Dome light

[Moneywisher]

Hello all, so im trying to figure out the best way to add a toggle switch to my dome light and curiosity lights so if I need my doors open for awhile I don't kill my bulbs or battery. I know I can if I added two one for each side but is there a way I can just add one for both doors? It's probably stupid easy. Any ideas?

 

[gmbellew]

mine has little metal tabs that you can use to hold the switch down. they are screwed to the metal and just swivel into place. not as elegant as a switch, but gets the job done.

 

[Memaloose]

Trace the feed to the lamp. Mine is a '75 model, I don't know if yours is different but splice the feed to the lamp through the switch, on or off. The hardest part will be locating the feed.

 

[Grit dog]

Had a lot of text to copy and couldn’t get the wiring diagram out of the notes on my phone, but....
+wire is orange, running under drivers door sill and up the B pillar to the cargo lamp switch and some lamp. (Also runs under the dash to the courtesy light if you have that.) find where that wire feeds off of the fuse panel and splice in a 2 pole switch to cut that circuit when desired.
Dome/courtesy/cargo light are hot all the time and the “switches” connect to ground to turn lights on.
Maybe someone can post the wiring diagram or look in my thread under interior lights from last year. Pretty sure I poached the diagram from here.

 

[Grit dog]

Don’t bother with the grounds. IMO. You’d have to get both door buttons and the headlight switch ground wires.
But it would work the same.
Alternatively you could find that fuse and pull it when needed.

 

[75gmck25]

The dome light is powered by an always-on orange wire that runs under the driver's side door kickplate, then up the inside of the back cab corner and over to the light. Along with the orange wire is the white ground wire that runs to the door switches.

IIRC, up under the dash near the emergency brake the orange wire comes from the fuse panel and then splits out to run to both the courtesy lights under the dash and to the dome light. If you could interrupt this wire with a switch it should turn off power to both sets of lights. You could probably drill a hole in the dash and mount the switch near the emergency brake pull handle.

Bruce

 

[Grit dog]

I bumped my thread in Electrical and Audio so you can find it. Has the wiring diagram in it.

 

[rt66paul]

There are switched dome lights after market and on older vehicles.

 

[80BrownK10]

There are switched dome lights after market and on older vehicles.

I have a switch on the side of the cab corner up by your head.

One day I will get my lights working. I have neither some or cargo lamps since I bought the truck. I know the switches are junk, those need replaced and not sure what all else after that. It's just one of those things I will get to one day. I think about it then forget for 6 months to remember to forget a few years later to rethink it.

 

[SquareRoot]

Replace the bulb with an led version. It draws so little current it wont matter for days. I leave mine open all day sometimes when I'm working on the interior.

 

[Matt69olds]

Replace the bulb with an led version. It draws so little current it wont matter for days. I leave mine open all day sometimes when I'm working on the interior.

This is probably the easiest/best option.

If the only dome light is the one above the rear window, you can find the orange feed wire that plugs into the fuse box and put a toggle switch on that. If you have optional lights under the dash, you will need to combine the orange power feeds and wire them into a switch.

The problem with pulling or putting a switch on the fuse is the other things powered by that circuit. Usually the cigarette lighter and clocks are powered on the courtesy fuse.

I’d just replace all the regular incandescent bulbs with LED lamps. They draw a tiny fraction of the current, they operate at a much lower temperature (no more scorched dome lamp lenses) and last forever. You could leave the dome lamp on for a week and the truck would start, assuming the battery is good.

 

[80BrownK10]

This is probably the easiest/best option.

If the only dome light is the one above the rear window, you can find the orange feed wire that plugs into the fuse box and put a toggle switch on that. If you have optional lights under the dash, you will need to combine the orange power feeds and wire them into a switch.

The problem with pulling or putting a switch on the fuse is the other things powered by that circuit. Usually the cigarette lighter and clocks are powered on the courtesy fuse.

I’d just replace all the regular incandescent bulbs with LED lamps. They draw a tiny fraction of the current, they operate at a much lower temperature (no more scorched dome lamp lenses) and last forever. You could leave the dome lamp on for a week and the truck would start, assuming the battery is good.

Plus there very bright depending on what type you replace it with

 

[Matt69olds]

The lamps I used in my Olds are about the same brightness, but have a different color than the usual dome lamp bulb.

I installed the LED bulbs after I replaced all the 50 year old scorched plastic lenses. The replacement led bulbs from the parts store had cone shaped contacts that didn’t have enough surface contact to stay in place. I had to order bulbs from Amazon. The had a electrical contact made of wire that more closely resembled what my car and these trucks used. Unfortunately, I had to buy them in a pack of 10, now every vehicle I own has a LED dome lamp.

 

[AuroraGirl]

LED. truck will run lights for days with LES

 

[Mark80K15]

I have a 1980 GMC K15 with a single dome light above the rear window. I was getting rid of some non OEM wiring under the dash someone had installed. Now the cigarette lighter doesn't work. Can anyone show me where the orange feed wire plugs into the fuse box? In his April 8 post above Matt69Olds suggested finding the orange feed wire that plugs into the fuse box, so I want to find where that is so I can check the connection. From reading this thread, it sounds like the dome light and cigarette ligher and other things are on the courtesy fuse. Is that true? Where is the courtesy fuse on the fuse panel? BTW I also read the "Dome lamp ground short circuit questions" forum and couldn't find what what I was looking for there, sorry!