When I bought my 1988 C-22 I was excited because it came really loaded with extra gear. Now, of course, a bit of reality has set in. A few of the items on the boat do not work. Namely the solar battery charger and the auto pilot. It did come with a Guest battery charger. However, I have been warned that it would be okay to use it while the boat is on the trailer but not while the boat is in the water. I was told there was no bonding system. (I believe that is what they called it.) Since there is not bonding system, or grounding plate, they said it could be dangerous to connect to the dock side power. Admittedly, this whole subject area is outside my knowledge. Does this sound right and if so, what is the best way to handle it. Joseph Washburn "Disciple Ship" 1988 C-22 #14408 Wilmington, NC
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C22 Grounding
Joseph I think your advice was incorrect. A shorepower charger runs off AC power (3 wires - hot, neutral and ground), converts it into DC 12 volts (red positive and black, or the newer yellow for negative). There is no reason you can't charge your batteries when your boat is in the water. A grounding plate in yachts is simply a main negative to tie lightning protection, metal thru hulls, and other grounded elements together back to the engine (a simplistic explanation), and is usually used on much larger boats than yours. All you have is a battery (or two) which feeds a simple DC panel to lights. The charger takes the AC 100 v shorepower and converts it to 12 v DC to charge the batteries and you use the batteries to run your lights. You only have two wires inside your boat (+ and -) from the batteries to each light. Since this is "outside your knowledge" I encourage you to do some reading and get up to speed, rather than simply taking my word for it. A good book would be Don Casey's electrical book. We've had a C22 and a C25 for over 15 years and never had a problem with using shorepower this way. Stu
Joseph I think your advice was incorrect. A shorepower charger runs off AC power (3 wires - hot, neutral and ground), converts it into DC 12 volts (red positive and black, or the newer yellow for negative). There is no reason you can't charge your batteries when your boat is in the water. A grounding plate in yachts is simply a main negative to tie lightning protection, metal thru hulls, and other grounded elements together back to the engine (a simplistic explanation), and is usually used on much larger boats than yours. All you have is a battery (or two) which feeds a simple DC panel to lights. The charger takes the AC 100 v shorepower and converts it to 12 v DC to charge the batteries and you use the batteries to run your lights. You only have two wires inside your boat (+ and -) from the batteries to each light. Since this is "outside your knowledge" I encourage you to do some reading and get up to speed, rather than simply taking my word for it. A good book would be Don Casey's electrical book. We've had a C22 and a C25 for over 15 years and never had a problem with using shorepower this way. Stu
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