Kevin,

We have three AFI wiper motors on our boat wiring. We have three switches and three fuses for the motors but they are all connected to the same circuit breaker.

Two of the wipers do not work at all and the third will come on sometimes but won’t stay on. The circuit breaker light stays on and the fuses are not burned out.

Are the motors getting the right amperage or any idea of what the problem might be?

Maureen

Hi Maureen,

Each wiper motor will three wires: Ground, On, and Park. If you are missing any of these wires, your wiper will not function properly.

1. I would inspect the wiper motor grounds first. This is the only wire that all three motors have in common. The metal case AFI wiper motors are grounded to one of the motor housing bolts. The plastic case AFI motors have an internal ground.
2. Next, check for constant 12v power to the park terminal on each wiper motor.
3. Finally, check for switched 12v power to the On termianl on each wiper motor.

If all the wiring is correct, then you wiper motors may be dead. Before replacing, I would do one last bench test with separate leads to the wiper motor.

Hope this helps,

Kevin

Kevin,

I am installing the EzAcDc marine shore power system. Could you please clear something up for me?

Is it OK to have the AC and the DC panels in the same area as long as you don’t group the wires together?

I had read to keep the AC and DC apart in marine electrical systems, but I am not sure if that meant just to space wires apart so they don’t chafe through and connect systems or if they needed further separation.

Thanks.

Mike

Hi Mike,

Yes. It is OK to have both panels in the same area.

Per the American Boat and Yacht Council, if the AC system and DC system are on the same panel, then the AC system needs to have an enclosure to prevent accidental contact when you are working on the DC side. Even though it is not required, the EzAcDc Easy Add AC panel has rear safety enclosure.

When installing AC and DC boat wiring, it is a good practice to separate the AC and DC wiring because most AC HOT wires are black and most DC GROUND wires are black. Accidental swapping would be very dangerous.

I hope that this is helpful. Please let me know if you have any other questions about your project.

Kevin

Kevin,

I was reading up on adding shore power and came across your site and thought I’d consult someone who knows what they are doing. I want to add AC power to my boat and plan on running one, possibly two AC GFI outlets and a battery charger.

I want to be able to run the DC power on the boat (Stereo, cabin lights) while not draining the battery.

I plan on installing a proper 30 amp shore power inlet and connecting that directly to an AC distribution panel with three breakers. One breaker will go to the outlet. One will go to the battery charger. One will remain open or will be connected to the second outlet.

My questions are:

• Is my thinking correct?
• Is my wiring scheme proper?
• If I have the battery charger connected will I be able to run the DC on the boat without draining the battery?

No one at the marine shops I go to seem to be willing to offer an opinion. Maybe that is out of ignorance or maybe out of fear of liability. What do you think?

Garrell

Hi Garrell,

You thoughts are correct, but the number of breakers that you are planning on may be overkill.

If you are only running outlets and a battery charger, you could easily use an AC panel with just a single 20 amp main breaker with outlets connected through it.

When your shore power is connected, the battery charger will be on and your outlets will be live. The charger will draw a maximum of 5 amps leaving 15 amps (1800 watts) to run everything else.

The simplest system that I have seen for your application is from our partners at EzAcDc.

They have a new marine shore power kit that gives all of the components that you are looking for. The panel has a main breaker rated at 20 amps. There is a GFCI on the panel. This system also comes with a remote outlet kit that plugs directly into the back of the panel. The wire on this remote kit is 10′ long. The AC panel has an outlet on the back. This outlet is ideal for built in battery charger applications. It provides a handy location to connect to AC power and allows for the built in look.

All outlets in the panel are protected by the GFCI. All components are rated at 20 amps.

The kit also includes the power on light, reverse polarity light, and AC to DC grounding wire required by the US Coast Guard.

Installation is simple and safe.

Please let me know if you have any questions,

Kevin

Hi Kevin,

I work in the telecom industry, where we always isolate AC equipment from DC equipment ensuring that each has the required earth path.

I need to locate a regulation in BS7671 or elsewhere that indicates if a distance is required between the two separate systems as there is obviously a different earth potential between the two systems and a person touching the AC equipment and the DC equipment at the same time could in theory receive that difference in potential as an electric shock.

Regards

Mark

Hi Mark,

I am posting a copy of ABYC E-11, which is the marine electrical boat wiring standard for the industry.

On boats, it is required to connect the AC Ground to the DC ground to give a low resistance path to ground in the event of an AC fault to a DC device. Without this connection, the AC path to ground would be through the water which creates an extreme hazard.

Hope this helps,

Kevin