Repairing T-Tap wiring damage...?

[Colt45ws]

I have a aftermarket sunroof installed some time by the original owner. As far as what you can see, it looks good, but the wiring is a fire waiting to happen. What they did is run what looks like maybe 18 gauge speaker wire. For continous power, they t-tapped off one of the main 10 gauge ignition switch feeds. Then the wire is run as retarded as possible making sure to rub against multiple sharp edges before a 20amp fuse tapped inline. For On/Acc sense, they t-tapped off one of the 12 gauge ignition switch wires. Which, they even screwed up picking a wire because the one they picked is only hot in On. No fusing to speak of for the sense wire, either. What Im going to do is unhook this mess and repair the damaged ignition wires then run new wiring for the sunroof. I think since these taps are only a couple of inches from where the harness connects to the actual ignition switch, I can disconnect it from there and pull apart the connector to remove the damaged wires. Then I can push heatshrink over the end. Just razor blade off the insulation, melt some solder into the slice and shrink the tubing...
Comments, suggestions?

 

[Deltona_Dave]

Colt, I install the in-car camera system in our fleet of CVPI's. T-taps are a no-no. I solder and heat shrink everything. Then I split loom all wires to protect from chafing.

Main power, run direct from battery, with an ATC in-line fuse holder near the battery. Use 10 gauge for that and for the ground (again, to the battery, or a main ground point). The ignition sense, run 16 gauge and find a switched lead under the dash fuse it with a 5 amp.

I run a little heavier wire than the minimum, but that is just me.

Some cars can be a real pain to run wires, but an electricians fish wire and a stiff coat hanger make it easy to pull through fire walls. Take your time, experiment with different runs, and you will have a professional looking and trouble free install.

The t-taps can be removed carefully, use needle nose to pull out the metal piece that pierces the insulation. You can just wrap electrical tape over the small hole in the insulation.

PM me if you need more info.

Dave

 

[firefighter]

Originally Posted By: Deltona_Dave
The t-taps can be removed carefully, use needle nose to pull out the metal piece that pierces the insulation. You can just wrap electrical tape over the small hole in the insulation.

Dave

Agreed but when removing them you will want to seal up with something better then regular electrical tape. Possibly a sealing type tape that will bond to itself, or a dab of liquid electrical tape first. I have seen wiring deteriate from the inside out from a pin hole and cause all types of crazy drivability problems. If the repair is in the car not as much of a problem, unless you live in a real muggy climate.

 

[Colt45ws]

Originally Posted By: Deltona_Dave
Colt, I install the in-car camera system in our fleet of CVPI's. T-taps are a no-no. I solder and heat shrink everything. Then I split loom all wires to protect from chafing.

Main power, run direct from battery, with an ATC in-line fuse holder near the battery. Use 10 gauge for that and for the ground (again, to the battery, or a main ground point). The ignition sense, run 16 gauge and find a switched lead under the dash fuse it with a 5 amp.

I run a little heavier wire than the minimum, but that is just me.

Some cars can be a real pain to run wires, but an electricians fish wire and a stiff coat hanger make it easy to pull through fire walls. Take your time, experiment with different runs, and you will have a professional looking and trouble free install.

Dave

I agree, I solder and heatshrink as well, but this was already here.
I just got through modifing the second power point under the cupholder to be switched. Its complicated, but I found a spot in the underhood box for a switched run/acc relay and found out it was for the factory sunroof. I cut that circut in the passenger kickpanel, and spliced in a run to the factory powerpoint. I left the factory hot at all times wire there behind the HVAC controls. So Ill repurpose that as the main power and then tag off my run/acc power point wire as sense.
What do you think? I mean it wont be a 10 gauge run but its there, easy, and clean. Not to mention much much better than this fire waiting to happen.

 

[Deltona_Dave]

FireFighter, true! That is one reason we never T-tap anything. All soldered/heat shrink or heat shrink butt crimped connectors, especially under the hood in lovely, humid Central Florida.

In the cabin, a heat shrink tape would work okay, w/o having to cut the wire.

