Wiring aftermarket volt meter

[NYBronco]

When wiring up an aftermarket meter, where do you connect the positive feed from? Directly to the battery, or will this cause a constant drain? Thanks-

 

[blazinchuck]

You should be able to hook it up to any 12 volt sorce, switched or non switched. It shouldn't drain anything. You can always hook the gauge up then put a test light between then - post on the battery and the ground cable. if the comes on you got a drain...then just unplug the gauge-check the test light again for no light.hope this helps,Chuck

 

[SaddleUp]

Do not hook it directly to the battery because it does require a little power to operate and will cause a constant draw on the battery. Probably not enough to draw a battery down overnight but if you left it for a week it probably would. Hook it up to an accessory feed from the fuse box instead.

 

[clkwrkorg]

hook it to an ignition switched source.

 

[SaddleUp]

Switched ignition may be better than accessory side. The advantage with accessory is you can see your volts when the ignition is switched to accessories. The disadvantage is that you will not know how many volts there are while you are cranking the motor over.