12V power outlet in the bed

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Hardcore1

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I am looking to add a 12V accessory socket in the bed just to the left of the tailgate at the rear drivers side corner. Where is the best place to tap into the harness for 12V? I anticipate a max of 15 amps draw from this socket.
 

Core-Lokt

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I would run dedicated wires to the battery. You don't disturb the factory wiring, you can size (and fuse) your circuit to your needs and it's possibly less hassle than trying to find an always-hot (I guess that's what you want? Or switched?) wire in a harness. You could add a switch, if you wanted.
 
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MikeT

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Is this outlet going to be exposed to the weather?
If so best to make sure water/snow can't get to it. It will solve future corrosion and shorting problems. Make sure your wire & fuse will be able to handle a little more than your anticipated maximum current draw, a 20 amp fuse and 30 amp wire for an anticipated maximum of 15 amp draw.

Mike
 

Rado

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You can get a exterior 12 volt outlet to use,And as mentioned try and keep it from the weather as best as possible. Going with a Fused Direct connection is a safe choice but the outlet will be Hot 24/7, You can add a toggle switch in the cab to shut it off when not in use ! As for gauge of wire go larger then you think you may need,you never know.. I would get wire rated for 20 amp or 30 amp and run the 15 amp fuse,, better safe the sorry and if needs grow you can safely increase the fuse size
 
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Hardcore1

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Thank you everyone for the good information. Lets now try again. If you were going to tap into the factory harness for a marine grade accessory outlet that will carry max 15 amps and be protected from the weather under a tonneau in the drivers side rear corner of the bed, where and what wire would you tap into?
 

justin13703

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Don't tap into any factory harness. Run its own wiring up front and either connect it to the battery or to a switched source in the TIPM.

Your truck is an 07. All the circuits are computer monitored and controlled so that if a current draw gets over some set number, it trips. Tapping an additional 15 amp load into some factory harness is a bad idea not only because of causing issues with the TIPM and overloading, but also because of wire sizes.
 
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