Outside Kitchen Light

[humunuku]

I hope GD design engineers read this cry for help. They have created a problem which now I need help from this forum to resolve.

We have a 2021 Imagine 2670MK with two slides. The slide on the passenger side has an outside ktichen with stove top an refrigerator. here is the fly in the ointment.

The only exterior light is part of the 21ft awning. When the slide is extended as would be the case in standard camping mode, the slide blocks any light from the awning. even when the awning is extended, the light array remains at the wall and is blocked by the slide. In my humblr opinion as a product designer this was poorly considered and has remained a problem for several model years.

Here is where I need help from this forum. I want to add a12V external light fixture over the outside kitchen. But where can I find 12V supply? From the inside there are cabinets at the right height with a 12V light. I think I could tap into this light but alas access to this wiring is land-locked. The 120V and 12V wires are sandwiched between two layes of thin plywood at the base of the cabinet. I suspect GD wired thes power points(120v & 12VDC) and then stapled the cabinet over the wire chase.

Can someone provide me some guidence on this installation? My best guess is to drill a hole from outside between cabinet base layers. Then I would fish for the 12V wire but not sure if there ill be adequate wire or access for a splice.

I am slightly frustrated by this need to add my own exterior light. My hope is GD Design either has fixed this problem or better yet they help me develop a solution.

Thanks y'all for your time in reading this post.

[Cate&Rob]

Hi Al & Ann,

Your plan seems reasonable, if the outside light location lines up with the space where the wiring is for the interior under cabinet light. If you contact Grand Design Customer Service with your VIN, they will likely send you a drawing of that slide wall, which might help. The “risk” is drilling “blind” into that lower cabinet space from the outside . . . you don’t know what else you might hit. Can you pull up the interior surface of the cabinet, to get a better idea of what is in that space?

BTW . . . you will not reach Grand Design through this forum. This is a group of owners (just like yourself) helping each other.

Rob

[humunuku]

Cate&Rob

Hello Rob,

Thank you for your comments and insight. Yes, I am aware that these do not go directly to Grand Design, but I was wishful thinking that they might read these for entertainment on their days off. ha ha
It is certainly a risk drilling blindly into an electrical chase hence I remain reticent. I truly appreciate your encouragement. The top cover of the race/shelf is stapled a guzillion times and looks like GD never intended for it to be accessed. I might need to drill a larger hole above the 12V light fixture for a better view and fish wire capture. The larger hole will remain covered by the fixture. But alas, I like your suggestion to contact GD Support directly and see if they will provide some guidance. Again thank you for your time. Evidently no one else cooks outside in the dark like me. Ha ha. Hope you are safe and your travels are pleasant.

best regards,
Al Ely

[Jlawles2]

I found that the paneling in the campers actually cuts easily with a razor knife. may take several cuts over each other, but definitely much better than blindly drilling into an opening.

[howson]

humunuku -- perhaps a battery-powered light?

[Cate&Rob]

humunuku

Putting a new “floor” in a cabinet is not too complicated. I have done this on lower cabinets where the 1/8” material was not strong enough for what was stored there. I have not tried this on an overhead cabinet. As long as the cabinet floor is “the last piece in” it can be pried out and even if damaged, can be used as a template for a new piece.

Rob

[humunuku]

Cate&Rob howson Jlawles2

Gentlemen, Thank you for ideas and comments. They are always valuable to me.
I have completed the project after 4 hours of whinging and throwing my toys out of the pram. It probably was because of my attitude at the onset, but everthing that could go wrong - did!

I had previously purrchased a 12V LED lamp with three levels of light. Amazon Oppkett. I liked that it was dimmable and rated IP67.

As I mentioned earlier, I hadn't properly sourced the 12VDC power for this. After our discussion this morning, I researched the Furrion exhaust hood and discovered the light/fan were both 12VDC. I was surprised. The hood provided a nice cover for the exterior penetration but it would cause the light to be too low outside. Thus I removed the Microwave. Here I found good access to a couple 12VDC wires.

Before I drilled the hole from the outside, I approximated the cabinet base with some yellow tape. There was also a vertical one representing the side of the microwave cubby. If you look in the third picture you can see I hit the cabinet 1/2" square brace and missed the 120V wires for microwave and outlets. I suppose better lucky than good applies here.

I used push-snap connectors. The problem I ran into was the 22awg wire from Oppkept was difficult to push and the 12awg from GD was a tight fit. But after adding some extra tinning to the Oppkept wires, they were stiif enough to make a good push-lok.

In retrospect, I probably should have gone with the black model as it would have blended better with all the other accents.
I am content that is is done. The smallest projects seem to give me the biggest headaches. Just glad its done. Now I can see what I am cooking.

Thanks for listening to an old man whinge. Onward...

[Jlawles2]

humunuku Al, you may want to look into getting a set of https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1 for projects and various repairs to the camper vs the style you used. These use a lever to lock the wire in place thus facilitating removal.

Is there al hight inside the compartment? Looks like that door lifts up, thus putting a light inside the compartment may help supply additional lighting.