Checking out a H260 fixed keel tomorrow

Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
Justin_NSA;
Hunter use to send many for directions on installing shore power for the 26, 260 and 270. The photo where the shore power cut off switch is shown way back in the rear berth where you had to crawl back just to get to it to shut off and also to see the reverse polarity light. Ugh.
I use to place that on the right side of the galley.
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
Justin_NSA;
Hunter use to send many for directions on installing shore power for the 26, 260 and 270. The photo where the shore power cut off switch is shown way back in the rear berth where you had to crawl back just to get to it to shut off and also to see the reverse polarity light. Ugh.
I use to place that on the right side of the galley
.
The first AC breaker cannot be more than 10 feet of wire away from the shore power inlet. If is is, it breaks AYBC wiring code. That's why you will often see one (or the primary) close the the power inlet near the transom. Probably why Hunter put it there.
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
Most boats that I sold on the smaller ones generally were within 10 feet of the shore power outlet on the dock. Most often, they were on the finger docks and actually much safer vs. off the rear.
Update, I spoke with bamabaxter last night and today how I wired up both boats. Thanks goes to Kermit for responding to my request for information. Essentially the show power inlet on the 260/270 was inside the cockpit locker to keep rain off running in a manner down to the hull under the rear berth and thru the bulkhead separating the galley and rear berth. I suggested securing wiring and where exposed to be encapsulated in split plum or the split black coragated tubing and on the bulkhead or where ever any wire runs thru bulkheads to put some corrugated split tubing around it so not to chafe the wiring. Then run up to such a point the shore power unit with reverse polarity light is easily accessible. I suggested Blue Seas and make sure a cover plate is on the back. GFI on the first receptacle as it is on the galley and daisy chain around the starboard side to the port side. I suggested if using a 20 amp service that the GFI and wiring correspond to the appropitate wire as wiring for 15 amp along with gfi is different

Hope this helps
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
Two things:

1) The 10-foot AYBC wire limit is the wire INSIDE the boat, NOT the shore power cord outside it.

2) Many small boat owners install a single 30A breaker as their AC panel, connnected directly to their AC power outlets. While this is convenient and simple, it is NOT code and puts you at risk. The reason is that the panel breaker is at the rated input (30 Amps), and each branch circuit needs to be 20 amp. Because of this, the wire and outlets in this setup are not correcly protected.

To be safe and be in code, you should in this case use a combined breaker (30A) with a single 20A branch breaker. Like this.

 
Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
You are correct as I only used 20 amp which is what blue seas has suggested. However I never found an issue as long as the run regardless was as short as possible and never had an issue.
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
You are correct as I only used 20 amp which is what blue seas has suggested. However I never found an issue as long as the run regardless was as short as possible and never had an issue.
How did you get a 20A main breaker panel? BBS dosn't make one; just 30A and 50A.
 
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Dec 2, 2003
751
Hunter 260 winnipeg, Manitoba
On the 260 and 26 hunters the distance from the aft area by where the motor is to the galley area Dave mentions is less than 10' even if you run the wire a little loopy! From in the the starboard cockpit locker to the panel is only about 5-7'. Think the 20 amp Dave is talking about is the gfi outlet rather than a 15amp gfi which of course requires using a heavier guage of wire if also on a 20amp branch circuit breaker.
 
Nov 8, 2010
11,386
Beneteau First 36.7 & 260 Minneapolis MN & Bayfield WI
On the 260 and 26 hunters the distance from the aft area by where the motor is to the galley area Dave mentions is less than 10' even if you run the wire a little loopy! From in the the starboard cockpit locker to the panel is only about 5-7'. Think the 20 amp Dave is talking about is the gfi outlet rather than a 15amp gfi which of course requires using a heavier guage of wire if also on a 20amp branch circuit breaker.
My question is, where did the 20A breaker come in? The BBS single main breaker part is 30A (or 50A), which is above the rating over everything downstream of it. If you only have this in your AC system, you're not safe.



 
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Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
Jackdaw, it has been years since installing but things have changed from what it use to be. I recall for example I was probably the first proponent of GFI when being ridiculed or trying to get color coding changed on DC so the black hot AC and 12 volt DC black(negative) would not be confused/eventually the DC negative or black is now yellow.. I dealt when things were different or looked at differently. I prefer not to go any further and rely on your expertise.
Look under battery whoes and look at the photo of the four batteries. Is the color coding correct?.
 

Doug J

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May 2, 2005
1,192
Hunter 26 Oceanside, CA
FWIW: Here is a picture of how I did my installation. I have a H26, the transom is different than the 260/270. The PO of my boat installed a watertight shore power inlet in the aft end of the starboard seat in the cockpit, near the motor-well. That location works fine and also has the advantage that the wiring runs directly inside the aft compartment. The only thing I kept of the original installation was the hole for shore power plug, everything needed to be re-placed, as residential house wiring and components were used. I replaced all wiring with marine grade tinned 12/3 Triplex wire. There was not even a main breaker, it was a disaster! From the shore power inlet it is a very short 2 ft run to the AC breaker. I used the Blue Sea AC Main + 1 position breaker panel. As Jackdaw already mentioned it provides a 30 amp main, I added a 15 amp breaker for the cabin outlets. I don't plan to use any real high power devices, 15 amp should be plenty and easy enough to change if need be. The first outlet is a 15 amp GFCI located inside the aft compartment. I plug in the 10 amp battery charger there. From the GFCI it runs to 3 duplex outlets in the cabin. As you can see, I installed the AC panel on the aft bulkhead, for me it's quite accessible. The reverse polarity light is very visible from the main cabin area.

20160716_181131.jpg
 
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Feb 18, 2011
315
Hunter 260 Cave Run Lake, KY
Just an educated guess, but I'd assume that it uses the same hull but a different liner, one with a grid (bonded to the hull) that helps distribute the much more centralized load of the fixed keel.
Jackdaw got it right as usual- I happened to see a H270 for sale on Craigslist, and it has pictures of the bilge and keel bolts. Here is the link:
https://sarasota.craigslist.org/boa/5970261628.html
I've attached the key photo for future reference.
 

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Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
Caverun, Hunter always grounded the mast foot or as some said deck mast plate to the keel. Different on the water ballast. DougJ, The routing of the 12-3 (positive, ground and neutral) is it good that the black corrugated piping was added for protection, the one concern with it in the way of the cushion moving about would worry me. I use to use the same black piping or plume as we in the industry called it would run it below the rear berth thru the hole in the rear bulkhead and over toward the starboard side secured in place by 5200 and then thru a cut hole going underneath the galley. Everywhere there was any hole, plume was added so it would encase the edges of the holes. Like you I added the gfi to the first outlet at the galley area.
I put my breaker on the back side of the galley which was much easier to get to but added a back cover to it under the galley for safety.