Fuel Pump Hookup

[Taylorman]

Whats the best way to hooup an electric fuel pump. Im sure there is a better way to connect it than running a hot wire from the key. Im thinking about a relay or a solenoid. Whats the best way to do it?

[sdba069]

Hey T-Man......... Purple 14Ga wire from ign switch to fuel pump switch so that fp switch is only energized when ignition is on.... color? 14 ga wire from fp switch to relay which is mounted between battery and fp... recommend an oil pressure switch which won't allow the fp to run if the engine is not running... that op switch will have 2 posts on it... wire one side to ground and the other side to the relay ground... recommend 12 ga wire from battery to relay and from relay to pump... same with the ground wire... you can make a little jumper wire for bypassing the op switch if you need to run the fp without the engine running... Hope this helps

[Oldsquirt]

Use a relay. It can be triggered either by a separate fuel pump switch or directly by the ignition switch(easier since you can pick that circuit up at the motor). Mount the relay as close as is reasonably practical to the fuel pump. Many of the pump manufacturers sell relay kits as do many suppliers to the street rod industry. Here's one link for you . Painless Wiring Relay Page (http://www.painlessperformance.com/webcatalog/cat-relaykits.htm). While you could buy a generic relay and wire it up, the pre-wired relay holders make the job easier and tidier.
By the way, a "solenoid" and a relay do not interchange in application. A solenoid is an electro-magnetic device that performs some mechanical function. Examples would be door lock solenoids, the solenoid on your GM starter(it moves the lever that engages the drive gear), etc. A "relay" is an electro-magnetically operated switch. The names are often used incorrectly, particularly "solenoid".