Greeting All and Happy Holidays from the frigid Northeast! I went to my boat yesterday and found a new electrical problem I'm hoping one of you can help me with. My boat is at the boat yard up in the parking lot, but still plugged into shore power with new heaters on a frost cycle. Every month I go to the boat and turn the battery charger on for 1 or 2 days to top off the battery's. Two weeks ago during the harvest moon full tide the water came over the docks at my marina and into the parking lot where Serenity sits on stands. Because the the rising water the yard shut off the electrical master switch cutting power to the docks and shutting off power to my boat. Two days later they turned the power back on, and since then when I turn on the battery charger switch on the AC side the reverse polarity light comes on. Only when the battery charger is on though, as soon as I shut off the battery charger switch the reverse polarity light goes out. The charger does work so I don't think I blew a fuse although I'm not the electrical type. Any ideas what might have happened? Thaks in advance for your thoughts. Bob Knott s/v Serenity Harwichport, MA
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Aldo Lozano-WA2IST
One way electricity...
I still do believe you may have a fuse blown or an open connection which allow your charger to get into the circuitry though only one leg of the two the system have. If you e-mail me a skematic of your system, will be quite easy to determine where the opening is. Happy holidays! alozano@monmouth.com
I still do believe you may have a fuse blown or an open connection which allow your charger to get into the circuitry though only one leg of the two the system have. If you e-mail me a skematic of your system, will be quite easy to determine where the opening is. Happy holidays! alozano@monmouth.com
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Phil Teter
my best guess
First see if the Marins has rewired anything of theirs or yours. If they have not I think you have swapped neutral and ground somewhere. Try turning the charger plug over and see what happens - may be that simple. I am assumeing everything else is properly installed. Is it? No extra connections between neutral and ground and no swapping of functions. Let me know how you do. Phil Teter poteter@webzone.net
First see if the Marins has rewired anything of theirs or yours. If they have not I think you have swapped neutral and ground somewhere. Try turning the charger plug over and see what happens - may be that simple. I am assumeing everything else is properly installed. Is it? No extra connections between neutral and ground and no swapping of functions. Let me know how you do. Phil Teter poteter@webzone.net
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Bob Knott
Clarifications
Thanks guys for your quick response. Here are a few clarificiations. Nothing has changed or been re-wired on the boat or the dock. The boat was plugged in with AC side on when they marina cut the master switch due to flooding. 2 days later the marina turned on the master switch and my AC side came back on automatically since it was still in the on position when they cut the power. AC side works fine, heaters are functioning (since it's 10 degrees here with 40 mph winds). It's only when I throw on the Battery charger switch the reverse polarity light somes on. As soon as the charger switch is flipped off, the reverse polarity light goes off. The charger is putting out to the batteries when this happens. Thanks again for any input you may have. Bob Knott
Thanks guys for your quick response. Here are a few clarificiations. Nothing has changed or been re-wired on the boat or the dock. The boat was plugged in with AC side on when they marina cut the master switch due to flooding. 2 days later the marina turned on the master switch and my AC side came back on automatically since it was still in the on position when they cut the power. AC side works fine, heaters are functioning (since it's 10 degrees here with 40 mph winds). It's only when I throw on the Battery charger switch the reverse polarity light somes on. As soon as the charger switch is flipped off, the reverse polarity light goes off. The charger is putting out to the batteries when this happens. Thanks again for any input you may have. Bob Knott
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Larry S.
