# Wiring question-HELP Please



## JGibson (Aug 12, 2012)

I'm no electrician by any means without some type of diagram. If anyone knows of some diagrams that will help me out please point me to them. Maybe someone here has some extra time on their hands and can make one up for me? 

Here's what I want/need it for (I plan to run 2 batteries but need the diagram for one first then for 2):
Push Button Electric start on Motor
Nav Lights (Both on same switch, stern only on one side and both on other)
Deck Lighting (Own Switch)
Trolley Motor
Depth Finder
Spot Light (Can be on Cigarette lighter switch, front or back)
Headlight (Own Switch)

Breakers, fuses, switch boxes, panel for switches? I know nothing about any of this...

Thanks in advance.


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## Wallijig (Aug 12, 2012)

I am not one for making diagrams on computer, however if you do a search you will find a number if posts with diagrams answering your question

As for the push button to start your boat do you have a starter installed already?
Depending on motor you may need a key switch to energize the coil or push button/kill switch.


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## JGibson (Aug 13, 2012)

Tried the search but I'll give it another shot. The motor already has a starter installed and it does work I just didn't want to run wires off of it to other things such as lights.


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## Wallijig (Aug 13, 2012)

Do you plan on having batteries in same place? 
I am assuming you have a 12v trolling motor?

I could draw something up by hand, scan, and post it. faster then trying to do something on computer. If need.


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## bgeddes (Aug 13, 2012)

J, 

It would be good to know the draw of the stuff. Particularly the spot light and headlights. Wattage or current draw would help in properly sizing breakers or fuses. If the trolling motor differs from the typical 40-50# thrust then you should let us know. The other stuff is standard for the most part. 

Bear in mind, this can be as simple or complicated as you want to make it. The basics are a handful of breakers/fuses and some switches, the complex is interconnects between two batteries and multiple switch stations etc. 

If it were me, I'd start simple by making everything work safely, then add fancy features as you see fit.


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## JGibson (Aug 13, 2012)

Wallijig said:


> Do you plan on having batteries in same place?
> I am assuming you have a 12v trolling motor?
> 
> I could draw something up by hand, scan, and post it. faster then trying to do something on computer. If need.



Here is a pic of the plans I have for the boat:







Wattage or current draw I understand, I just can't seem to get my head around the actual wiring from the battery - breaker - busbox - fuse box, whats needed and not and how the wires need to be ran from the battery into these. The depth finder is in 3 places, haven't decided where I want it yet, same with the TM, 2 places, not decided where I want it yet. The batteries, I will have only one for now but plan to buy another later. I really only need a diagram from the battery/batteries to a circuit breaker(?), fuse box then wires coming out that are labeled...if that makes sense?


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## astrorails (Aug 13, 2012)

I am planning something similar for my boat, I drew this up as my first draft of a wiring plan.

i would use this as the fuse panel
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000THQ0CQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&smid=A1UNWS4MSNTF2A

and this for the switch panel:
https://www.amazon.com/Seasense-Marine-Way-Switch-Panel/dp/B003E24MKA/ref=pd_sim_sg_6

My diagram is based on a couple of assumptions,
1) My trolling motor has it's own seperate battery up at the bow
2) I am assuming ( a dangerous past time) that the fuse box I am looking at has a place to run all of the negative leads from the items that I am powering, and that the fuses are on the positive side of the circuits.


The file is in PDF format, I couldn't get it to a JPG...


Peter


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## bgeddes (Aug 13, 2012)

Many people wire the two batteries to a battery selector switch. I'd fuses in the event a wire gets shorted. Downstream of the selector switch, I'd have a fused line to the trolling motor, a breakered line to the starter and a fuse line to the switch panel with all the other goodies.


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## Wallijig (Aug 13, 2012)

I knew someone would pull through for ya....


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## JGibson (Aug 14, 2012)

Just what I was looking for =D> Thank you very much!


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## JMichael (Aug 14, 2012)

astrorails said:


> The file is in PDF format, I couldn't get it to a JPG...
> Peter


In case you wanted it in jpg format for future use.


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## JGibson (Aug 14, 2012)

Thanks!


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## astrorails (Aug 14, 2012)

Thanks for the JPG! I have to find a program for my mac that'll do that!


