The internal delamination or failure of a toggle switch is a common problem.?
Fortunately, you can replace it with a plug-and-play switch wiring harness to proactively prevent potential problems going forward.
?It also helps you to correct or replace a switch that has already failed.
Factory switch wiring harness
Most people have a car that has a built-in switch. So, you only need to go on the internet and find the wiring diagram for the car. It will show you where each wire should go.
Aftermarket switch wiring harness
Some of you have a car that does not include a factory switch.
In such cases, using an aftermarket switch wiring harness is the easiest method.
However, some individuals do not like the feel and look of an aftermarket switch wiring harness unit.?
So, they want to hide it. The good news is that it is easy to hide your aftermarket unit under the seat, by the shifter, etc.
Custom switch wiring harness at Clooms Tech
The custom wiring harnesses from Cloom connect to the factory plug using correctly sized connectors.?
Therefore, you don’t need to splice or cut the factory wires, which ensures a long life of trouble-free operation and delivers a superior connection all the time.?
These custom switch wiring harnesses at Clooms Tech are perfect for operating things like control panels, horns, headlights, power tonneau covers, linear actuators, sunroofs, door locks, power windows, and more.
They are ideal for a variety of 12V industrial, marine, and automotive applications.
Conclusion
We understand that all automobiles are not the same, so we manufacture a range of custom-designed wiring harnesses and cable assemblies for particular vehicle makes and models.?
Therefore, if you need a heavy-duty toggle switch wiring harness, Clooms Tech has got you covered!