Power Winch Throwing Breaker... Question

[Rick D]

My halyard power winch is beginning to throw the breaker when it has raised the sail but not yet put significant load on the halyard. It's old, 26 years, but reliable otherwise. Any troubleshooting hints? Thanks in advance.

 

[sail sfbay]

Long shot but even if the breaker amp is sized correctly for your wire and winch you might want to replace the breaker as it might be nearing end of life. You might find these two threads useful as they discuss some troubleshooting tips.

Electric Winch tripping breaker

I have a Lewmar 44 electric winch. While using it to pull my daughter (130 lbs) up the mast, the breaker would kick out after about 8 feet. It is wired with 1/0 wire though a Blue Sea 40 Amp breaker. Is it possible the breaker is bad? How do I check it. Any other suggestion. Thanks Mike

www.sailnet.com

Electric winches circuit breaker tripping | Jeanneau Owners Forum

Hi all. I have a 2015 Jeanneau 44DS with Harken Electric Winches and occasionally the circuit breaker trips in local club races. It is only occasionally, say once on every 4 or 5 races, but alwa

jeanneau.proboards.com

 

[capta]

How long has it been since you took apart the winch, cleaned, lubed and reassembled it? That needs to be done now and then. Have you checked the contacts, lugs and wires for corrosion? Corrosion equals resistance which increases amperage, which blows circuit breakers. And of course what sail sfbay said above.

 

[Rich Stidger]

All good idea's here. Also if the breaker has a high trip count it could be wearing out. If you have a clamp-on a meter why don't you check the trip point. That test would immediately tell you if the breaker is toast. And if you see unreasonably high current then other faults come to mind.

 

[Rick D]

Thanks guys. When I get to the boat, the first thing I'll check is the connections. Then I'll use my clamp-on to check the trip point under load. It's been three years since I serviced the winches, so they are due, but the winch works manually fine. I suspect it's the breaker, but I'll obviously check the connections first.