Dave

 

[Deltona_Dave]

That should work just fine. Will work better than the speaker wire/ t-tap mess. I don't trust t-taps, especially in a car that is going to vibrate or get wet.

Dave

 

[pidster]

Buddy, I feel your pain having to deal with that, nothing I hate and fear more than messing with those small delicate wires in cars. Sounds like you have a good plan there though.

And aftermarket sunroof? If I were you I'd check that out really thoroughly and make sure it has a good seal. Even if no water leaks into the interior it might be leaking past the seal and rusting some metal. Dont mean to scare ya just saying its something to check. But you probably did that already you are a BITOG member.

 

[eljefino]

Not all electrical tape is the same. 3M makes some good stuff, they might have it at home depot but definitely an electrical supply place. You can't get a stack of 10 rolls for $5 like at harbor freight.

When I roll electrical tape over and over itself because I can't get heat shrink tubing in, I put a tiny zip tie over the end tab that always otherwise unravels. The zip tie also acts as a bumper/spacer keeping the wire seperated from other stuff that chafes it. Go crazy with multi colored zip ties for identification if you want.

You could put a dab of RTV over the insulation breech before starting taping.

I wish Deltona wired up my BILs P71. There was some barbaric "indoors only" power distribution sensor behind the battery that, of course, was a corroded nightmare.

 

[brianl703]

I use cold shrink tape. The only problem with it is that it's not very resistant to oil or gasoline, which shouldn't be a problem inside the car.

 

[Spazdog]

I use T-taps at work. My competitor hits the insulated wire with his high temp soldering gun until the insulation burns off and solders his leads on then wraps it in 3M temflex or some lesser electrical tape. (I don't endorse the racist term "[censored]-Lap" but that is a common term for a lesser quality tape) I don't know what tape he uses exactly but it melts off and leaves black adhesive on everything it touches. It seems like the adhesive will stick to everything but the tape it came on.

In the event that I remove a T-tap when I remove our device, I typically just use 3M Super 33+ or Scotch 70 silicone self fusing tape double half-lapped tightly. I haven't had a comeback on this practice.

 

[Jimmy9190]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
Not all electrical tape is the same. 3M makes some good stuff, they might have it at home depot but definitely an electrical supply place. You can't get a stack of 10 rolls for $5 like at harbor freight.


The Harbor Freight and similar brand tape is very cheap and not very good at all. Cheap electrical tape does have its place. I use cheap tape only on something temporary like when I tape a wire to the cut-off long air condtioning zip tie that I use for running wire under carpet or up through a dashboard, or when I tape a power wire to a short piece of stiff coat hanger wire to fish the wire through a grommet in the firewall.

The best electrical tape you can use is 3M Super 33 if you are in a climate that does not have extended sub-freezing temperatures, and 3M Super 88 if you do have those kind of cold temperatures. You can buy Super 33 and Super 88 in 10-roll packs but it still costs about $3.50 per roll. If you have to use a cheaper grade of electrical tape, 3M Tartan 1710 is the best choice. It is also sold in a 10-roll pack.

I learned over 25 years ago the best way to apply electrical tape correctly is to stretch it as you are wrapping the tape, and wrap so that each time you wrap it you are covering about half of the previous wrap. Cut a piece of tape long enough for the application, don't just roll the tape over and over the wire and pull it to snap it off.

 

[Deltona_Dave]

I use the 3M Super 33 (the office buys it for me). Nice stuff to work with. I always cut it with scissors, overlap it by about half the width, and keep it taught. The cheap electrical tape does not stick, not enough stretch, etc.

Dave

 

[rslifkin]

Personally, what I use the cheap electrical tape for is chafe protection on rubber hoses, such as my tranny cooler lines (they run close to some other stuff, not sure if they rub at WOT when the motor mounts flex). It works fine for that, and with 10 rolls costing $5, it's no big deal if it wears off a little faster.

 

[mechtech2]

Those T Taps can cut the original wires [cut some of the copper strands].
Never a good thing to increase resistance!