Waterproof Wire pass through

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Luke111

Luke111

Supporting Vendor
Joined
Aug 6, 2006
Threads
74
Messages
3,388
Location
Northern Virginia
I'm looking for waterproof wire pass throughs for wiring my roof rack lights straight through my roof
There was a build thread somewhere on the mud that discribed these connectors...
Looking for idea's and guidunce

Thanks

Lou
 
I am looking to do the the same thing myself however, my roof rack will carry my hard top RTT and solar panel, I need lights inside and also I will be piping warm air into the tent from cabin heater (eberspacher or whatever) and it was this that gave me an idea. For the heating will use plumbing fittings to connect a flexy hose to my tent, when not in use I simply screw on cap which will seal the connector. In the doors of most modern cars is a connector that allows the removal of the door for repair ect, doors these days have electric windows/mirrors/lock ect, the loom connectors are waterproof as well. I plan to fit one of these on the roof, one side to the wiring on the rack and one to the wiring on the car. When the rack is not in place I will simply screw on a dummy lid to prevent water ingress.

simples!! :bounce::bounce2:

regards

Dave
 
Last edited:
what you need is a cord grip. I have one at the rack right of my truck to bring power to the roof. I ran a 10/3 wire to the roof which contains 3 10awg wires. I wanted 3 wires through one hole so this was my best idea. It does not leak one bit. Made it through Irene without a problem.

OysterBay-20110731-00022.jpg


mask off the area to minimize chips

OysterBay-20110731-00023.jpg


AHH!! cant beleive i drilled a hole in my roof!


OysterBay-20110731-00019.jpg


view from inside.


OysterBay-20110731-00024.jpg


cord grip installed.



Thomas & Betts CC-NPT-12-G Cord Grip Connector, 1 Cord, 1/2 in
 
Check the West Marine catalog, they have lots of nice waterproof bits.

Doug
 
doug720 said:
Check the West Marine catalog, they have lots of nice waterproof bits.

Doug
Click to expand...

Thanks Doug.... I did see a couple of possibilities from West Marine

Sent from my iPad using IH8MUD
 
Luke111 said:
How did you seal the top? Do you have a picture with the wires in? This is not the one I saw but it looks good

Thanks
Lou

Sent from my iPad using IH8MUD
Click to expand...

there is a rubber gasket that seals against the roof of the truck. I also added a bit of silicon to help the seal. The cord grips are made for making watertight seals on wires. The wire goes through the hole which has a rubber piece inside of it. Once the wire is in you screw in the top nut and it compresses the seal against the wire, making a perfect watertight seal.

I picked this one up for 3 dollars on amazon.
 
McMaster-Carr
cheap, easy, available at all electrical suppliers and Home Depot (if you want to pay more). Drill a hole, install, run wire through, if you want add some additional silicone for added protection to the inside and tighten all the nuts.
Used it countless times at work, there are all kinds of sizes and it's easily available.
 
I use them all over on the farm to keep dust and water out of electrical stuff.

A few styles of waterproof cable grips beyond a plain single circular hole style.

Multi-Cord cable grips:
McMaster-Carr

These are good if you have multiple separate wires. Of course you can do what I usually do and use heat shrink tubing to change multiple wires into "one". Use the heat shrink tubing with a glue liner as it will seal up between the wires to make the wire bundle waterproof. I've also used regular heat shrink tubing and shrunk it around a plug of caulk to make the waterproof seal.

For Romex style cables, oval shape:
McMaster-Carr


Shrink wrap style:
McMaster-Carr

For those odd situations. Still haven't used these yet. Maybe because I have a stock of the plain round and Romex styles on hand. FarmTek has a Nylon universal one with many sizes of round and Romex insert cores: http://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/home Unfortunately their site is under maintenance as I'm posting this so I cant point right to it.

All styles:
McMaster-Carr

When you get down to it there are a number of different methods. I've been on and off looking for something sleek and low lying for auto use, but despair at ever finding it. So far I've only come up with using a 3/8" NPT 90 degree.
 
Dave 2000 said:
Can you quickly disconnect thos cord grip types?

regards

Dave
Click to expand...
Nope.

For that you will have to go to waterproof electrical connectors. How many Amps per pin?

You can go out to DigiKey and be overwhelmed. Digi-Key Homepage Search for waterproof connectors in their search box. Be sure to set the In Stock flag.

As an example the Amphenol-Tuchel Electronics circular connectors are able to handle 5 Amps per pin. They are metal shelled DIN circular connectors. They have a screw in locking mechanism.

Connector: Digi-Key - 361-1305-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31G004 100 2)

Mating right angle cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1321-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31K004 100 2)

Mating straight cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1286-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31H004 100 2)

All of them are available in single quantities. A disadvantage of the one I listed is the locking ring will be on the outside of your vehicle. Also I wasn't seeing a cover cap for when you don't have the cable connected. Being DIN it may be a generic item made by somebody other than Amphenol.

OK, starting out with an in stock cap...:)

One of the ones I find are the 900 Series Buccaneer connectors from Bulgin. They are setup for power, 32 Amps per pin so we will just go for the 2 pin ones. If you want more circuits, you can get a connector with more pins. 2 pins per circuit. One pin for 12VDC positive, and one for ground.

