Another silly question from a new sailor.

[HanBan]

Hi again guys,

I took my 323 out the other day, and unfortunately I seem to have done a little damage to the boat. I motored her from one marina to another, and I forgot to turn off the battery charger on the AC panel.

Unfortunately, that panel doesn't seem to do anything anymore, and the outlets don't seem to be getting any power.

I've tried to check all of the fuses on the boat, but for the life of me I can't figure out what I've broken.

Any ideas?

Also, thank you so much for all of your answers. I'm fumbling about on this boat trying to learn as much as possible, but I seem to break things often and then have the boat yard fix them. My husband just shakes his head.

 

[justsomeguy]

Any ideas?

Trace from the pedestal on your new dock. Is there power at the dock pedestal?

 

[Caboteur]

Once the power is shut off from the AC panel leaving the battery charger circuit on shouldn't change anything. The breaker at the power entrance has probably tripped. This should be located in the rear of the storage compartment.

 

[Caboteur]

To be checked after the pedestal of course

 

[jssailem]

A Boat Yard owners dream come true. A new boat owner with no manual or previous experience, willing to be adventurous.
@HanBan you keep going out there. It will all eventually work itself out.

Lets start at the beginning. Assuming you are in a marina, tied to a dock, and you have an AC cord running from a fitting on the boat to the dock and plugged into an outlet on the dock pedestal.

1. Does the marina provide AC power?
2. Is the marina power turned on?
3. Have you switched the power on at the pedestal for your boat?
4. Have you switched on the AC power breaker on the boats AC panel?
5. Do you have the correct polarity?
6. Is the marina providing the correct power source for your boat AC 110 or AC 220? Your profile indicates "Solomons Island". Is this in Maryland or the South Pacific?

 

[HanBan]

Trace from the pedestal on your new dock. Is there power at the dock pedestal?

Yes, the pedastal has power.

 

[HanBan]

Once the power is shut off from the AC panel leaving the battery charger circuit on shouldn't change anything. The breaker at the power entrance has probably tripped. This should be located in the rear of the storage compartment.

OK, this is fantastic...I tore everything out of the lazarette (?) and noticed the two breakers. They both seem to be ok.

 

[HanBan]

A Boat Yard owners dream come true. A new boat owner with no manual or previous experience, willing to be adventurous.
@HanBan you keep going out there. It will all eventually work itself out.

Lets start at the beginning. Assuming you are in a marina, tied to a dock, and you have an AC cord running from a fitting on the boat to the dock and plugged into an outlet on the dock pedestal.

1. Does the marina provide AC power?
2. Is the marina power turned on?
3. Have you switched the power on at the pedestal for your boat?
4. Have you switched on the AC power breaker on the boats AC panel?
5. Do you have the correct polarity?
6. Is the marina providing the correct power source for your boat AC 110 or AC 220? Your profile indicates "Solomons Island". Is this in Maryland or the South Pacific?

Thank you so much for helping me. My husband just giggles at me doing all this stuff.

1) Yes there is AC power, but I have noticed that one of the shore power attachements on the boat only has 2 prongs. There are 2 shore power plugs, one has 3 metal prongs, and the other only has 2. I'm wondering if a prong snapped off or if it's supposed to be that way. I'd take a pic, but I'm now in the car on the way home (I have no choice about going home).
2) Yes, the marina power is turned on. The AC in the boat works, and that is on an AC board (though a different ac board than the outlets).
3) Yes, I switched it off and then on again.
4) Yes, I switched the Shore Power and AC Main on. Shore power lights up on it's panel, but the AC Main does not light up on it's panel.
5) Polarity? I have no idea what this is, and I've likely done something very wrong. Is this dangerous if I have it wrong? The reverse polarity light was not on.
6) I moved the boat to the West Basin Marina on Patuxent River Naval Air Station. The little AC guage's needle was hovering around 120v ac. Is that correct?

Again, I can't thank you guys enough. Every time I do something, I feel like everything is about to blow up or sink.

 

[Davidasailor26]

There are 2 shore power plugs, one has 3 metal prongs, and the other only has 2. I'm wondering if a prong snapped off or if it's supposed to be that way.