Rectifiers
Sounds like the battery charger, one (or more) of the rectifiers (diodes that change A/C tp D/C) may be shorted allowing current to flow both ways. Try a new charger. LAS
Sounds like the battery charger, one (or more) of the rectifiers (diodes that change A/C tp D/C) may be shorted allowing current to flow both ways. Try a new charger. LAS
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M Watton
test shore power 1st
As a kid I worked on the electrical systems on marina docks. You can't imagine what some are like!! Before I did anything to the boat, I'd go to Home Depot or a hardware store and buy a continuity tester. They are inexpensive, not over $10, and just plug into the shore power outlet. This device will indicate a reverse polarity or ground fault situation. At least then you have an inexpensive comfirmation of the shore power supply. Having the same boat and looking at the wiring I can't figure how the warning light is lighting with just the charger. You may have a loose connection behind the panel, caused by repeated opening and closing. I did find a loose ground on mine coused by a ac ground wire connector not quite crimped enough. Good luck and happy hunting on that electrical problem.
As a kid I worked on the electrical systems on marina docks. You can't imagine what some are like!! Before I did anything to the boat, I'd go to Home Depot or a hardware store and buy a continuity tester. They are inexpensive, not over $10, and just plug into the shore power outlet. This device will indicate a reverse polarity or ground fault situation. At least then you have an inexpensive comfirmation of the shore power supply. Having the same boat and looking at the wiring I can't figure how the warning light is lighting with just the charger. You may have a loose connection behind the panel, caused by repeated opening and closing. I did find a loose ground on mine coused by a ac ground wire connector not quite crimped enough. Good luck and happy hunting on that electrical problem.
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Fred Moore
not continuity
I don't think you want to plug in a continuity tester. I think you want one of the plugs that indicates that all conductors are wire correctly. I suspect that you have the charger plug, socket it is plugged into, or something on that leg neutral and hot reversed. It could be the yard, as someone stated power at marina's are pure crap. I'll bet that I'm not the only one who has 20 over 9 noise on my ssb at the marina. FWIW.. Fred
I don't think you want to plug in a continuity tester. I think you want one of the plugs that indicates that all conductors are wire correctly. I suspect that you have the charger plug, socket it is plugged into, or something on that leg neutral and hot reversed. It could be the yard, as someone stated power at marina's are pure crap. I'll bet that I'm not the only one who has 20 over 9 noise on my ssb at the marina. FWIW.. Fred
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R.W.Landau
test your own
While you have the tester that the others have recommended, check the power in your outlets to make sure they are wired correctly. r.w.landau
While you have the tester that the others have recommended, check the power in your outlets to make sure they are wired correctly. r.w.landau
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Peter Albright
The reverse polarity light
is generally connected between the white "Neutral" wire and the green "Ground" wire. If the light is on, there is voltage between neutral and ground. These wires are connected together at the service point of the marina (Main Electrical Switch or Breaker). The only voltage on the neutral should be that caused by current flowing through the resistance of the wire. If the light is only on when the charger is on, I would guess that you have a bad connection on the ground and a short to ground inside the charger circuitry. The ground connection is best checked under an AC load. This should be done by someone qualified in electrical work. This is doubly bad situation. The bad ground could cause current to flow through bonded metal to water, destroying the metal and not allow the circuit breakers to trip if you have a short to ground. The shorted battery charger could "electrify" grounded metal objects on the boat, causing electric shock. The charger could be shorted to the power cord neutral wire, or could be allowing AC power to the negative lead of the battery. You can check the charger by plugging it into a GFCI receptacle.
is generally connected between the white "Neutral" wire and the green "Ground" wire. If the light is on, there is voltage between neutral and ground. These wires are connected together at the service point of the marina (Main Electrical Switch or Breaker). The only voltage on the neutral should be that caused by current flowing through the resistance of the wire. If the light is only on when the charger is on, I would guess that you have a bad connection on the ground and a short to ground inside the charger circuitry. The ground connection is best checked under an AC load. This should be done by someone qualified in electrical work. This is doubly bad situation. The bad ground could cause current to flow through bonded metal to water, destroying the metal and not allow the circuit breakers to trip if you have a short to ground. The shorted battery charger could "electrify" grounded metal objects on the boat, causing electric shock. The charger could be shorted to the power cord neutral wire, or could be allowing AC power to the negative lead of the battery. You can check the charger by plugging it into a GFCI receptacle.
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