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Install Hall of Shame...

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eLightbars.org Forum -> Installs and member rides

Author	Message
TNYankee Regular Joined: 27 Oct 2006 Posts: 488 Location: East Tennessee / Smokies	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 06:10    Post subject: Install Hall of Shame... I have decided to post some examples of the poor workmanship, poor planning, lack of common sense, technical ignorance, and basic crappy installations I come across. Typically, I encounter these up-fits as repair work, decommissioning jobs, or when upgrading the warning systems. It is truly amazing and shocking to see what other shops pass of as an up-fit, not to mention to hear what they charge! I think that the professional installers on this board will not be to surprised at what they see, but some others here may be...or may learn from these examples. I encourage other installers to add to this and maybe we can make it \"sticky-worthy.\" Enjoy! The four phases of seeing these upfits: *********************************************************** To start, let's talk about a 2004 Tahoe brought in with numerous electrical gremlins and a request to re-mount the flashlights. We started pulling it apart to find: This under the passenger floor board! And inside the console... And under the rear seat... And on the driver-side... Driver's A-pillar... The gunracks' power connection... Under the hood... The siren speaker had no cones and sounded very weak... Not the smartest was to tap into a fuse... So, we fixed it up for them... Finished interior... Cleaned-up wiring under the seat... New MS100 speaker with universal mount bracket on custom cross-bar: Well, what do you think? More to follow... Last edited by TNYankee on Tue 29-May-2007 06:31; edited 1 time in total
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FrankC Suspended user Joined: 05 Apr 2007 Posts: 2851 Location: Richmond, TX	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 06:14    Post subject: Wow, that \"install\" was a rolling fire hazard! My 12 year old could have done better! LOL Glad to see you got them taken care of, well done install; nice attention to details.
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TNYankee Regular Joined: 27 Oct 2006 Posts: 488 Location: East Tennessee / Smokies	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 06:24    Post subject: This unit, a '94 Crown Vic, came in as a strip-out job. Customer had been using as a spare pool car and wanted to salvage whatever they could for a new unit. Here was the wiring situation... And here's why wire nuts are not a good idea (see the bare wires?): How NOT to ground (look at the quick taps!): Driver-side console... Niiiiiiccccceeee speaker \"bracket\"... Unprotected 8-gauge wire in engine compartment: More wire nuts for the siren speaker connection... And in the trunk... Wood, especially unfinished plywood, is not suited for automotive applications. A strobe power supply that is powered, but has no strobes hooked up! I'm sure there will be more. I only wish that I'd been taking pics all along.
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Hutch Regular Joined: 14 Aug 2006 Posts: 613 Location: Plymouth, NH	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 06:49    Post subject: wiring Holly Fire Hazards!
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CERT-NJ Regular Joined: 29 Jul 2006 Posts: 442 Location: Woodbridge Township New Jersey	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 13:08    Post subject: ok wow... i know a tiny bit about electrical, like grounds and power, never have done anythign really in a car and certainly am not any where NEAR the level most of you guys are on here, but holllllyyyy crap.. i could do a hell of a lot better then that, ray charles could do a better job...... wow!!!!!!!! Thta is insane haha
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Tiawah466 Contributing Member Joined: 25 Feb 2006 Posts: 291 Location: Claremore,Oklahoma	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 13:23    Post subject: I just found the rats nest I created a couple of years ago in my Chiefs Expedition. http://www.elightbars.org/bb/99-expedition-install-with-pics-vt25579.html Boy, am I paying for that mess now. I was tired, in a hurry, and did not have the necessary supplies to do the job right at the time. At least all of my wires were of the proper gauge and terminated correctly. I also just had to go through our engine recently and completly rewire it due to the load managment system failing. The engine had two set of wires in it due to an complete overhaul rebuild several years ago. The wires were a huge rats nest, 2 complete sets of everything, stuff that was labled on thing was reused for other stuff. I wound up just disconnecting everything and sitting in the cab with a car battery and a set of jumper cables for several hours cutting out unused wires and labling the connected ones. Now anyone with half a brain can open the panels and find any wire and know what it is for.
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SirSpeeddry Regular Joined: 05 Feb 2007 Posts: 595 Location: haverhill Ma	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 16:15    Post subject: wow i may not be a electrition (or a great speller) but wow thats bad. makes me wounder what alot of trucks look like
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Field79 Regular Joined: 22 Jan 2007 Posts: 331 Location: Doylestown, PA	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 18:04    Post subject:
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PaLightFreak Frequent Poster Joined: 13 Oct 2005 Posts: 1850 Location: Meadville,PA	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 19:20    Post subject: WOW! and that folks is why you dont take your installs to your city \"maintenance\" garage and have the city electricians install emergency lights this is my latest install in which the first person left one hell of a rats nest, and same thing wire nuts here and there. Before: After:
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EVModules Contributing Silver Member Joined: 20 Aug 2005 Posts: 1634 Location: San Gabriel Valley, Ca	Posted: Tue 29-May-2007 23:51    Post subject: Matt, NOW I know what you were talking about! It looks like it's been done by Eddie, Sphagetti Eddie! I've done a few like this where I just tell the customer that I don't patch things, I yank everything out and start over. Anything less he can take it elsewhere. The risk is too great for fingers to start pointing when things go wrong.
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1989RMP Regular Joined: 29 Nov 2006 Posts: 70 Location: Staten Island, NY	Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 00:37    Post subject: Wow, that is just...well...disturbing.
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PaLightFreak Frequent Poster Joined: 13 Oct 2005 Posts: 1850 Location: Meadville,PA	Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 06:55    Post subject: Re: [quote:2f41aaf683=\"Sean - EVConcepts\"]I've done a few like this where I just tell the customer that I don't patch things, I yank everything out and start over. Anything less he can take it elsewhere. The risk is too great for fingers to start pointing when things go wrong. I know you were talking to matt but thats exactly what i told these folks when i spec'd out this project, i had asked if any knew how old the wiring was and then i reached the dash and said there is no way im working with this and \"guessing\" only way i'll do this is to tear everything out and start over that way you will know what is what and that it is all new. they agreed completely.

