My boat is a combination of old and new electrical wiring. The new wiring has been poorly done, and is no help. I'm trying to clean up and make sense of it. The older wiring, coming from the battery area, has four wires-black,pinkish(probably red to start), tan colored, and blue. These wires dive down under the fiberglass, (actually fiberglassed in), and they come up the mast support, and terminate in the electrical plug on the base of the mast. I"m assuming that one of these is the ground fastened to metal in the swing keel, but I can't figure out which it is. It looks like "black" is the color Ericson used for the power side of their circuits. What is more confusing the four wires that terminate at the mast at an electrical plug that receives the wire from the mast has only two prongs, but there are four wires running to it. Possibly the plug has been replaced. Any comments about any of this would be appreciated. Thanks.
Remove all of it and start over.
There is no point in keeping the old, the new or anything. Make a diagram of what you want, rip out the old, and put in the new.
Guy
There is no point in keeping the old, the new or anything. Make a diagram of what you want, rip out the old, and put in the new.
Guy
Thanks Guy, I agree and that is what I am doing. Where do you ground the system on a sailboat without an engine, to the outboard? I've discovered that the wires going to the mast top light have been cut, so I don't know how to anchor them inside the mast if I run new ones. I can't figure out how Ericson riveted in the clamps that are holding the old wires. Thanks again.
Grounds etc
I use the same place that I use in all boats, the grounds come to a common ground post installed in a good location. For a small boat like yours the post with the screws surrounding it made by Blue Seas is generally the perfect piece of gear for your size boat, and generally electrical needs.
http://bluesea.com/category/9/38/productline/195
The mast should have a conduit in it, which is the best way to get the wires to the top of the mast. The rivets hold the conduit into the mast.
Guy
I use the same place that I use in all boats, the grounds come to a common ground post installed in a good location. For a small boat like yours the post with the screws surrounding it made by Blue Seas is generally the perfect piece of gear for your size boat, and generally electrical needs.
http://bluesea.com/category/9/38/productline/195
The mast should have a conduit in it, which is the best way to get the wires to the top of the mast. The rivets hold the conduit into the mast.
Guy