Range Rover Auxillary Power

How many auxiliary pieces of electrical equipment do you run off your battery?

The positive terminal on the battery of the Range Rover was starting to look a little like something from the national power grid.  Although not really ideal, I tend to run most of my auxiliaries directly off the battery rather than loading the ignition system, and as yet, I haven't sorting out where to fit the auxiliary battery due to all the EFI gear and snorkel hosing which encroach into the secondary battery box.

What I wanted to do was fit a multi tap "positive" connection that didn't revolve around the battery terminal.  The solution that I came up with was to fit a earth bar normally used on a 230v household fuse board, to the flat steel paneling forward of the battery box.  To ensure that the new auxiliary tapping can supply the required current draw, it is fed from the battery terminal via a 6mm copper cable.  The bar is insulated form the rest of the vehicle by using specially designed Bakelite insulators that are available as an accessory to the earth bar.

To make the cable runs as easy as possible, and reduce the chance of a cable's insulation being damaged, I drilled a 32mm hole and a 25 mm hole through the panel steel between the battery box and the "auxiliary tapping", and a 32mm hole through the horizontal panel supporting the front grill.  I then screwed in place grommetless glands which provide a smooth surface for the cables to pass through.  The hole through the grill support panel accommodates the Warn winch power cables (when I refit the winch which was removed to repair the cracked bullbar).
I have also run a 6mm supply cable to the rear of the Range Rover to feed the auxiliary lighting and camping equipment.

The installation is simple, neat and tidy, didn't cost much, and the parts are available from any electrical wholesaler.