Electric panel

[Ralph Johnstone]

Thanks, that’s what I thought but sought reassurance that I would electrocute myself

You're dealing with 12V here which will not even cause a tingling in your fingers even if they are wet. However be very careful to see you're not dealing with 120V which will cause a jolt.

or cause some sort of damage, sparks, fire!

If you place anything that is just metal across these contacts, there will be a large spark so just work slowly. This is what's termed a short circuit. There is no problem in putting a multimeter across these contacts as the meter is designed just for that.

@capseaquel , if you stick your multimeter probes in the holes shown below, you should be able to get a reading as the metallic screws will conduct any voltage. What have you seen so far for voltage ? ? ? ? ?

I’m a bit intimidated around electrics as you may guessed

You're off to a great start and should be into the electrical swing of things shortly. You're multimeter is your most valuable tool. Stick to working on 12V DC for now. Like many of us you may, in time, actually get a kick out of playing with electrical things. Each project becomes a puzzle in which there is no way in hell it's going to get the better of one.

 

[Davidasailor26]

There is no problem in putting a multimeter across these contacts as the meter is designed just for that.

Just do keep the meter on the mode to measure Volts, not current. (Don’t ask me how I learned that as a kid )

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

(Don’t ask me how I learned that as a kid )

I can picture it all now ...........................

 

[rgranger]

Like many of us you may, in time, actually get a kick out of playing with electrical things.

I resemble that remark.

 

[Hayden Watson]

Ahh come on guys. He's nervous enough without your memes. It is 12v. No lightning bolts and no atomic explosions. A little spark and a blown fuse or circuit breaker.

 

[jssailem]

And a Install Manual was found on the Westfalia site... https://westfaliat4.info/DanfossCompressorFridgeModuleForRC1140FridgeWestfaliaWM.pdf

Ralph... I try to hide these things in plain sight.

.. https://westfaliat4.info/DanfossCompressorFridgeModuleForRC1140FridgeWestfaliaWM.pdf

 

[rgranger]

Ahh come on guys. He's nervous enough without your memes. It is 12v. No lightning bolts and no atomic explosions. A little spark and a blown fuse or circuit breaker.

All right....I'll wait a month or two...

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Ralph... I try to hide these things in plain sight.

I see said the blind man as he pissed into the wind. It's all coming back to me now.

I had done a re-research on it and finally found it. As you said, "Hiding in plain sight." Deceitful on your part .

 

[Hayden Watson]

@capseaquel It is good to be cautious anytime you are working with electricity but with 12v the danger is not to health it is to components. To illustrate this, you can grab both the + and - terminals on the battery which is the most powerful and least protected (no fuse) link in your boat, and you will not feel anything. If you connect a wire to each of those terminals and touch the ends to opposite sides of your tongue, it will give you a tingle and make you jump but will not do any harm. The "danger" is to the wires and any combustibles around them if they are not properly fused.
If you take those same two wires connected to the battery without a fuse to protect them, and connect the ends, they will rapidly get very hot to the point where they melt and make a lot of smoke.

The 110v AC shore power on the other hand can electrocute you so my suggestion is to unplug the boat when you are working on any wiring so that it is removed from the equation.

 

[Richard19068]

The manual John Salem attached shows "the fuse" as item number 11 on the drawing on the first page.

And this description:

Fig.1. Connections The electronic unit (9) must always be connected direct to the battery poles (8). Plus to plus and minus to minus, otherwise the fuse (11) will blow.

Looks to me the fuse might be in that small gray square box below the connections called C D F on the photo in reply 6.

I would try pulling that out and see if there is a fuse in there.

maybe one like these.

 

[heritage]

Here is a thread from Cruisersforum:

Refrigeration fuse - Cruisers & Sailing Forums

Hi, I have a Danfoss B35 with a older 102n3030 controller. The 15amp blade fuse on the controller blows as soon as I supply power via the switch. I have eliminated the controller and attachments as

www.cruisersforum.com

There are words of wisdom by Richard Kollmann an expert on Danfoss marine units.

 

[capseaquel]

The manual John Salem attached shows "the fuse" as item number 11 on the drawing on the first page.

And this description:

Fig.1. Connections The electronic unit (9) must always be connected direct to the battery poles (8). Plus to plus and minus to minus, otherwise the fuse (11) will blow.

Looks to me the fuse might be in that small gray square box below the connections called C D F on the photo in reply 6.

I would try pulling that out and see if there is a fuse in there.

maybe one like these.

View attachment 209171

Thanks, I did locate the 15 amp fuse tested as a good fuse on the multi meter. I did the multi meter check even though my visual check had shown the curved wire was intact

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

Now that you've become proficient with the use of the new multimeter, what have you seen for voltage coming into the controller ?

@capseaquel , if you stick your multimeter probes in the holes shown below, you should be able to get a reading as the metallic screws will conduct any voltage. What have you seen so far for voltage ? ? ? ? ?

 

[capseaquel]

An update.
Thanks for all suggestions. I did discover that there was no power getting to the compressor. I’d had recent fibreglass repair work done under the floorboards in the bilge area. I did not initially link any of that repair to my refrigerator problem. Down to the bilge again to try and trace power wire to the compressor. I discovered that the repair had resulted in a skim of gel coat over a section of wire which had apparently come in contact with a workers grinder. In that dusty cramped environment I can hardly fault the worker for not noticing any damage. Fortunately there was enough slack in the wire to pull it to a place where it could be inspected and found not a break but enough abrasion to get through the wire coating and expose and fray the wires. Ultimately repair with splice was relatively easy.
l learned a lot and all your help was much appreciated.

 

[jssailem]

It is always something...

Good thing there was enough slack wire that you could fix it without having to grind open the recent fiberglass work.

 

[dLj]

The follow-up is very much appreciated! Thank you!

dj

 

[Hayden Watson]

An update.
...
l learned a lot and all your help was much appreciated.

Having a basic understanding of how our electrical system works is a very important aspect of good seamanship. Glad you found it. Now the next electrical problem will be easier.