A GUIDE TO TRUCK BED LIGHTS

Since your truck's bed is now the most functional component, why not add truck bed lights to increase its adaptability? Installing lights to your truck bed can be very useful, whether you're using it for nighttime labor or camping.

You can put up camping gear or find your tools more readily with the aid of the lights. Truck bed lights can assist you in positioning your belongings appropriately, even if you're only out for a nighttime shopping trip.

An LED LightJeep truck bed liner is among your top bets when it comes to aftermarket accessories for your vehicle. Compared to a spray-on liner, our truck bed liners protect your truck bed's standard finish far longer by protecting it.

WHAT ARE TRUCK BED LIGHTS?

You may have cargo bed lighting on a newer pickup truck model wired to the same housing as the brake light by the back window. The cargo lights turn on when you open your truck's doors or press a button within the cabin.

Like many OEM choices, this is an essential way to light up your truck bed so that you might need more than this. Your truck bed's lighting can be significantly improved with aftermarket accessories.

WHY DO YOU NEED TRUCK BED LIGHTS?

If you don't have any lights in your bed or the factory lights aren't good enough for your purposes, you may need truck bed lights. Truck bed lights are primarily necessary if you want to operate your vehicle at night or in dimly lit locations, and you also need to be able to look inside your cargo area.

Typically, this could mean working at night on a construction or road crew site or going camping in your vehicle or on its bed. Lights on truck beds are helpful in a variety of circumstances.

HOW DO TRUCK BED LIGHTS WORK?

As previously said, stock bed lights are activated by a cockpit button or turn on automatically when the doors open. They are typically wired parallel to the brake light on your rear cab. Aftermarket bed lights, however, come in a variety of configurations.

Some may, for instance, feature wireless remote controls, tailgate switches, dimmable options, several color options, or flashing options. The kind of light arrangement you purchase will determine how your lights operate.

Installing the provided switch and connecting wiring to your truck's battery is necessary for most lights. Installing aftermarket fog lights or other off-road lighting is quite similar to this.

TRUCK BED LIGHT OPTIONS

The abundance of alternatives available for various types is a benefit of aftermarket truck bed lights. Let's examine the available options.

BED STRIP LIGHT KIT

These are LED light strips that mount under your truck's bed rails. Most of these kits are installed via cabling connected to your truck's battery.

The lights can be wired to turn on and off with the lights on your truck's doors, or you can use the supplied switch to turn them on and off. Some kits may involve drilling into your truck bed to install, which may appeal to only some.

OFF-ROAD LIGHT POD KIT

Anything designed with off-road enthusiasts in mind is likely to be large and bright. These kits include light pods with many LED lights to provide much light. While some of these kits merely have white light, others include several colors, the ability to flash, and the ability to be set to play music.

Typically, you can control these lights by pairing your smartphone with Bluetooth. With the associated app, you may control several extra features, such as timers and colors.

OEM CARGO LIGHTS

OEM-style cargo lights are also available aftermarket. Although these lights usually only offer modest illumination, installing and wiring them into your dome light is simple. An elaborate LED arrangement can be less expensive than OEM cargo lights.

Similar to the OEM cargo lights, different kinds of aftermarket lighting are marketed as cargo lights; however, these are usually battery-operated and attach to any part of your bed using a strong adhesive. These are the simplest to install and don't require experience with do-it-yourself wiring.

You may have noticed that most truck bed lights online are LED configurations. This is due to the three main advantages of LED lights:

• Low power draw
• They are very bright for their size
• Minimal heat generation

Upgraded trim packages often include optional truck bed lights, which are available on many popular truck models. Ford's "Zone Lighting" is one such, offered on the 2022 Lightning Lariat and 2021–2022 F150 XLT trim packages.