"Simple" wiring question

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Sumner

Sumner

.
Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Db421 said:
..I have a 10 hp outboard electric start with it's own starter battery and a separate house battery. My house loads are fairly modest as I only have running lights, radios, and a few cabin lights. I have no need to switch the batteries together as far as I can tell. Question is: if I use 6 AWG battery cables, how do I run the positive to the positive end of the panel. there is no + bar on the panel only 16AWG leads on the positive and 16 AWG leads jumping from neg to neg...
Click to expand
I don't see why you don't want to tie the batteries together in parallel? That way at least while the outboard is running it will be charging both of them unless it has no charging circuit.

You need to also fuse those batteries. I use...



...the above on the Mac with 60 amp fuses and #4 wire which is fine for my highest load which is the outboard starting.

On the Endeavour with higher starting loads I'm using...



http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|328|296553|319682&id=1334570

...the above that go on the battery pos. post and are easier to install than what I used on the Mac.

I have more on the Mac wiring here....

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/inside-30.html

...which would be pretty comparable to what you are doing with the exception that I also have input from a gen-set and solar panels which you could ignore. You will see...



.... Pos. and Neg. posts in the link and above that are connected to the batteries and also a shunt for an amp meter. You could come off of the posts to your panel with #10 for your loads.

Here is a good source for marine wiring that I use...

http://genuinedealz.com/

Good luck,

Sum

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Db421

Db421

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Jun 7, 2004
95
Hunter 34 1986 Lake Lanier, GA
That all makes sense now. I think this is it! Long way to get there, but with all of your help, I might not set my boat on fire.
 

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Db421

Db421

.
Jun 7, 2004
95
Hunter 34 1986 Lake Lanier, GA
...Sumner

Sumner,

thanks for the post. Took a while to look at your blog (fascinating!). This gave me a lot to think about. I was only fixing the rats nest of wires, but now I might be in for a lot more work.
 
Sumner

Sumner

.
Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country


Db421 said:
That all makes sense now. I think this is it! Long way to get there, but with all of your help, I might not set my boat on fire.
Click to expand
You don't want to wire it like that diag. with the one wire from the one side of the bottom switch to the neg. ground buss.. The Neg. grounds you show at the left need to go to the neg. buss and then back to the battery.

The Pos. should be fused near the battery,

Sum

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]============================[/FONT]

Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

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Db421

Db421

.
Jun 7, 2004
95
Hunter 34 1986 Lake Lanier, GA
Thanks Sumner, I'm drawing the diagram wrong, but my intention is to wire the negatives from each of the loads to the neg buss. I was using the ground symbol to indicate this. I thought ground in a two wire DC system was the negative battery terminal. To correct my drawing do I connect the negs from the loads to the neg buss and eliminate the wire I show comong from the neg buss?
 
Joe

Joe

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Jun 1, 2004
8,164
Catalina 27 Mission Bay, San Diego
Db421 said:
Thanks Sumner, I'm drawing the diagram wrong, but my intention is to wire the negatives from each of the loads to the neg buss. I was using the ground symbol to indicate this. I thought ground in a two wire DC system was the negative battery terminal. To correct my drawing do I connect the negs from the loads to the neg buss and eliminate the wire I show comong from the neg buss?
Click to expand
Your schematic shows the bottom switch with two negative connections. Sumner's comment is that that is unnecessary.... even though it will work. Do you have a copy of "The 12 Volt Bible for Boats" by Miner Brotherton?
I installed a new 12 volt panel and it came with exact instructions.
 
Sumner

Sumner

.
Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Joe said:
Your schematic shows the bottom switch with two negative connections. Sumner's comment is that that is unnecessary.... even though it will work...
Click to expand
Actually he has the bottom neg. wire before the load if those rectangular boxes represent the loads. We enjoyed lunch with you Joe and are finally back home. Took 3 days to get us and the Sub. from Phx. to Blanding (400 miles), not good. I'll pull the motor tomorrow :cry:.

Db421 said:
... To correct my drawing do I connect the negs from the loads to the neg buss and eliminate the wire I show coming from the neg buss?
Click to expand
Yes, and it is usually assumed (at least when I draw a dia. for myself) that those grounds will go back to the neg. post on the battery, but to be clear for someone else I'd draw them back to the neg. buss and then to the battery for a boat application,

Sum

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Our Endeavour 37

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Ron20324

Ron20324

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Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
Db421 said:
...I think this is it! Long way to get there, ...
Click to expand
Given that the lights are inside of the switches makes a clear wiring schematic diffucult. If properly done, you'd have to show the neg going to feed the lamps themselves, as the neg is not "switched". I think it's easiest done to not show the neg panel feed where you have it, but stop short of the panel outline, put an arrow on the neg feed, and lable "To switch lamp neg chain". I think that would be a wrap.

As an aside, if I was concerned about loads, I'd make the pos feed attach to the pos daisy chain between the 3rd and 4th circuits- so there is, in effect, only three circuits drawing through whatever that daisy-chain wire size is.
 
Sumner

Sumner

.
Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Ron20324 said:
....As an aside, if I was concerned about loads, I'd make the pos feed attach to the pos daisy chain between the 3rd and 4th circuits- so there is, in effect, only three circuits drawing through whatever that daisy-chain wire size is.
Click to expand
I agree and wouldn't daisy chain those circuits either unless that is actually a buss bar in the panel. I thought the things that look like lamps were the fuses in the panel and thought the rectangular boxes were the loads, but might be wrong,

Sum

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Our Endeavour 37

Our MacGregor 26-S Pages

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Mac-Venture Links
 
L

LloydB

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Jan 15, 2006
927
Macgregor 22 Silverton
the 12 gauge red wire is the pos bus for the control panel(only) adding another circuit will require an additional bus powered from the pos fuse as pic by Sumner. The black wire is only the neg lamp bus for the panel only) sorry about the sketch but this thread will be history by the time I can become agile with the draw program -- if I'm still sane:)
 
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