Choosing wire - volt/amp

[caineroad]

Yes, I am wondering though if I do with 26AWG which is ok, but what happens if I plug in a power inverter or something that draws a lot of energy in the cigarette lighter which will brings a lot of current, is it going to have problems or burn out my 26AWG that is attached to the cigarette lighter wire?

thanks

[CTScott]

Originally Posted by caineroad

Yes, I am wondering though if I do with 26AWG which is ok, but what happens if I plug in a power inverter or something that draws a lot of energy in the cigarette lighter which will brings a lot of current, is it going to have problems or burn out my 26AWG that is attached to the cigarette lighter wire?

thanks

It won't have any effect. The devices connected to a piece of wire will only draw more current if the voltage sags when another device is plugged in to the system.

So, for your LEDs, my 25 above was based on a system voltage of 12V, as opposed to 14V when the alternator is spinning. When the engine is running you will draw less current than when it is off (higher voltage = lower current).

I would recommend though installing a 2A or 4A max fuse inline with your LED wiring. The fuse for the lighter is 15A, so if you accidentally shorted your LED wiring the 26AWG wire would burn up, without popping the 15A fuse, so to be safe when you branch off a circuit with smaller wire you should always add a fuse appropriately sized for the branch wire.