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View Full Version : Wiring Lights Etc In Tinnie



Seahorse
15-05-2008, 09:13 PM
A mate wants to put in nav lights, spottie, sounder and stern light in his tinnie.
I bought a 4 switch panel from bias and i know that all positive wires go to switches and i guess all neg wires to battery? i remember hearing somewhere not to earth to boat because of electrolis. So am i right to run all earth wires to battery.

Cheers
Greg

fivefishes
15-05-2008, 09:24 PM
Greg,

Spot on.

Matt

Seahorse
15-05-2008, 09:28 PM
thanks matt.
better to be sure

cheers
greg

frankgrimes
15-05-2008, 09:29 PM
Hey Greg - Great reference book is the 12-Volt Bible for Boats....cost only ~$12

http://www.amazon.com/12-Volt-Bible-Boats-Miner-Brotherton/dp/0071392335

BCF etc usually have them...

Mick

Reel Nauti
15-05-2008, 09:41 PM
Hi Greg, I run a - wire from the front nav lights the full length of the boat to the - on the battery. All other electronics - tap into this wire. All + wires go to there respective place on the switch panel. Then one + wire from the switch panel to the + on the battery. I also run an inline fuse between the fuse panel and + on the battery.
Cheers

Dave

griz066
15-05-2008, 09:54 PM
Better to use 2 buss bars then only power wire & earth wire from battery to buss bars. Then you have as much power as you have spare terminals to connect all the lights sounders radios you need. Make sure the power wire is a heavy duty wire

Reel Nauti
15-05-2008, 09:57 PM
Griz, just wondering why you would want a + buss bar? Wouldn't the switch panel be basically the same thing, and with everything fused?

Cheers

Dave

stingau
15-05-2008, 10:15 PM
I have just rewired my latest aquision,

Ran 2 8mm single core wires from the battery, the positive goes to a super cheap 6 slot plastic fuse box with cover which is looped then each of these go off to either radios or singly to a 4 switch fused panel then off to nav lights, 6 x leds mounted on persplex and installed on ea side in the rear as well as a conduit strip of led's in the cuddy cabin. Led's not only draw SFA but last forever. the 8mm neg lead goes to a s/s post and all neg wires return to this. If you wanted to do the same to a tinny I suggest you put your neg post thru a small piece of perspex and screw this to your boat.

The only exception to this is my sounder to avoid electrical hash it is run on a separate 4mm wire down the other side of the boat.

futher extentions can be added by simply looping another fuse box, the 8mm will carry enough power for all yourneeds as well as being heavy enough to make voltage drop negligible. Also All I have running of the batteries are 3 wires ea terminal 1 for the motr one for the access 8mm and one for the sounder.

Would be interested on any comments on this setup from those who have done this before. My only worry is the suer cheap boxes lasting but they are mnted up on the roof of the cuddy behind the console

griz066
16-05-2008, 08:03 AM
Griz, just wondering why you would want a + buss bar? Wouldn't the switch panel be basically the same thing, and with everything fused?

Cheers

Dave

Just for the ability to easily expand when the need arises is all (just my 2 cents but i am no expert)

Seahorse
16-05-2008, 09:31 AM
Stingau.
Are u saying that we should have a negative post to run all neg wires to rather than straight to the battery.

Greg

timddo
16-05-2008, 09:58 AM
if your running mulitple devices on board. A bus bar for the negative and a bus bar for the positive. Makes installing things alot easier...

I''m gonna take up that 8mm wire . Sounds like a good idea. As for cost??????

stingau
16-05-2008, 11:00 AM
Seahorse yes it is better to run short lengths of lighter wire to join together then run one single wire to the battery. every wire suffers from voltage drop the more, the longer, and lighter the wire the greater the loss also the more wires running down to the battery creates a wiring mess. nothing looks worse or reduces performance than having 6 or more wires on a battery terminal.

By using a neg bolt close to your console shortens the wire length and therefore less loss. A bus bar will do the same job but for earth applications a 10mm s/steel bolt with 2 nuts and washers are an easier cheaper solution.

As far as the cost of 8mm wire its avail fom dick smith or jaycar for less than $3 per m. so for arround $20 to $30 you can have a neat solution.

My only thing against bus bars is they dont look as neat as a fuse box, the box was less than $10 with a clip on cover, it also gives the added advantage of doing away with ugly inline fuses, also nothing worse than trying to change an inline fuse an dropping bits also inlines tend to corrode easier. the fuse box has a spade fuse, easy to change, with spade teminals on the outputs.

Fed
16-05-2008, 11:49 AM
8mm Nom Dia ----> Approx 16mm˛ ----> Approx 100 Amps = Yikes!

stingau
16-05-2008, 12:11 PM
Fed ..I agree it is overkill.. but no matter what I want to plug in be it a hand held spotlight portable dvd player or whatever I know im always gunna be able to carry it. and its never going to overheat

"when it comes to wiring always oversize what you need"

Ive seen and heard about lots of house/car wiring fiasco's to know that by paying a bit more to start with means i'm never going to have to update or replace it.

PS also my local DSE had this stuff onsale when I went in so I got 5m of ea at a good price

BaitThrower
18-05-2008, 10:26 AM
I run +ve and -ve bus bars on my little 3.4m.
Made it easier to remove the battery from my plywood battery box/console as only one wire on each terminal. I run a 4 switch plate with nav lights, anchor light, and then two LED cabin-type lights on separate switches. Then I got a radio and sounder so needed two more switches. But since they have their own ON/OFF buttons, I added the bus bars and hooked everything to those.