instrument panel lights

[Kevininwa]

The fuse for our instrument panel lights on our 1978 motorhome keeps blowing out. It is a 3A fuse, and I've resisted the temptation to bump it up to 5. It lasts a few minutes when I replace it, so it is not an obvious (to me) short. I test it by turning them off and on, and it will eventually blow. Couldmit be the switch? There does not appear to be any easy way to get in behind it and test for shorts, so I'm looking for someone who may have run in to this before. Or I don't see much harm in stepping it up to a 5A fuse, or am I missing something?

I'd also like to add an amen to the complaints about the location of the fuse panel. The PO had a CB radio blocking it!

[cmadmaxman]

3 amps, I think is on the low side?! I replace all mine with LED's as well as all the running/tail lights.

I think the dash lights are fused along with the running/tail lights. I know when the fuse would go on mine, I had a line going to the back lights shorting out, and it would take out the dash lights as well. For many years that is how GM would do it. No dash lights, no tail lights!

[Kevininwa]

I can barely see the wire on the 3A, so what's the harm in a 5A, right? The fuse panel and my wiring diagram both tell me the instrument panel is isolated. I'm wondering if I need to trace some wiring to see where it all leads to. I'm resisting the urge to pull the panel out and trying to make sense of the messy mass of wiring. I promised my wife no major projects until fall, so I'm looking for a quick fix (aren't we all?)