Basics of rewire?

[Neil - 1978 33ft Hunter]

My hunter needs a complete rewire. (major water damage)Is it as simple (ha!) as the engine wiring harness, ac panel, and running new wires?I will be going for 'basics', meaning....bow, stern, anchor, and steamer lights...and the engine components. At this point I'm not worried about interior accessories or whatnot. She sails great! (new bottom cleaning for those that remember my story But I need to get the rest up to speed so I can restart my engine and have evening/night exterior lights. I think this is the correct wire harness to get me started:http://www.marinedieseldirect.com/yanmar/shopping/details.php?mfc=Yanmar&sku=124070-91030

 

[Benny]

Get a wiring diagram for your boat.

The engine wiring harness is a straight replacement, disconnect/connect. The accessories like navigation lights, steaming light, anchor light, cabin lights, water pump, bilge pump, breaker panel and 12V outlet you will need to wire. Get an electrical guide to determine the correct wire gauge for load and distance. You also have a 110 V circuit with an inlet plug, a breaker box and various oulets throughout the cabin. Plan your work in stages as you will need to route and perhaps reposition some components. There is wiring for the cabin lights under the headliner and perhaps is salvagable and save you some work.Color code your wiring for future reference and get all the covers, hooks and fittings to do a pro job. Good luck.

 

[Neil - 1978 33ft Hunter]

Great advice!

Great input thanks. I'm searching for the diagram now for my vessel. I'm thinking about moving forward with buying the harness, and run the basic re-wire myself by following the old wire and replace along the way....basically tackle all the 'simple labor'....then have a pro come in and do the actual hooking-up. I see you in the area....open to a side job?

 

[Dirk]

Number tape

You can get tape with preprinted numbers on it to wrap around both ends of the wires as you run them. This will help eliminate confusion as you hook them up and also help you find which wire is which in the future should you ever have problems. I never have enough colors to make all the wire runs different. It also helps to mark your wiring diagram with the new wire colors for future reference.

 

[sailme2]

ID It

My advice when adding any new wiring, and a real good idea for a complete rewire is to get several packets of Thomas & Betts EZ Code wire markets. These have a place to write the circuit ID, and clear tape to protect it. You can get these at any Home Depot or electrical shop. I use these at each end of a run, and whenever a wire goes through a bulkhead or place that I can't see both sides at the same time. You'll thank yourself later.....

 

[patrick]

Plastic flex conduit

helped me a lot and will organize and protect the wires in places where you cannot securely tie them as often as the rules require. I would run several conduits and try to keep the sensor wires separate from the DC circuits and the AC circuits. Label or paint the ends of the conduits. Carefully label the wires, too.You can glue the conduit with gorilla glue or injected foam to keep it from moving around where you cannot physically tie it down.

 

[Rick]

Color code

Use different colors of electrical tape to color code the wires. One wrap on each end is all that is needed.

 

[Bill Roosa]

Do you really need

a wire job? If the wires are running through the upper/lower deck space they may not even have gotten wet. Unless they sat in salt water for a good while AND the insulation is dry rotted, marine wire is designed to get wet and keep going. Just clip off the ends and "re-end" them.You can check this with an Ohm meter. Disconnect the harness at both ends so there are no circuts. Set the Ohm meter on its highest 'ohm' setting and read between every combination of wires. Have a helper move around the far end and note any shorts.I'll bet you will not have any.Note: if your Ohm meter can read Mega Ohms you will get a curcut. This is OK and normal. Anything under 120K Ohm is getting suspicious.

 

[Neil - 1978 33ft Hunter]

Thanks again...

Great tips again. Ed, thanks for the pic & link....I think that is exactly what I'm looking for