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## Badbagger (Nov 6, 2012)

Subscribed for future use.


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## RivRunR (Nov 6, 2012)

Should have a breaker in there between the battery and the fuse panel.


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## PSG-1 (Nov 6, 2012)

Most of what you're wiring is pretty straight forward. 

The only tricky one is the nav lights....how to make it run only the anchor light on one setting, but run both on the other? This one used to stump me, and everything I wired, both lights ran.....LOL

That is, until I figured out a little thing called a 'diode' Think of a diode as a check valve for electricity, it lets it flow one way, but not the other. You'll need a diode, and a DPDT switch. There should be a diagram somewhere on here that shows it, someone posted it on here, and it was most useful to me, wiring up my nav lights.


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## RivRunR (Nov 6, 2012)

PSG-1 said:


> ... a little thing called a 'diode' Think of a diode as a check valve for electricity, it lets it flow one way, but not the other. You'll need a diode, and a DPDT switch.



Hey PSG...why would you need a diode if you've got a DPDT on/off/on switch? Not arguing, just curious.


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## PSG-1 (Nov 6, 2012)

Trust me, if you don't use the diode, or a specialized switch, you will have both the nav light and the anchor light running, either way you flip the switch. The diode is wired to one side of the DPDT switch, so that only the anchor light will run with the switch in one position, and both lights will run with it in the other position.


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## RivRunR (Nov 6, 2012)

I just wired up my DPDT like this...works fine.


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## PSG-1 (Nov 6, 2012)

Well, maybe I just don't know how to correctly wire a switch...LOL, because I couldn't ever get mine to work right.

But this is what I'm referring to:

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=24137&p=246574


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## RivRunR (Nov 6, 2012)

ahhh, but looks like you were using a *S*PDT instead of a *D*PDT, and therein lies the difference,


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## PSG-1 (Nov 6, 2012)

Yeah, when I went back and read through the thread, I saw that. #-o


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## cyberflexx (Nov 9, 2012)

Sorry I did'nt see this thread sooner. I could have scanned and posted the picture of the schematic for my Skiff I rewired and modified.

Glad someone pulled through for you..


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## jmcaswell (Dec 3, 2012)

If I have my trolling battery in the center bench, and my trolling motor on the front bow, that means I would have to run roughly 10' feet of wire from battery to motor- is this ok to have the length that long? Def adding a amp breaker up front.

Jim


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## RivRunR (Dec 3, 2012)

jmcaswell said:


> If I have my trolling battery in the center bench, and my trolling motor on the front bow, that means I would have to run roughly 10' feet of wire from battery to motor- is this ok to have the length that long? Def adding a amp breaker up front.
> 
> Jim


Should be fine, if you use heavy gauge *tinned marine wire*. Since your total round trip length (both wires) is 20', I'd use 4ga, but 6ga would probably be ok.
You don't want to add the breaker up front at the TM, it needs to be no more than 7" from the battery.


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## jmcaswell (Dec 3, 2012)

Thanks-

What G should I use for fish finder / small bubble maker?


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## RivRunR (Dec 3, 2012)

For the finder, unless you have a really long run, 16 should work (14 is better). You can use an in-line fuse for it if you don't have a fuse panel.

For an aerator you'd have to know the amp draw and the length of wire run (round trip) to calculate the gauge.


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## theyyounggun (Dec 3, 2012)

14 ft boat and the round trip would be about 25 ft. Would 14 gauge be enough for nav lights, fishfinder, and some headlights?


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## RivRunR (Dec 4, 2012)

Nav and finder, probably.
Headlights, probably not. You need to figure out the amp draw on the lights before you can figure out wire gauge.
For example, you can see in this Blue Sea Systems Chart that a run of 0-20' at a 5 amp load would be 16AWG, but the same run at a 30 amp load would need 10AWG.


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## simbelle (Dec 4, 2012)

I' don't know about now, but a few years back Cabela's had the best prices on tinned battery cable.


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## RivRunR (Dec 4, 2012)

I usually get mine from Tinned Marine Wire. 
Don't know if they are the cheapest, but their stuff is good quality, they have about everything (one-stop shopping), ship quickly, and have great customer service.


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## simbelle (Dec 4, 2012)

RivRunR I checked and as of now they are cheaper


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