DIY: LED Bed Lights w/ Timer

DIY Bed LED Lights w/ Timer

This is my 1st DIY post ever. Please keep negative comments to yourselves. All other comments, compliments, and likes are welcome =)

Just installed these lights in my 2017 Tundra. I am by no means a professional. Just a DIY guy that’s pretty particular about doing everything very clean looking. I saw a few posts where a few people have installed these lights but with no good pics or instructions so here it is…

Parts needed:

1 x 60”

$23 MICTUNING 2Pcs 60" White LED Cargo Truck Bed Light Strip Lamp Waterproof Lighting Kit with On-Off Switch Fuse 2-Way Splitter Cable Compatible with Pickup RV SUV and More

LED Light Strip $25.99 (Double Cab ONLY. Need Shorter Strip For Crew Max)

1 x Mini Timer(Optional if you want a timer but not required) $21.99

1 x

$8 Configuration board for Mini Timer Time Delay Relay

Configuration Board for Mini Timer (Optional if you want to make it easier for programming but not required) $11.99

1 x Roll of minimum 25’ 14 or 16 gauge Red Wire for power.

$23 BEST CONNECTIONS 16-Gauge Automotive Primary Wire Bundle (100ft Each, Red & Black) | Ideal for Car Audio, Automotive, and Trailer | Durable Primary/Remote, Power/Ground Electrical Wiring

Link for both red and black

1 x Roll of minimum 25’ 14 or 16 gauge Black Wire for ground and extensions (Probably be using no more than 6’ total)

15 x Butt connectors/splicers or Posi-Lock connectors/splicers & 2 ring connectors/splicers. I got this whole

$19 Glarks 540pcs 22-16/16-14/12-10 Gauge Mixed Quick Disconnect Electrical Insulated Butt Bullet Spade Fork Ring Solderless Crimp Terminals Connectors Assortment Kit

kit for $20.89 a while back, but this

$26 Electronix Express 250 Piece Heat Shrink Wire Connector Kit Waterproof Marine Automotive Terminals Set

kit is a lot better in my opinion

1 x

$7 Install Bay ATFH16C-10 Waterproof ATC Fuse Holder 16-Gauge with Cover (10-Pack)

Fuse holder w/ 5 amp fuse (Optional if you want easy disconnection at the battery) LED kit switch (Not waterproof) already comes with a fuse holder integrated. Purchase another switch before continuing if this is an issue

1 x 20’ 1/4”

$18 Absolute USA SLT14 1/4" x 100-Feet Split Loom Tube

Wire Loom (Optional if you want to protect your wires) Highly recommended

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A lot of zip ties

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Feed 21’ - 22’ of your red wire through your 20’ wire loom. I went ahead and taped the whole loom after feeding the wire (optional). Don’t worry you will cut off the excess later.


Connect end of power wire to fuse holder with a butt connector/splicer (Heat shrink optional) and a ring connector/splicer to end of fuse holder. On my ring connector, the hole was not big enough to go through the positive terminal stud, so I wallowed it out with a 1/4” drill bit.


I laid the whole wire down and fed the fuse end cable above the frame by the front driver side and fed it up and around the fuse box and into the battery. Of course all this is optional. Run the wire whichever way you see fit.



I fed the wire from under here and routed it like this. I wedged the loom in between the fuse box and went between the fuse box and battery. Disconnect your 5 amp fuse 1st, lift the positive terminal cover, using a 10mm socket and ratchet disconnect the positive nut, connect your wire, and tightened nut. Leave the 5 amp fuse disconnected until the end.



Route the rest of the wire through the driver side frame. I zip tied in these spots.


Then routed the wire towards the inside of the frame.


More zip ties here and against the frame. Wherever you can find holes or good attaching points.


I stopped at the trailer hookup wire above the left side of the spare tire.


Now get some alcohol and paper towel or rag and wipe/clean the bottom of the deck rail.



Prepare the LED lights by removing the tape film and press firmly against the bottom of the rail.


Now feed the cable with the connector through this hole. Same thing for the driver side. Look inside the hole while feeding it down. It is not a simple drop down hole.


This is where it'll be underneath.


Route it along with the tail light wire and zip tie. It'll only reach near the trailer hookup wire.



Now prep the switch wire (included with the LED kit) by cutting and prepping both + and - cables.


Cut approximately 3’ of the red and black wire from your wire rolls and splice it to the red and black wire of the switch with 2 butt connectors/splicers. I went ahead and shrink wrapped the connectors and wires afterwards.


Then feed the switch down the left hole alongside the LED wire. I fed it through the left (Driver) side, but you can feed it through the right (Passenger) side. You will just have to reroute the power wire back to the passenger side if done through the passenger side.


Get some double sided tape (Not included. I just had some laying around) and tape it to the back of the switch and against the bed.



After feeding the switch wire down, use 2 butt connectors/splicers and splice it back to the other half of the switch wire. I shrink wrapped if afterwards too (Optional).


Route this whole wire and the LED wire with the connector along side the left (Driver) side tail light wire, zip tie it together, and drop it next to the red wire that you ran from the battery.


After dropping the wire down, plug in both LED male connectors into the female connectors.


Cut the excess off from the red wire that you ran from the battery to whatever length you need and connect it into the red fused wire from the switch with a butt connector. You will need a minimum of 1’ of slack for easier programming later.


I know this sounds crazy, but cut the LED supplied wire that connects to both LED lights in half and prep both + and -


Prep the Mini Timer and connect the red wire to the red wire and yellow wire to red wire with 2 butt connectors. Correlating to the picture above.