Back to top    URL TNYankee
Regular



Joined: 27 Oct 2006
Posts: 488
Location: East Tennessee / Smokies

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 08:21    Post subject:
Yeah, we pretty well did a complete re-wire on the Tahoe. All new ground, power, and added a continuous duty solenoid for an ignition source for all the equipment. A bit of overkill, but was the best solution for this particular application. Everytnig was checked and remounted, and I even had to fix the power connection on the Digital Eyewitness camera.

Back to top    URL Firefighter_2000
Contributing Member


Joined: 27 Aug 2005
Posts: 693
Location: Bauxite, AR

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 09:29    Post subject: Bad install
Here's a re-install I did after much begging.... To keep the car from catching fire. I opened the console and found this... Removed it and had this How about a relay? How bout this four way? Excellent idea for a ground stud The power supply thrown under the seat The power supply harness The power supply fuse The power supply fuse again

Back to top    URL Firefighter_2000
Contributing Member


Joined: 27 Aug 2005
Posts: 693
Location: Bauxite, AR

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 09:32    Post subject: The FIX
And a few shots of the fixed product. Started with a propper circuit breaker and continuous duty solenoid Run and properly bundle the wires Throw in... well... Install some relays Close it all back up!

Back to top    URL FrankC
Suspended user


Joined: 05 Apr 2007
Posts: 2851
Location: Richmond, TX

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 09:43    Post subject:
That has to be the worse install I have ever seen. Installs like that should be a crime! Excellent job on the clean up and professional install!

Back to top    URL TNYankee
Regular



Joined: 27 Oct 2006
Posts: 488
Location: East Tennessee / Smokies

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 09:47    Post subject:
Now we're talking! Glad to see this thread going & growing. Lets make it stickyworthy!