I assume they're both the same style with the round connectors that have a screw-on sleave? If so they should definitely both have 3 prongs. I can't think of any reason the power jack on the boat would only have 2 prongs. Maybe it was corroded and broke off when you motored between marinas. If that's the case you'll need to have that jack replaced, and it's probably best to replace the other one while you're at it. If one was that corroded the other probably isn't in great shape and corroded power jacks can lead to fire.

 

[HanBan]

I assume they're both the same style with the round connectors that have a screw-on sleave? If so they should definitely both have 3 prongs. I can't think of any reason the power jack on the boat would only have 2 prongs. Maybe it was corroded and broke off when you motored between marinas. If that's the case you'll need to have that jack replaced, and it's probably best to replace the other one while you're at it. If one was that corroded the other probably isn't in great shape and corroded power jacks can lead to fire.

Oh my gosh, I am going to jump in my car and go and unplug that as soon as possible. Thank you for letting me know that this isn't normal.

 

[shemandr]

For prospective, the first time I tried to use my first sailboat I pulled the halyard tail out of the mast. No sailing that day! That was only the first mistake. There've been many more since. Keep at it.

 

[HanBan]

For prospective, the first time I tried to use my first sailboat I pulled the halyard tail out of the mast. No sailing that day! That was only the first mistake. There've been many more since. Keep at it.

Thank you!

 

[SG]

DO you have an inverter on the boat? That is a device convert DC power on the boat to AC power. That would be for convenience outlets. They are wonderful devices; however, they come with some liabilities.

IF YOU HAVE AN INVERTER, be very careful. You might think you have the AC power off because you unplugged the boat from shorepower; and, really isn't necessarily so. The inverter is sitting there on standby, as soon as you (or something or someone) become connected, it might energize.

Polarity is usually indicated on the Beneteaus that I've been on by a light. If you have reverse polarity, it means that you have reversed the neutral and hot legs of the power supply. Some things work fine, but you have the danger of your ground wire suddenly being energized with AC POWER. It will do do bad things; and it can hurt you if you touch something that is grounded by the circuits (like a piece of metal around a device) and you yourself are grounded. In a marine environment, when you can really have a very efficient connection to a ground (e.g., by touching something that is grounded to the water and the piece of metal that is getting energy through reverse polarity) that is very dangerous.

Don't fixate on this, if the boat doesn't have a polarity tester on the panel, you can get a simple one at the hardware store that plugs into one of your outlets, you can learn how to use a voltage meter (if you get or have one), and/or you can get a shore power cord that has a light that warns of bad polarity at the AC supply provided at the dock.

Since you said you have power on the boat: i) you either have no real power from the shore because you have an inverter that is providing that power from the boat; or ii) you actually have power from the dock. If you really have lost the third prong of a marine connection, that would likely mean that your ground prong isn't there. THAT's not good for a variety of reasons.

There are whole series of simpler electrical books for boats. In the meantime, West Marine and BoatUS have a lot of "free" information. Examples:

https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/West-Advisor-Articles [this is a list of articles and pieces]
https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/Circuit-Protection-and-Power-Distribution
https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/DIY-Shore-Power [The article and video you might look at first.]

 

[Tom J]

Don't be afraid to ask your neighbor on the dock to help you. The boating community is a friendly group for the most part, and we are only too happy to help each other out.

 

[jssailem]

@HanBan That makes sense. NAS Patuxent... Nice spot. Had an Uncle stationed there, Capt. Birdwell directed the US Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, MD. Loved the billet. He boated to the base in a speed boat.

The AC power cord is a 3 prong 30 amp cord for power from a pedestal to your boat.
Here are some examples of bad cords from @mainesail ... https://marinehowto.com/hall-of-fail/

These do fail and 2 prongs is not good.

Look at the Smart Plug 30A Boatside Shore Power. 50ft cord with fittings. Best power cord available.

 

[HanBan]

DO you have an inverter on the boat? That is a device convert DC power on the boat to AC power. That would be for convenience outlets. They are wonderful devices; however, they come with some liabilities.

IF YOU HAVE AN INVERTER, be very careful. You might think you have the AC power off because you unplugged the boat from shorepower; and, really isn't necessarily so. The inverter is sitting there on standby, as soon as you (or something or someone) become connected, it might energize.