The cap: Digi-Key - 708-1226-ND (Manufacturer - PX0970)

A bulkhead connector, slightly angled: Digi-Key - 708-1219-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/S) Looks to be designed to be used with their bulkhead box: Digi-Key - 708-1224-ND (Manufacturer - PX0950)

straight version: Digi-Key - 708-1214-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/P) Can be used alone.

Cable plug to go with the above: Digi-Key - 708-1189-ND (Manufacturer - PX0911/02/S)

There are many other options. These are just ones I very quickly found.

I hope this helps. Note: Digikey has a minimum order of something like $25. Under it you are assessed a $5 or handling fee.
 
Bogo said:
Nope.

For that you will have to go to waterproof electrical connectors. How many Amps per pin?

You can go out to DigiKey and be overwhelmed. Digi-Key Homepage Search for waterproof connectors in their search box. Be sure to set the In Stock flag.

As an example the Amphenol-Tuchel Electronics circular connectors are able to handle 5 Amps per pin. They are metal shelled DIN circular connectors. They have a screw in locking mechanism.

Connector: Digi-Key - 361-1305-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31G004 100 2)

Mating right angle cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1321-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31K004 100 2)

Mating straight cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1286-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31H004 100 2)

All of them are available in single quantities. A disadvantage of the one I listed is the locking ring will be on the outside of your vehicle. Also I wasn't seeing a cover cap for when you don't have the cable connected. Being DIN it may be a generic item made by somebody other than Amphenol.

OK, starting out with an in stock cap...:)

One of the ones I find are the 900 Series Buccaneer connectors from Bulgin. They are setup for power, 32 Amps per pin so we will just go for the 2 pin ones. If you want more circuits, you can get a connector with more pins. 2 pins per circuit. One pin for 12VDC positive, and one for ground.

The cap: Digi-Key - 708-1226-ND (Manufacturer - PX0970)

A bulkhead connector, slightly angled: Digi-Key - 708-1219-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/S) Looks to be designed to be used with their bulkhead box: Digi-Key - 708-1224-ND (Manufacturer - PX0950)

straight version: Digi-Key - 708-1214-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/P) Can be used alone.

Cable plug to go with the above: Digi-Key - 708-1189-ND (Manufacturer - PX0911/02/S)

There are many other options. These are just ones I very quickly found.

I hope this helps. Note: Digikey has a minimum order of something like $25. Under it you are assessed a $5 or handling fee.
Click to expand...

So that's a no then? :D

Seriously that is a very comprehensive reply Bogo and I will bookmark that lot!

Many thanks

regards

Dave
 
Bogo said:
Nope.

For that you will have to go to waterproof electrical connectors. How many Amps per pin?

You can go out to DigiKey and be overwhelmed. Digi-Key Homepage Search for waterproof connectors in their search box. Be sure to set the In Stock flag.

As an example the Amphenol-Tuchel Electronics circular connectors are able to handle 5 Amps per pin. They are metal shelled DIN circular connectors. They have a screw in locking mechanism.

Connector: Digi-Key - 361-1305-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31G004 100 2)

Mating right angle cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1321-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31K004 100 2)

Mating straight cable connector: Digi-Key - 361-1286-ND (Manufacturer - C091 31H004 100 2)

All of them are available in single quantities. A disadvantage of the one I listed is the locking ring will be on the outside of your vehicle. Also I wasn't seeing a cover cap for when you don't have the cable connected. Being DIN it may be a generic item made by somebody other than Amphenol.

OK, starting out with an in stock cap...:)

One of the ones I find are the 900 Series Buccaneer connectors from Bulgin. They are setup for power, 32 Amps per pin so we will just go for the 2 pin ones. If you want more circuits, you can get a connector with more pins. 2 pins per circuit. One pin for 12VDC positive, and one for ground.

The cap: Digi-Key - 708-1226-ND (Manufacturer - PX0970)

A bulkhead connector, slightly angled: Digi-Key - 708-1219-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/S) Looks to be designed to be used with their bulkhead box: Digi-Key - 708-1224-ND (Manufacturer - PX0950)

straight version: Digi-Key - 708-1214-ND (Manufacturer - PX0941/02/P) Can be used alone.

Cable plug to go with the above: Digi-Key - 708-1189-ND (Manufacturer - PX0911/02/S)

There are many other options. These are just ones I very quickly found.

I hope this helps. Note: Digikey has a minimum order of something like $25. Under it you are assessed a $5 or handling fee.
Click to expand...

Ok now thats a complete list and answers the question regarding rack removal and a simple unplug...I can build just about anything but when it comes to wiring I'm a compelte novice
I'm going to have the guys at Iron Pig Offroad decipher this information and get it done.
In the mean time if anyone tackles this before I do please post the install

Thanks

Lou
 
Just to add to this I use Deutsch bulkhead or panel mount connectors as well. I like the 6 terminal system as it allows for expansion later on. You know someone will have something new you want to add.
 
Best thing I have seen run the wire up through your snorkel instead of drilling holes in the roof
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 1 (members: 0, guests: 1)

Share this page

Back
Top Bottom