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Contributing Member


Joined: 01 Sep 2005
Posts: 942
Location: Germany

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 10:04    Post subject:
That is a kind of install that i love. They always come up when the owner of such a car askes you to replace a simple fuse or \"hey my rear strobes are not working can you please take a look\" and then you take a short look ending up with complete new wiring and an 2 day job

Back to top    URL Brian B.
Frequent Poster


Joined: 03 Oct 2005
Posts: 1000
Location: Santa Fe, NM

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 10:11    Post subject:
This shop out of Atlanta has an extensive photo gallery of the good, the bad and the ugly too. Worth a look. http://www.ccomm911.com/quality_installations.htm

Back to top    URL JW 4x4
Frequent Poster


Joined: 08 Sep 2005
Posts: 1222
Location: Licking County, Ohio

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 10:22    Post subject:
I know it's a picture car, but I had to do it

Back to top    URL Jordan C.
#200,000


Joined: 01 Sep 2005
Posts: 1242
Location: Starke, Florida

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 10:42    Post subject: Re:
[quote:aabeef66ab=\"JW 4x4\"]I know it's a picture car, but I had to do it

Love the Whelen strap kit..... LOL Back to top    URL MarkClements
Frequent Poster


Joined: 25 Oct 2006
Posts: 1577
Location: Platteville, WI

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 20:26    Post subject: Re:
[quote:34f310133b=\"TNYankee\"] Wood, especially unfinished plywood, is not suited for automotive applications.

Why not? Maybe I am just being ignorant, but I've used it a few times before with great success... I need a place to mount relays, etc and don't want to drill holes all over the place. So, I find an area like under the rear deck in a sedan or behind the bench seat in a truck and mount a panel of wood. Then I can route my wires behind it and have a nice clear area to secure the relays, controllers, whatever.....

Whats the issue with that? Moisture concerns? I haven't had an issue yet, but will there be one down the road? Back to top    URL Bill Skinner525
Moderator



Joined: 19 Aug 2005
Posts: 884
Location: Folsom, Louisiana

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 20:35    Post subject:
Wood will not absorb the heat, it will attract moisture & it makes great fuel for fire from overheated equipment. Aluminum or steel plate mounted on standoffs for air circulation is a better & safer choice for a mounting base

Back to top    URL EVModules
Contributing Silver Member


Joined: 20 Aug 2005
Posts: 1634
Location: San Gabriel Valley, Ca

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 22:11    Post subject:
I concur, Wood can have its place in the installation business. I don't cut my wood and just mount it bare like the images have shown. They are all carpeted and very seldom for some fire depts, are they sanded & varnished. I recently am wrapping up a Charger install and it has a drop-down equipment tray made of wood covered with automtive ultra-low profile carpet. Not trunk carpet, but a step above. I'll post some pics when it's complete hopefully by Fri. If one isn't knowledgeable about electronic theory and thermal properties, they shouldn't work with wood much less with vehicle installation. All circuits are well protected and some equipments actually are mounted on brackets that stand off from the base it is mounted on. Wood can catch on fire but so do wiring, seats, oil, etc. You see wood in thousands of cars from reputable stereo shops and it's no different when done right. Just make it clean, presentable & sturdy! Here's a wood console that I did last year that's made to \"tie-in\" the Troy console to the dash. The factory amplifier & bass speaker was mounted in the factory console. It was necessary to reuse & relocate the components.

Back to top    URL Bill Skinner525
Moderator



Joined: 19 Aug 2005
Posts: 884
Location: Folsom, Louisiana

Posted: Wed 30-May-2007 22:23    Post subject:
Consoles in wood are OK, I've done a few over the years Mounting a strobe PS to a wood base is another matter The trunk is no place for wood, and wood does not make a good mounting point for power supplies, wire junctions, terminal strips & other devices that generate heat I've seen a lot of near misses & a few fires resulting from wood in cars in the last 30 years. Wood Consoles are fine provided proper spacing, ventilation & limited direct contact with power supplies & other big heat producers. Using wood as a base for junctions & PS units & Inverters is just asking for a problem over time

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