Boat / Marine Electrical Work

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Srbenda
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Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by Srbenda »

I know that those of us with inferior mechanical skills often need help in fixing things on our boat. My Dorado needed some electrical work that was well beyond my capability, and so I called John Swanson at St. Marks Pro Marine. I thought I would post the before and after pictures for everyone to see.

John does great work, and I have found him to be completely trustworthy. If you need any electrical work needed on your boat, he's a good man to call.

We replaced the original fuse panel with a more modern panel, and cleaned up the wiring significantly. ( and also just cleaned! )

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Juan
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by Juan »

Looks great. Wire ties are wonderful gadgets. :-D
Maybe you took the picture before it was completed but it looks like there's a ground terminal not connected and the ground nut on the battery isn't tight
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Srbenda
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by Srbenda »

Good catch, but all of that was finished after the photo!
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silverking
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by silverking »

Juan has sharp eyes for an old-timer. :wink:

From rat's nest to neat and tidy. Nice work!
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StMarksAngler
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by StMarksAngler »

Congrats on the rewire!

Like you, my console had been a disaster since I bought the boat two years ago, and I had absolutely zero electrical experience or know-how to tackle myself. By the looks of it, my project was about 2-3 times worse than your pictures. But after talking to a couple of guys online and reading a whole lot of threads on the matter, I decided to do it myself anyway.

And as it turns out... it really wasn't very difficult! I probably spent 60% of my time learning/planning/diagramming and the remaining 40% actually pulling out old crap, running new wires and installing. The biggest upshot is that A) I saved a few thousand dollars on labor and B) I now have a complete and total understanding of my boat's electrical system, top to bottom. In fact the last time I went out I was able to diagnose and fix a sudden engine failure and no-start situation 20 miles offshore in about 5 minutes with my new knowledge. A couple of months ago I would have drifted for hours until SeaTow showed up.

I also installed an automated 12v to 24v switching system with auto-charging that keeps all three batteries topped up in order of Cranking > House > Trolling. Figuring out the wiring plan for this setup was about 50% of the total effort for the project I'd say.

Anyway all of this to say that electrical is very intimidating to look at if you don't know what you're doing, but it's quick to learn and invaluable knowledge to have!
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onefishtwofish
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by onefishtwofish »

Looks great.

Having the right tools (wire stripper, heat gun for shrink tubing, clamp for quick connects, marine bus, proper terminal ends, etc) makes the job relaxing for me. I enjoy rewiring stuff. Is that weird?
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StMarksAngler
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by StMarksAngler »

onefishtwofish wrote:Looks great.

Having the right tools (wire stripper, heat gun for shrink tubing, clamp for quick connects, marine bus, proper terminal ends, etc) makes the job relaxing for me. I enjoy rewiring stuff. Is that weird?
That's how I feel, now. Ended up with a bunch of new tools also with all the cash saved on labor. :thumbup:
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onefishtwofish
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by onefishtwofish »

StMarksAngler wrote:
onefishtwofish wrote:Looks great.

Having the right tools (wire stripper, heat gun for shrink tubing, clamp for quick connects, marine bus, proper terminal ends, etc) makes the job relaxing for me. I enjoy rewiring stuff. Is that weird?
That's how I feel, now. Ended up with a bunch of new tools also with all the cash saved on labor. :thumbup:
I bought a 45HP tractor after the hurricane with the same mentality. The money I could save with not paying someone to do all my cleanup I put in to the tractor! Root grapplers are the bomb!
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STMU
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Re: Boat / Marine Electrical Work

Post by STMU »

onefishtwofish wrote:Looks great.

Having the right tools (wire stripper, heat gun for shrink tubing, clamp for quick connects, marine bus, proper terminal ends, etc) makes the job relaxing for me. I enjoy rewiring stuff. Is that weird?
NOPE! I enjoy it as well, always thought I was weird too. Glad I'm not the only one.
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