May 13, 2011

Well, I should be studying but playing with electricity is 100x more fun *sarcastically speaking*.  Anyhow, I've gotten onto my second part of the LED Project.  So, I have bought 4 Blue 30cm LED strips from Ebay and  I've installed them as interior lighting following a DIY on 8th Civic.  However, I went the ghetto way and didn't follow 100%.  I went cheapo by a) simply using masking tape and electric tape to hold the strips and wires, b) used the electric tape to connect the two wires (again, I don't know where my sodder gun/sodder is in my basement, c) didn't take anything apart to "hide" the wires except for the left kick panel which was in the way, and d) used one color wire for everything (to indicate negative, I got a sharpie and electric tape and made markings on the wire).  Therefore, I will not do a DIY but instead give you hints and tips if you want to follow this project.

Overall, the difficulty is about 7/10 since there are a lot of "panels" to remove (if you wanna professionally hide the wires).  It took about a total of 4 hours because I was noob at wiring and also because I kept testing with a 9v battery to make sure the connections were secure, and because the kick panel was so annoying to remove.  Also, eBay LEDs are not too bad.  One of them had a  bad connection in the strip from the way they packaged it, but it eventually worked out.  Another one had one LED bulb that was misfiring, but it had no effect on overall lighting (Thank goodness).  But don't worry if you get a bad strip because eBay sellers are generally really nice.  If anything, threaten them with a rating of 1 star.  Enjoy those pics and hints! (Scroll down)

Hints:

1) Masking tape hold the strip really well without affecting the light.
2) Electric Tape can replace soddering, but for more secure connections, use sodder and or butt connectors or male/female connectors for easy disconnection
3) Total cost should not exceed $20.  Wires and switch were the most expensive, at $5 per 30ft roll and $4 per switch.  4 Blue LED strips cost only $6 incl. shipping.  Parallel-Taps will work just as well as T-Taps and they cost $1.50 for 4.  Female insulated connectors cost me $1.50.
4) Make sure you DISCONNECT YOUR FUSE #22 (it's 7.5Amp) in your fuse box BEFORE TAPPING THE PINK AND Light BLUE WIRE of the blue harness.  That way, you won't short and blow a fuse.. which costs $5 for 5 fuses.  Pink is the negative wire that allows the fading while light blue is the postive constant wire.
5) Remove the left kick panel by the interior fuse box for better access to the wires.  You should remove the dead pedal (simply get a hex screw to remove the bottom clip and your fingernail or flathead screwdriver to remove the upper clip).  You don't have to remove the door sill panel but just loosen the section closest to the kick panel because the kick panel is held underneath the door sill panel.  Refer to Trim Removal DIY on 8th Civic. for details.
6) For better access to the wires, you should disconnect the blue harness (there's a tab at the bottom of the clip that you depress to release the clip).  You should strip away the electric tape and the black wire protectors (3 cm should suffice).
7) IF YOU LEAVE IT IN "ALWAYS ON MODE", REMEMBER TO TURN OFF YOUR LIGHTS OR SET THE 3 WAY SWITCH TO AUTO WHEN YOU LEAVE OR RISK DRAINING YOUR BATTERY.
8) T-Taps and Parallel Taps Must be Clamped on HARD in order to puncture the rubber sheath of the wire.  Clamp the metal portion FIRST before you close it, incase you didn't figure it out.

And here are the pics.  Enjoy!  Feel free to post a comment!  I'll try my best to help solve your problems

(Nice Blue to match the instrument panel)

(To illustrate how bright the strips are and yes, the passenger LED  is not taped yet.)

(Voila, everything mounted.  Note the white 12smd LED map lights)

(Rear passenger lights)