Internal mast noise

[Arthur Spector]

Ours is 1989 C22 and the mast is wired for anchor, deck & steaming lights, as well as coax cable for a masthead VHF antenna. At anchor there is metal to metal clanging that isn't affected by hold-offs on the halyards or tugging on the electrical wire or coax. I'm thinking there's a metal coupling somewhere in the mast, swinging freely. I've seen references to running PVC tubing up the mast and routing the cables through them. I'm wondering if anyone else experiences this problem and especially if there are any less radical solutions.

 

[Don]

Internal Mast Noises

If the wires in your mast are clanging and making noise then you could run the wires in conduit, but like you said there must be a simpler idea. If you have internal halyards, you may want to go the conduit route to keep the halyards and wires from coming into contact with each other. But if you don't have internal halyards, I have heard of a person who filled his mast with styrofoam packing peanuts to quell wire slap noise. I know of another who used a long stick and shoved a sponge halfway up the mast. Another suggestion when installing new wires was to take three cable ties and put them around your mast wires at intervals of 1 foot, but do not trim the tails. The three tails coming out from the wires like spokes will keep the wires from contacting the inside of the mast.

 

[Campy]

Drives you nuts!!!

The noise drove me nuts!!!I pulled the mast tube out and all the wires.Ran a new peice of PVC tube up the mast, and epoxied it to the inside of the mast by running a bead of glue/eposie/3M stuff to the top side of the tube. When the tube was in place, I rotated it 180 degrees to glue itself down to the mast. Let it sit over night and rewired the mast. No more noise and I feel good about the job.Campy out!

 

[Arthur Spector]

Some questions

It looks like I will have to go the PVC conduit route as well, since I have internal halyards. Some questions though: How do you deal with the steaming light/deck light fixture that is 2/3 of the way up? And, do you remember what diameter PVC you used? I would guess that the antenna coax and anchor light wire could travel in one conduit while the steaming/deck light wires would use a second one. Alternatively, cut a hole in the single conduit at the mid-station for a take-off. A lot of work but worth it for a night's sleep. Thanks for the replies so far!

 

[Pete Staehling]

Easy Answer Maybe

I have found that I could make the noise go away by just adjusting the tension on the antenna cable by pulling it snug where it exits the mast. May not work for you, but it is certainly worth a try.The noise never really bothered me anyway though.Pete

 

[Frank Sheets]

Pipe Insulation

If you don't want to pull your wires out, you could use pipe insulation. the kind with a slit up the side like you would use on your hot water pipes. You can slide it up the wires from both ends of the mast. That way they would meet were the deck and steemer light wires branch off. Use cable ties or duct tape to keep it cloesed.Frank

 

[Arthur Spector]

Progress report

I took off the masthead this weekend and lo & behold, the wires are already in a conduit. That leaves the antenna wire as the probable culprit. Just as Pete Staehling did, I got a response to tugging on the wire where it exits the mast below. However this did not continue to work so I had discounted it as coincidence. Now I'm fortified to attack that wire. I like the idea of slitted pipe insulation. Thanks again everyone!