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Unknown electrical switch??

8K views 75 replies 17 participants last post by  SpcAlan1 
#1 ·
#3 ·
Ok, I will have to play around and find out what they do.
I do have a water heater and ac outlets.
my battery charger just plugs into the AC outlets when plugged into shore power.

I am plannng on moving the perko switch and replacing the 7 switch panel to something new, and adding some monitors ( 2 batteries, maybe total draw, and the override for the bilge pump.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Isn't that the Self-Destruct Switch??? :eek:


"Thank you for using the Acme Self Destruct. This boat will self destruct in fifteen seconds....Fifteen....forteen....thirteen....twelve....Eleven....Ten.....



KA-BOOM!!
 
#9 ·
Somewhere in the Atlantic, there is a lighted bouy blinking on and off as you flip that switch. :D

Assumption is that because it is close to the AC panel, it has something to do with AC...

The two most common AC "options" are (as others have already pointed out); Battery Charger, and Water Heater. Because there is a light on it, I would guess Battery Charger.

However, because the boat looks to have some, uh... non-standard wiring, it could control virtually anything.

If it were my boat, I would be rewiring EVERYTHING connected to this panel with tinned - stranded - Marine grade AC wire.
 
#11 ·
Somewhere in the Atlantic, there is a lighted bouy blinking on and off as you flip that switch. :D

Assumption is that because it is close to the AC panel, it has something to do with AC...

The two most common AC "options" are (as others have already pointed out); Battery Charger, and Water Heater. Because there is a light on it, I would guess Battery Charger.

However, because the boat looks to have some, uh... non-standard wiring, it could control virtually anything.

If it were my boat, I would be rewiring EVERYTHING connected to this panel with tinned - stranded - Marine grade AC wire.
I agree with the assumption to AC..

the only battery charger i ( know of ) is an external charger that plugs into the AC outlet then to the batteries directly.

could be the water heater - but who knows? I do have a water heater, but never use it ( or know how ).

I am in the process of re-doing the AC and DC panels, just to make sure where everything is and how everything works.

Any ideas on the Combi thingy?
 
#18 ·
Look like you may have had some Combi instruments at some point... likely died and removed except for this gem. It looks like the lighting control and a damping adj for a wind indicator.
 
#15 ·
The next step would be to measure the voltage using a standard multi-meter and determine whether the circuit is 110-VAC or 12-VDC. Set the meter at the AC Volts setting first--just to be on the safe side. If you do not get a reading at the AC volts setting, then switch to DC volts and see if you get a reading there. This will at least tell you what type of circuit you're dealing with and allows you to narrow the search down a bit.

Obviously, if you get a 110 VAC reading, then you know the circuit will be limited to either your water heater, AC or heat system(s). The list is much larger when you get to DC.

Good Luck,

Gary :cool:
 
#17 ·
FWIW, my AC panel has a master on/off switch, and then three additional switches: Battery charger, water heater, and cabin outlets. Same switch count as you. Coincidence?

As mentioned, the fact the panel is the same gold-ish color and discrete from the other switches indicates it is all a 110 VAC panel, so be careful.
 
#19 ·
Alan, as long as you are replacing panels you really should consider tracing out every wire that will be involved. And then either labelling both ends of it, if the wiring is good, or pulling and replacing any wiring that is bad. Pinched, corroded, chafed, a bit crispy, undersized...Sometimes you will find the PO spliced a wire by twisting the ends and taping over them. Sometimes there are dead wiring runs from removed equipment, which you may want to pull. Or. "leave 'em just in case" as so many folks do.

So while you've got the panel end off, explore. Take notes. Next time there's an electrical mystery on the boat, you'll be glad you did.
 
#22 ·
I think the safest way to go about this is to physically trace the wire coming off the switch to whatever it is connected to. One side will likely go to a power bus, which won't tell you anything. The other should go to the device it is switching.

Checking for voltage or continuity can be a little complex, if you're unfamiliar.
 
#24 ·
.....I will replace the bilge pump myself tonight - straight to the battery!
Since you've suggested this is a bit outside your familiarity, I'll point out that you should be sure to have an in-line fuse as close to the battery as possible on the positive side.

That said, it usually makes sense to have a bilge pump go through the panel too. You can shut it off easily, when you might be servicing a filter or filling with antifreeze and many switches allow you to set to manual or auto.
 
#26 ·
Actually, I would put the bilge pump on a separate switch--not one on the panel. As posted above, though, put an inline fuse on the positive line running from the battery to the switch. Most bilge pumps have three-way switches that allow you to pump manually, or use the automatic feature, which routes your positive line through the float switch, then to the pump. The center position of the switch is for turning it off.

The second reason is most of today's panels have indicator lamps that will eventually drain your battery, even if the bilge pump's not running--not something you really want to do.

For a panel, look at West Marine's panels.



Rule makes an inexpensive, but rugged bilge pump switch that's available from West Marine for about $25.



Good Luck,

Gary :cool:
 
#27 ·
My current bilge pump ( Rule 1100 GPH ) does not have a float switch.
I suppose it is all self contained ( I would not know since it hasn't worked since I bought the boat ).

Thanks for the pics of possible panels. I am not 100% sure what type of panel I need - I know its DC, but should it be a 'breaker' or 'fuse' panel?
 
#29 ·
The Rule 1100 GPH pump is an automatic with a built-in switch. I don't recommend them because of the constant, low-power drain on the battery that occurs when in the standby mode. If I recall it's only a few millivolts, but over a long period it can drain your battery by a significant amount.



The submersible, non-automatic series with a separate float switch does not draw any power until it turns on, which is preferable on smaller boats.

RULE INDUSTRIES Submersible Electric Bilge Pumps at West Marine

Good Luck,

Gary :cool:
 
#31 ·
I had the opposite problem when we bought our boat. The device with no switch. Two air horns mounted on the cockpit coaming (real knee bangers) and no switch to sound them. Traced the wires into the engine compartment and to the air pump mounted on a bulkhead between two tanks. The wires from that disappeared into a bundle of wires which shortly became untraceable. A while later, my wife, Saltwater Suzi, was cleaning behind the companionway steps and noticed a little chrome button switch - which upon investigation led to the horns. (They didn't work anyway - like many things on the boat when we bought it.)

But imagine, in an emergency you need to sound the horn. Leave the helm, stumble down the companionway steps - get a flashlight and get on your hands and knees to reach around and press an almost inaccessible button??? To this day I cannot imagine what the installer was thinking.

By the way, there are AC voltage detectors which detect the presence of AC - it will tell you if a circuit is hot or not. Not too expensive and handy to have if you're working with unfamiliar AC on a boat. (I'm not recommending that you buy it from the link provided - just sending you there for the pix).

You don't even have to make electrical contact with the wires. Doesn't work with DC though.
 
#33 ·
Be sure to secure it to the bottom of the bilge. If it tips over, the internal switch isn't going to work properly.

Also, just for clarification, it won't come on until there is a reasonable amount of water detected (2 inches comes to mind). Presumably, you have a low bilge to place it in and that level of water isn't spread throughout 100 square feet of hull before it rises that much.

One reason for separate switches is that they are a likely point of failure and easier to replace, if separate. Integrated units may have to be entirely replaced.

Sorry, if I'm telling you things you already know.
 
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