Toddman38

iTrader: (5)

Pool Runner.... Try this Mod. Out, its ***** I and Many OP love it!
https://www.f150forum.com/f38/led-bedlights-143928/

JCooper

I remember my old 1984 Chevy Scottsdale had that huge switch on the post above the drivers seat belt. It was great.

Your not an idiot... they are. I'm guessing there's a reason. Maybe so it comes on with dome lights when door opens? I hate that too. Why can I have the a/c on at 62° in the drivers seat, while my wife has the heat on at 80°, 12" away, in the passenger seat, but I can't have control of a freakin cargo lamp?

JCooper

Tying kids up is illegal, I think.

bfever74

I do secure things, I'm just OCD about it. I hauled a mattress that was secured, but I wanted to check every 10 minutes or so to make sure the wind wasn't shredding it.

Someone had told me this the last time I was complaining about it, but I couldnt' get it to work. And I have a 2010 also. Weird.

I had a 2001 Silverado awhile back and that is the first thing I thought of when I realized I couldn't turn the cargo light on without the dome lights. But that is the ONLY thing I miss about the Chevy

mamonti

I think you have to hit the switch on the right side one more time to activate the cargo light. So when you push and hold the switch to the right the first time it increases the dash lights, once it get to the brightest setting you then remove your finger and push it again on the right side. To turn it off just push the let side and adjust your dash lights to the brightness you like. I hope this works for you!

broilermaker

I am new to this site and also to Ford trucks. I just got my first Ford Fx4 Screw two weeks ago. Have been a GM driver for years but wanted to try Ford after last two GM vehicles had multiple issues. I love the truck but really wanted to a switch for my cargo light and used mamonti's plan and it works great. Thanks so much!!! I was wondering now if there is a way to kill my interior lights when I have the doors open. One of the features I miss from GM. Have any ideas mamonti? Any way I can splice a switch in a line? Also for my diode I used a 6 amp bussman minifuse type diode in a inline fuse holder. Seems to be working fine, does it sound okay to you?

mamonti

Glad things worked out for you and that size diode will never burn out! As for the interior lights not wanting them to come on when you open the door,,,,,, well first I am sure I can figure it out, but I will have to look into it. Second, if I am not mistaking there are two *3* lights that come on including the exterior parking lamps and puddle lights when you open the door. the two map lights up front and the rear dome light are probably what you don't want to come on. If this is true then I would have to look at the circuits to see about the map lights but you can just set the dome light to off as there are (should be) 3 settings, always on, on when doors are opened *or cargo light is switched* or off. just set it to off and that will take care of that part. If you want to go to the extreme, incognito, surveillance mode then you should look at nothing coming on and that would be more entailed. as to getting things shut down. Let me know if you want me to look into it and how far, what don't you want to come on.

Theocoog

This can also be enabled by the dealer with a setting in the ECM. Search the forum for "dark mode" - there's quite a few threads on it.

jlinville

Mamonti,
I have a set of Bluewater LED lights for the bed of my truck. The kit came with a weatherproof switch. I have been hesitant to install because I want the lights to work with a switch in the cab (which I have from OTRATTW) as well as the switch in the bed. Lately, I have been thinking about this issue with the with the dome light and cargo light coming on with the dimmer in the cab. If I follow your wiring diagram above, would I need to add another fuse if I added the LED lights to the circuit?

mamonti

You can never have to many fuses!! so it is always a good idea to add a fuse to an added circuit. Led lights take very little current to operate compared to a regular bulb so a small amp fuse would be a good idea incase you get a short from the leds or wiring going to them. In that case the less amp fuse would go first which would also show you on what side the short is!! So I would add the fuse.

Now lets talk the weather proof switch. Do you want to use it so that the cargo light doesn't have to be on, or when the cargo light is on you still may want to shut off the leds?

1. cargo light is on and I want to shut off the leds. Then one side of the switch will be connected to the ground and the other to the ground of the leds!

2. cargo light is off but I want to turn on the leds when I open the tailgate. Then you have to run another constant positive wire to the switch then to the positive wire on the leds. There you would want an additional fuse and a diode unless your weather proof switch is a spdt switch.