fuse or breaker?
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=106832
Printed Date: May 14, 2025 at 9:08 AM
Topic: fuse or breaker?
Posted By: TheDouche
Subject: fuse or breaker?
Date Posted: August 16, 2008 at 8:33 PM
ok self explanatory. ANL fuse or circuit breaker for main harness feed(18" from batt one) what are the benefits or down falls of each?
so im looking to throw a Elemental Design NINe.1 into my truck(thats all nothing else) with a 1 fared cap to power a sub. any recommendations on fuse size or circuit breaker size and which would be better?
Replies:
Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: August 16, 2008 at 8:44 PM
I can't tell you what you should fuse the amp at, but I can tell you that a circuit breaker will only be trouble down the road. An ANL fuse would be a much better choice. Breakers depend on heat to determine how much current is going through the device. Engine heat added to the heat of the contacts usually shorten the life of the breaker. Does the amp have fuses mounted to the end of it? If so, the fuses in the amp should protect the amp. The fuse under the hood is there to protect the wire going to the amp. An 8 Ga. wire has a safe current handling capacity of 100 amps. A 4 Ga. wire is capable of carrying 150 amps. 2 Ga. = 225 amps. If the amp has no fuses mounted on it, you will need to do some more research to find out what it needs to be fused at.
Posted By: TheDouche
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 12:58 AM
ok so thats a 1000 watt amp and is gunna go about 17' from the batt so i was thinking to just run 4awg to the amp and use one anl fuse then. is that enough?
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 11:53 AM
Posted By: TheDouche
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 12:18 PM
wow so I should be running a 0awg wire with a 160amp fuse in it then? Seams a bit much for one amp no?
Posted By: TheDouche
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 12:41 PM
k so as far as fusing it I'm only using the 18" batt fuse for the wire not the amp?
Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 2:20 PM
Does the amp have any fuses mounted to the end of it?????
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 2:22 PM
4-AWG fused at the battery at 150A is what you need. Also 4AWG ground. Yes, you fuse for the wire unless the amplifier needs an external fuse also. ------------- Support the12volt.com
Posted By: TheDouche
Date Posted: August 17, 2008 at 2:55 PM
yeah there are fuses on the side of the amp. Wow this just totally cleared things up for me. Thanks guys
Posted By: KPierson
Date Posted: August 18, 2008 at 10:33 PM
A lot of people on here will recomend fusing the wire with the maximum size fuse that the wire can handle. However, it is much safer to fuse the wire for the maximum current YOUR system requires. Every fuse has a rated time delay before it blows - the bigger the fuse, the longer the time needed above the rated current before it will open up. If you are running a 4 awg wire but your amp only has (3) 30A fuses in the side of it there is no point to use a 150A fuse when 90A is all you are going to pull. My point is, if you are only going to pull X amps, you don't need an X + 50 amp fuse protecting the wire. The bigger the current the more important this becomes. ------------- Kevin Pierson
Posted By: TheDouche
Date Posted: August 19, 2008 at 9:09 AM
see that's the way I always did it. Added up all the fuses and put that in the main one. So basically keep doing what I've been doing basically. Thanks man
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: August 19, 2008 at 10:21 AM
As long as the fuse size you use is SMALLER than the max for the cable wire gauge size you use, then sure, there is nothing wrong with doing it that way. But the fuse at the battery is intended to protect the wire, not the amps. By using the largest size that will still protect the wire, you will never have to change it should you decide to upgrade an amplifier that can still be supported by the wire. Otherwise, fuse it for a 200 watt amp then install a 500 watt amp, and you also need to change your fuse. Why bother? Set it up once and be done. ------------- Support the12volt.com
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