VOL Fire Dept lights

[sonomadude4x4]

any one in the fire dept im getn ready to put lights on the crew for when i respond to calls cant figure out where to mount the 2 red lights on the front any ideas? any one done this? i know where im put the ones in the back but cant figure out any good ideas for the front any ideas would be great

[HenryJ]

With a couple relays and a switch you can wig-wag the drl or fogs with the flashers.
Avalanche wig-wag DRL

[sonomadude4x4]

i eneded up going with some lights from speed tech lighting i ordered 2 red lights for the front and 4 ambers for the back window the 2 for the front are gona mount to the brush guard for the swithes i made a plate to mount over the cd case holder will post pics when i get them all installed lights may be here by the weeked on early next week

[sonomadude4x4]

lights are supposed to be here this coming up week i have to run 2 power cables from the power supply which will be inside the cab to the battery and 2 more from the lights to the inside of the cab anyone know a easy way to run wires through the fire wall?

[HenryJ]

Antenna grommet

[sonomadude4x4]

where is that?

[HenryJ]

running wire through firewall
Under the heater just below the top edge of the carpet.

On the driver side you can puncture the boot that the wiring bundle uses just under the brake booster. That is a harder one to use.

I ran both the power wire for my Bazooka tube and the one for my Ham radio through the antenna grommet in the passenger side footwell-


That is probably the best place , and I have had no interference issues.

The other place that I have run wires is through the rubber boot of the firewall bulkhead wiring connection in the upper left hand portion of the drivers side foot well. The wires enter the engine compartment between the fender and the brake booster. This is a much harder place to insert wires. I use a long piece of brass rod or gas welding rod to puncture through attach the wire and pull back through. This works pretty well for wires up to 14ga. in size.

Power Wire Help
EMS style Hazards???

All that said, have you talked this over with your Fire Chief and your insurance company? The liability is HUGE. More accidents occur responding to a call in a private vehicle and any other fire department activity.
This is my post to the last person who wanted to add emergency lights:

I am going to ask that you not do it. Please do not mount emergency warning lights on your vehicle.

It seems that people become desensitized to emergency warning lights. Police, Fire, Ambulance, Construction vehicles, School buses, school zones, railroad crossings, etc. Flashing lights everywhere and much more frequently seen when compared to even a few years ago.
People just don't yield the right of way like they used to. Back in the day, Ma and Pa would rush outside to see what was happening when the flashing lights passed by. Seeing lights in the rearview they would move the the right. Seas of traffic would part and a wide path would be available for the emergency vehicle to make its way. Today it is common place and no one really takes notice as they once did. They assume that "they are after someone else", or "I'll make my turn before they reach me".

I would appreciate it if you would leave me something. Flashing lights and a siren are all we have. Well besides a great big truck.

The premise of saving a life by having them is a false hope. Your time and energies would be much better spent taking a CPR course, Farm medic class, EMT course, etc. Then you will have the skills to save a life.
The chain of survival starts with early intervention. Your taking immediate action on scene and making a call for emergency services is much better than risking your safety, the patients, and the publics by speeding to a hospital.
The emergency services personnel are the first step in any emergency. Our QRU will arrive within our response area within five minutes on average. Within the city usually within three from time of dispatch. Once vitals are taken and ABCs are taken care of, the patient will be transported by personnel that can do virtually anything the Hospital can do. These are not the body haulers of the past. These are mobile advanced life support vehicles.
The time you spent trying to rush to an emergency room is precious time that is lost. Help can be on the way to you much faster than you can travel to help. They do this daily and are very good at it. Enroute to the emergency room precious information will be forwarded and the hospital will be prepared for the arrival. This too is saving valuable time. If the injury is severe the patient may need services the closest hospital can not provide. In this case ambulance personnel can request air transport. Again the efficiency is better than the time spent rushing to a hospital, and then transporting to a rendezvous for an air ambulance. At the very least the air crew will be waiting at the hospital after being advised of the critical arrival.

I do respond to emergencies. We do not break traffic laws in our own vehicles or in emergency vehicles. The warning lights we display request other vehicles to yield their right of way. When responding to the station I do use my four way flashers. Rarely does this offer and benefit, other than drawing attention to myself. A volunteer firefighter recently received a prison sentence for an accident while responding in his personal vehicle to the station. Don't be that guy.

Our department stopped using emergency warning lights on our personal vehicles many years ago. We had a rapist in the area who used the flashing lights to pull over ladies and rape them. Recently a young man in the Boise valley was arrested for attempting to impersonate a police officer. He had a flashing light and wore black BDUs. And we have to wonder why people don't yield anymore? Any idiot can get a light.
Since Homeland security, many of our higher ranking law enforcement people started driving less conspicuous vehicles. The LED light bars are harder to see and the vehicles are suppose to make them less of a target.
Yet another reason any flashing light might be mistaken for a law enforcement vehicle.

I have laid out many reasons why I do not think it is a good idea, and why I hope more will resist the urge to add lights to private vehicles. Please leave the flashing lights to the vehicles that need them for the safety of us all.

Just because you can is not good enough. Do the right thing.

Since that post our SOP has been revised. We are no longer allowed to use even emergency flashers. We are to obey all traffic laws and not endanger the public with our response.
I do understand that as a volunteer firefighter it is cool to have the warning lights. I have even wig-wag'd my flashers and added sail panel LEDs. I think that is plenty far though. Those are useful as warning devices should I be stopped on a highway. No way to mistake them for an emergency vehicle. I do have a radio in my truck capable of use for emergency channels. All this does not make it an emergency vehicle.

If the lights are sanctioned by your department and if the department assumes your liability insurance in the event of an accident, go ahead and take the risk with your personal vehicle. Keep in mind that stuff happens.
We recently had a OSP cruiser T-bone a high school kids car. A car had yielded to the right as his lights indicated. As he passed that car the kid crossed the intersection not seeing the officer over taking the car that had pulled to the right. BAM, game over.
Another. Sheriff off duty at night. Over taking a vehicle on a rural highway. Car pulls out from a driveway, BAM. One dead, one critical.

Keep in mind the guy with the lights loses. Emergency vehicles are not exempt. If you have added lights the lawyers will eat that up and spit you out.

Eyes wide open.

[sonomadude4x4]

yes were allowed to have just 2 red lights but still have to obey all traffic laws its more of a safty thing for when were parked on the side of the road at a call

[sonomadude4x4]

we can only have red lights so we arnt mistaken as law inforcement

[HenryJ]

I have done quite a few emergency light installs. I would suggest two of the little LED strobes in red. No controller needed. Low power consumption and VERY bright! Two of those can be zip-tied to the grille and be almost invisible. They are clear when off so they will not be seen as red on the front of the vehicle when off.
I really like the set of those I mounted on our new brush truck.

[sonomadude4x4]

pictures!

This shows the 4 amber lights in the back window for the picture i have the lights set to steady on there not as bright in this setting but have 15 flash patterns



front 2 red lights


switch mount


back up camera, CB, cell phone holder, switches

[HenryJ]

Nice. Can they be set in a directional pattern? Sort of like a big turn signal display?

[sonomadude4x4]

u can set one of the patterns where its just the left ones that flash and the other stay on and same for the right side im sure theres a way that u can wire them so they work with yout turn sigals

[HenryJ]

I was sort of thinking like in an emergency situation directing traffic one side or the other.

Pretty cool

Now get your amateur radio operators license and put a REAL radio in there