Boat wiring

[apnpoquoson]

Good morning, Well I've been working on the Aquasport.  Have my transom in and have cut and dry fit all the flooring.  Pulled something in my back lugging around 3/4 plywood sheets so I am taking it easy today.  I have a question about wiring.  Since the boat is fiberglass what's the best way to run ground wires?  Could I put in a copper plate and ground everything to that and then run one heavy lead to the negative battery?   I hope this isn't a dumb question.  Most of my wiring experience has been automotive where its fairly easy to achieve a good ground.  Thanks for any help.  Allan in Poquosonl.

[GoneFission]

Run a peice of marine-grade stranded cable from the negative terminal of the battery to a ground terminal plate under the console.  Then run your grounds from equipment to the terminal plate.  Make sure you size the ground cable to total loads plus a good bit.  My advice is #8 or #6 wire - assuming you don't have high electrical loads like trim tabs or a trolling motor.  Modern electronics like GPS and radios don't like voltage drops, so going big with the ground cable will ensure a nice, steady voltage and good results.  Be careful about high-current items; for example, a trolling motor should get its own #6 ground anyway...  

Use marine terminals and make sure you get a good crimp and seal on the wiring.  A little corroision prevention now will really pay off later!  

Hope this helps - see ya on the water!

[apnpoquoson]

Thank you Capt John I'll heed your advice.  I wont be running a trolling motor or trim tabs.  I hope to keep my wiring to just Nav Lights, anchor light, bilge pump, maybe an airator, radio and fish finder GPS combo and some lights under the gunnels.  Other than that just what I need for motor functions.  My goal is to have this boat in the water by mid May.  My efforts so far have been toward replacing the floor and the transom.  I might wind up adding trim tabs later.  I love this boat, sometimes as I am walking out to work on her, I have to stop and just admire her lines.  Kinda like watching a pretty girl.

Apnpoquoson

[MarshMarlowe196]

Thank you Capt John I'll heed your advice.  I wont be running a trolling motor or trim tabs.  I hope to keep my wiring to just Nav Lights, anchor light, bilge pump, maybe an airator, radio and fish finder GPS combo and some lights under the gunnels.  Other than that just what I need for motor functions.  My goal is to have this boat in the water by mid May.  My efforts so far have been toward replacing the floor and the transom.  I might wind up adding trim tabs later.  I love this boat, sometimes as I am walking out to work on her, I have to stop and just admire her lines.  Kinda like watching a pretty girl.

Apnpoquoson

Heard that!  I feel the same way about mine... I think my time spent admiring the boat is what causes some of my projects to take a little longer than they should...

[kaptainkoz]

I just redid my electrical. I wanted to keep it simple but modern. I went with the blue seas 12 position  blade type fuse box and a bep 6 switch panel. The Blue seas fuse box is a great setup.... just connect the ground and the positive ( I am switching to #4 marine grade... in the pic below is the old, smaller non-marine main wire.... all the fused leads are arine grade) and then run each accessory to it with the appropriate fuse size. really nice to work with. I used all marine grade wiring, crimps, then soldiered the crimp, the shrink wrapped the positives. Why marine grade wiring? Isnt all wire the same?... thats what I thought. Marine grade wire is copper wire coated in tin thus preventing that green corrosion from forming on the contact or exposed copper areas such as at the neck of the crimp. Well worth the effort to use marine wiring. I also smear the contacts with dielectric grease.