Twist both black wires together, crimp it into one side of a butt connector and crimp the other end to the black wire from the Mini Timer. Shrink wrap (Optional)


Back to the switch wire, crimp a ring connector on the yellow wire. This will be your ground. Find a good ground and attach/connect.


Prep your Configuration Board by stripping the wire ends. I extended the ground for temporary use only. If you did not buy a Configuration Board, follow this link to setup the timer.


Ground the black cable to a good temporary ground and temporarily twist green to green and white to white. Blue wire on timer is not used.


Or you could crimp these quick plug in tabs also.


Make sure that all your grounds are attached/connected. Now connect your 5 amp fuse back to your fuse holder by the battery and you should have power.

When you 1st hit your switch to turn the LED lights on it should turn on for a second and shut off. This is perfectly normal. It means that you wired everything correctly so far. Go ahead and hit the switch again to turn off.

Follow this link for programming instructions. I have mine programmed to shut off in 10 minutes. It took me a little while to figure it out. Don’t panic.

Your battery on/off from the youtube video is going to be your push button switch.

After it is all programed, make sure you test it.

If everything is still good at this point, remove your Configuration Board by untwisting the green and white wires and removing your ground.

Wire loom all your lose wires. I tucked in both LED connectors and most of the remaining wire inside this loom. I left the green and white wire as is for easier programming in the future. The Mini Timer end is on the bottom of this loom.


I zip tied all my finished wires above the trailer hookup wire. Easy access to the fuse.


This is where I put my ground and zip tied my Mini Timer and remainder of the wiring.


Hope this helped. It’s pretty long but very detailed. Let there be light!!! Enjoy =)


If the timer kicks in and shuts off your lights, you’ll have to press the switch to turn off and press it again to turn back on. If you remember to turn it off manually then ignore this.

 

Exactly how I ran my lights through the bed. Awesome write up.

 

Thank you sir. I wish I've seen a post like this before, but I just kinda winged it. Honestly I'm glad I didn't really run into any problems knock on wood.

 

I’ve had mine on for over a year and haven’t had a problem. You did a much better job than I did with the wiring. Only thing I did different was add rubber grommets in the bed holes and squirt some black silicone around the wires to keep them from moving in the holes.

 

That's a pretty good idea. I might end up doing that too. Thanks

 

Nice write up! I’m planning to do this here in the near future. Thanks for the great outline

 

@XNeewbie , great write up. I️ have been considering this for too long. Now my decision is much easier.

What was the total cost of the supplies just how you posted this?

 

Great write up n job!!!

 

Nice work! Now that you've got that practice run under your belt, how about you come do mine?

 

Great job! One more mod that I will be doing at some point.

 

flippin awesome

 

Nice write up. Could have saved yourself some time/effort by going with one of @mattgecko bed kits then adding in the timer. Pretty much sells a kit that does exactly what you did (minus the timer - nice touch) but also along the front rail.

 

Awesome. Glad to be able to help. You're probably looking about $100-$110 total, but you'll have a bunch of wires, connectors, looms, etc. left over for future projects. A good few things are optional too if you're trying to be on a budget.

 

Thank you. Maybe just a little practice. I would be more than happy to help you out if you ever come this way lol.

 

Where is that?

 

I just looked it up. I guess that's another option at this point lol. The front rail LED strip is definitely a plus. Oh well, there's nothing better than doing it yourself. I had fun doing it.

 

Greenville, SC

 

For sure, I was just throwing it out there. Maybe someone reading the thread wants to do something similar and that could help them out. You did a great job!

 

Thank you!

 

Absolutely. Thanks for the input

 

off topic XNeewbie, but what running boards do you have? Very nice write up on the bed lights!

 

Lol thanks. They came factory from the dealership. If you're looking for running boards for your Crewmax, I recommend

$179 Tyger Auto 4" Riser Running Boards Compatible with 2007-2021 Toyota Tundra | CrewMax | TG-RS2T40178 | Side Step Rails Nerf Bars

these. I installed them in my buddies Crewmax and they're solid. 2 colors to chose from. Hope this helps.

 

great video, i added powered running boards and used these same l.e.d. lights as courtesy lights instead of what was provided. from manufacture.

 

Awesome deal! Looks BA! Glad to know it works great on running boards also. I might get another set and do the same on mine

 

AMAZING write up and easy to install.
I even added a 10amp push button to jazz it up a bit.

did you have any residual glow on the LED strips?

I wired this exactly like you did and my lights have a soft glow when powered off and the car is off. Only difference is I put the fuse at the battery and took the fuse off of the wire that came with the LED strips.(did not put the timer on)

Interested to hear if this is a known issue? Or is there a reason that you know why it would be doing this?

 

It’s been a few years since I’ve installed it and I haven’t had any issues or residual glow. I don’t believe that adding and removing the fuse would cause that. Double check your ground. You can use a volt/ohm meter to check this. Then try removing your fuse. If everything shuts off correctly sounds like there’s an issue with you switch for your lights. I helped a buddy install his and ended up having issues with the switch. You could try bypassing the switch just for testing purposes.

 

Glad someone replied to this as I was making a parts list to do something similar. Awesome write-up and pictures.
*I noticed take-offs in the first picture and got excited

 

I purchased the Matt Gecko lighting kit mostly b/c of the Gofast camper I have.
I stumbled across this just before I was going to run my wires.
Thanks for the post, as it reassured me in the process! Well done!