Polarity is usually indicated on the Beneteaus that I've been on by a light. If you have reverse polarity, it means that you have reversed the neutral and hot legs of the power supply. Some things work fine, but you have the danger of your ground wire suddenly being energized with AC POWER. It will do do bad things; and it can hurt you if you touch something that is grounded by the circuits (like a piece of metal around a device) and you yourself are grounded. In a marine environment, when you can really have a very efficient connection to a ground (e.g., by touching something that is grounded to the water and the piece of metal that is getting energy through reverse polarity) that is very dangerous.

Don't fixate on this, if the boat doesn't have a polarity tester on the panel, you can get a simple one at the hardware store that plugs into one of your outlets, you can learn how to use a voltage meter (if you get or have one), and/or you can get a shore power cord that has a light that warns of bad polarity at the AC supply provided at the dock.

Since you said you have power on the boat: i) you either have no real power from the shore because you have an inverter that is providing that power from the boat; or ii) you actually have power from the dock. If you really have lost the third prong of a marine connection, that would likely mean that your ground prong isn't there. THAT's not good for a variety of reasons.

There are whole series of simpler electrical books for boats. In the meantime, West Marine and BoatUS have a lot of "free" information. Examples:

https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/West-Advisor-Articles [this is a list of articles and pieces]
https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/Circuit-Protection-and-Power-Distribution
https://www.westmarine.com/WestAdvisor/DIY-Shore-Power [The article and video you might look at first.]

Oh my. Thank you for all of this information. Sorry I didn't reply sooner, I drove to the boat (about 70 miles each way) and unplugged her from shore power, turned off all the main breakers and everything on the boards.

It's probably a good idea to have someone look at the boat for me to make sure that everything is squared away.

On one of the AC panels there is a little red light (which isn't on) that says polarity.

We (I made my husband come with me this time) checked the electrical receptacles, one was fine, but the other did seem to be missing a prong.

I can't thank you all enough for talking me through all this. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to own a boat, and you are all making it such fun.

 

[HanBan]

@HanBan That makes sense. NAS Patuxent... Nice spot. Had an Uncle stationed there, Capt. Birdwell directed the US Naval Test Pilot School in Patuxent River, MD. Loved the billet. He boated to the base in a speed boat.

The AC power cord is a 3 prong 30 amp cord for power from a pedestal to your boat.
Here are some examples of bad cords from @mainesail ... https://marinehowto.com/hall-of-fail/
View attachment 149866
These do fail and 2 prongs is not good.

Look at the Smart Plug 30A Boatside Shore Power. 50ft cord with fittings. Best power cord available.

Smart Plug? Roger that! I'll be getting those so that this doesn't happen again. I should have known something wasn't right when my husband was screaming at the shore power cord when I asked him to plug it in.

Your uncle was the test pilot director?! That's wild. Those are some incredibly talented people. My hubby is retired USAF, but works for the Navy now. He was never a good pilot, and thankfully gave it up to be a maintenance officer. He would argue that he was a fantastic flyer, but he was only bad at landings.

 

[Davidasailor26]

Oh my gosh, I am going to jump in my car and go and unplug that as soon as possible. Thank you for letting me know that this isn't normal.

Sorry you had to make that long trip, but hopefully you can sleep well now knowing nothing else can go wrong. A couple of other things I'm thinking:
- Now that the boat has no power make sure all loads on the batteries are turned off. You probably want to keep the batteries connected in case the bilge pump needs to run, but be sure breakers for any refrigeration, radios, etc are completely off. If your batteries drain down and sit at a low voltage without the charger to bring them back up they'll start to lose capacity.
- Look at the recepticle closer to see which pin is missing. One of the three pins is keyed (its corner is bent 90 degrees). If that's the pin that broke then you would be able to plug the cord in a few different ways. One of those ways would actually still power the boat, since the keyed pin is just ground. It's not safe to operate that way, but it's possible that the pin actually failed a while ago and you just happened to have the plug in the right direction to keep power. Once you moved marinas your cord may have been at a different orientation and not lined up properly to power the boat anymore, so that's when you noticed the problem.