Secondary switch for factory bed lighting?

[bbohannon]

I find it slightly inconvenient that I must turn my bed lighting on/off from inside the cab of my truck. Most of the time I realize I need the lighting when I'm outside at at the bed itself. Not to mention I'd like to be able to turn the lights off without going back in the cab.

 

Has anyone attempted to wire a secondary switch somewhere in the bed to toggle the factory bed lighting? If so, how did you wire it? I took a voltmeter to the lights and having difficulty getting switched power. My assumption is the load is on a relay somewhere.

[ejdziurka]

I added a Extang Bed Light e500. No need for wiring, just recharge once or twice a year. Provides enough lighting. Plus it's removable if you need a flashlight anywhere.

[Thomcat]

I find it slightly inconvenient that I must turn my bed lighting on/off from inside the cab of my truck. Most of the time I realize I need the lighting when I'm outside at at the bed itself. Not to mention I'd like to be able to turn the lights off without going back in the cab.

 

Has anyone attempted to wire a secondary switch somewhere in the bed to toggle the factory bed lighting? If so, how did you wire it? I took a voltmeter to the lights and having difficulty getting switched power. My assumption is the load is on a relay somewhere.

Unswitched power takeoff available at the trailer hitch. If you don't want to permanently tap into the wiring, use a hitch power connector and plug in when you need it.

[aseibel]

good idea. the headlight circuit would always be hot when your truck is running at night. but it does not have power when the truck is off (key out of ignition).

 

I used this trick to power my strobe light for plowing. I wired the light to a trailer flat 4 pigtail. when I plug it in, I can just leave it and no battery draw when the truck is parked. When I turn my truck on at night (or headlights on during day) my strobe automatically turns on.

[MonkeyMouth]

I personally did a diode jump on the BCM. So every time I hit the unlock button the cargo lights come on. Sure they shut off eventually, but a quick hit on the fob and it's back to it.

[Rock1500]

I bought a xkglow kit and jump the wires to my trailer hitch wiring. I added an extra 2 spare LED lights. At night it lights the whole bed. The switch is in the bed and it has a 15 min timer.

 

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[Chevytrk1]

Some great ideas.. I’m also looking to add a switch option. It would be so much more convenient to it right there when you need it then all the way up in the cab.

[B_SKY33]

I'm actually having a custom LED kit made for the bed that's going to be wire to a bed switch. With the bed cover on the truck, the cargo light isn't much use anymore ( unless the bed cover is fully opened) especially when I just open the tailgate to get things out. Should cost me about $80 for the kit and then I will install myself.

[bndawgs]

you could wire up some lights with a plunger type switch that would turn on when the tailgate is lowered. They'd be on during the day as well, but it's another option to think about.

[bbohannon]

Has anyone actually done this to the FACTORY bed lighting? I guess I could find the schematic as I can't figure out if it's switched ground or powered on a relay somewhere.

[2017SierraSLT]

I just added two more lights to the front of the box using another pair of OEM bed lights. I have a tonneau cover, so the added lights really help to see inside the box.

[SirenRed16]

I personally did a diode jump on the BCM. So every time I hit the unlock button the cargo lights come on. Sure they shut off eventually, but a quick hit on the fob and it's back to it.

How did you go about the diode jump? It would be nice if the cargo lights come on also.

 

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[Bildoo]

My friends 2015 F150 has a switch in the bed to turn on the bed lights that was factory equipment. The thing I hate on my Sierra is the switch placement. Makes so much sense to reach into the middle of the truck to turn the lights your are going to use behind the truck. More proof that engineers have no common sense. I looked into wiring a switch in my bed a few years back. You just need to pulse ground to a pin at the bcm. This would mimick the factory button press.

 

Look at the wiring diagram for you specific truck on gmupfitters.com On my 2015 Sierra I need to pulse ground to X6 P18 on the bcm.

Edited August 20, 2017 by Bildoo

[MonkeyMouth]

How did you go about the diode jump? It would be nice if the cargo lights come on also.

 

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Sorry for the late reply. I'll get a picture later on today of my BCM and which diode is doing the job.

[Cash214]

I have the exact thing you’re looking for, a switch in the bed to turn on the cargo lights! I apologize in advance for the crappy pictures because my truck bed is full of wood so it made it hard to get to. I have two switches in my bed, one for my cargo lights and another for my air compressor. 

The mod is easy to do and all you need is a waterproof switch, and some wire. I went with a simple metal throw switch with wire leads on it. I got it at Lowe’s.

On the lights, there’s a positive and ground wire. The ground is always connected to the trucks ground so all you need to do is supply power to the positive wire and the lights will come on. There’s more than one way to do this. I mounted my switch on my left bedside on the inside of the rail where it’s at an angle above the wheel well up high where it’s mostly out of sight. In this location I’ve never had it get bumped by cargo and accidentally activated. I ran a wire from my battery to one lead of the switch and then another wire from the other lead of the switch to the positive wire that comes out of the cargo light. I believe it is red with a yellow stripe. It’s easily distinguished from the negative wire. Then run another wire from the same switch lead to the other side of the bed and connect it to the positive wire for that light. It’s a good idea to fuse the wire from the battery. You could also get power from somewhere other than the battery, such as the trailer wiring since it is closer than the battery. On the trailer wiring one of the pins is for constant power. That’s the one you want to tap if you go that route.