Had a great summer, no issues. Went to pull boat for winter and no power at the helm, no reaction to ignition switch, or power/tilt on throttle. Battery's are fully charged, all other electricity works fine (fridge, electronics, lights, pumps). Checked fuses all look good. Any clues on where I should look next? Secondly, can you recommend any good marine electrician's in CT?
Electrical Helm Question
- Thread starter Patsy Mac
- Start date
You didn't mention the boat model, number of batteries and switches. My first thought would be a fuse, possibly at the motor. It could be a connection at the motor, either battery or ground.Could be a bad cable/connection at the battery switch on the large cable to the motor.
Depending on the motor models it could be a relay at the motor. In other words, it could be a lot of things. Check connections at the motor first and then motor mounted fuses.
Depending on the motor models it could be a relay at the motor. In other words, it could be a lot of things. Check connections at the motor first and then motor mounted fuses.
It is a 1998 Islander 268, with a ox66 250 HP. It has two batteries, one house and one for starting, no difference in either switch position. The power trim works at the trailer switch. Looked at motor mounted fuses, Two 80 Amp and one inline in the fuse box, none looked burnt through. Does the power run from battery to the motor, then up to the helm? Thanks for the help, I/m not very electrical savvy.
Fishtales
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Measure each cell and ensure wiring is correct at batteries. Check rotary switches and set to proper position (motor 1/2 etc). Easy to forget these sometimes. The engines usually are hardwired from the batteries with a large inline fuse. Kinda doubt this would be bad, but you can check with a DVM when both battery switches are set to off.. Check main panel and ensure proper setting of breakers. Check fuse panel(s). Check other 12v circuits on the boat. It could be that the batteries have enough left in them to power low current devices but when you put a load on them, they collapse. One way to check is turn on a light you can see then try to crank the engine another is measure the battery voltages under load.
The tilt working at the motor switch if I understood correctly, eliminates the bad fuses or connections at the motor. That leaves the ignition wiring at the helm and . Not being electrically savvy is going to make it tough for you to troubleshoot'
The main power for the motor runs from the battery switch to the motor and then back through the harness for the ignition switch and gauges.. The piece that is a bit confusing is why the tilt doesn't work at the helm since that does not need the ignition feed to work, just the accessory feed. Try taking a look at the fuses under the helm and or any breakers there.Also look for corrosion or a bad/broken connection at the fuse block.If you have spade fuses, pull each one , one by one, and inspect. Then reseat. Unfortunately it is tough to troubleshoot from here. Without a wiring diagram, its hard to guide you. Pay close attention to the ground connections, not just the 12 volt feeds from the fuse block.
By any chance, did you remove and reinstall your batteries after you last outing and now?
The main power for the motor runs from the battery switch to the motor and then back through the harness for the ignition switch and gauges.. The piece that is a bit confusing is why the tilt doesn't work at the helm since that does not need the ignition feed to work, just the accessory feed. Try taking a look at the fuses under the helm and or any breakers there.Also look for corrosion or a bad/broken connection at the fuse block.If you have spade fuses, pull each one , one by one, and inspect. Then reseat. Unfortunately it is tough to troubleshoot from here. Without a wiring diagram, its hard to guide you. Pay close attention to the ground connections, not just the 12 volt feeds from the fuse block.
By any chance, did you remove and reinstall your batteries after you last outing and now?
Thanks for the tips. Yes the tilt works at the motor switch, it just seems like the ignition key switch does not power the dash lights, crank the engine, and the trim switch on the throttle is not functioning. I'll check all fuses under the dash, as well as the ground bars.
Regarding the batteries, nothing was done with them at all, and they are only one year old. I fished the last day, parked it. Came back two weeks later to pull it, and encountered this issue. Have never had any issues with intermittent starting, which makes it seem like a ground or fuse, it was so sudden. Appreciate your tips.
Regarding the batteries, nothing was done with them at all, and they are only one year old. I fished the last day, parked it. Came back two weeks later to pull it, and encountered this issue. Have never had any issues with intermittent starting, which makes it seem like a ground or fuse, it was so sudden. Appreciate your tips.
deepdesire
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That breaker is the for the accessory bus and would be connected through the battery switch. If all things not direct motor related work as stated then that breaker is not the problem,
I did misstate something before. The juice for the tilt switch at the helm comes from the motor harness and therefore motor, not from the accessory bus. So it looks like battery voltage is present at the motor ( the tilt works there) but not at the helm. So we have a loss of connectivity between the helm controls and the motor in the harness. There is a big screw on connector as well as one or two smaller connectors o under the cowl for the harness, check it, The helm controls also have connectors to the harness. A bit tougher perhaps to get to but check those also. As I now see it, it shouldn't be too tough to find the fault assuming it isn't a broken/cut harness cable. If it gets to that, the flex rigging tube would be the first place to look but getting to the hoses and wires may be a real chore.
I did misstate something before. The juice for the tilt switch at the helm comes from the motor harness and therefore motor, not from the accessory bus. So it looks like battery voltage is present at the motor ( the tilt works there) but not at the helm. So we have a loss of connectivity between the helm controls and the motor in the harness. There is a big screw on connector as well as one or two smaller connectors o under the cowl for the harness, check it, The helm controls also have connectors to the harness. A bit tougher perhaps to get to but check those also. As I now see it, it shouldn't be too tough to find the fault assuming it isn't a broken/cut harness cable. If it gets to that, the flex rigging tube would be the first place to look but getting to the hoses and wires may be a real chore.