06-30-2010, 03:35 AM
I made the mistake of "under-wiring" a trolling motor. My little boat came with a fishfinder, but no battery. SO being the one of excess I am - I added a battery for the finder, then figured - what else!!!! To meet regs I added a red/green light to the bow, and a stern white-light pole. Then wired in a couple lines for front/rear bench downriggers. Added a "outlet" that keeps my car's GPS gassed up.
So to keep all these electricals under control I wired up a switch-box using a project box from Radio Shack, and switches and circuit breakers from the auto parts store.
My big mistake came in including the trolling motor wiring along with these small-wire, low amp switches. Spent an afternoon trolling the marshes south of Benson Marina. All of a sudden the fishfinder went out. Low and behold the trolling motor also shutdown. I just thought I'd run the battery down. (that's why I picked up a battery meter so I can check now!)
Upon my return home, I opened my switch box, and found a gooey mess of melted plastic and wires. Yup, melted up the whole kit and capoodle. Good thing the whole mess didn't catch on fire! (yes THAT's why you're required to carry a fire extinguisher. Idiot insurance!)
So lesson learned - the right wire for the right job! Now I go straight from the battery - with 6 or 10 gauge wire, to a 50 amp breaker, and a $20 coupler that snaps together, so I can remove the troller (so someone doesn't steal it off the boat at Mantua or something!). It doesn't go through the switch box at all.
So yeah - check your amps, and step up to the load!!!
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So to keep all these electricals under control I wired up a switch-box using a project box from Radio Shack, and switches and circuit breakers from the auto parts store.
My big mistake came in including the trolling motor wiring along with these small-wire, low amp switches. Spent an afternoon trolling the marshes south of Benson Marina. All of a sudden the fishfinder went out. Low and behold the trolling motor also shutdown. I just thought I'd run the battery down. (that's why I picked up a battery meter so I can check now!)
Upon my return home, I opened my switch box, and found a gooey mess of melted plastic and wires. Yup, melted up the whole kit and capoodle. Good thing the whole mess didn't catch on fire! (yes THAT's why you're required to carry a fire extinguisher. Idiot insurance!)
So lesson learned - the right wire for the right job! Now I go straight from the battery - with 6 or 10 gauge wire, to a 50 amp breaker, and a $20 coupler that snaps together, so I can remove the troller (so someone doesn't steal it off the boat at Mantua or something!). It doesn't go through the switch box at all.
So yeah - check your amps, and step up to the load!!!
[signature]