adding underwater lights...wiring ?'s

Taradise

Taradise

New Member
Sep 5, 2007
170
Acworth, GA
This was somewhat covered in an earlier post

(http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6462&highlight=accy)

but I need a little reassurance. ON my 240 SD I am going to install some unterwater lights (by Barnegat) this weekend. They came with one 4' wire the has the red and black leads.

Here is my plan...run the reds to the fuse panel (which I need to locate - haven't tried yet - anyone want to give me a hint?) labeled for the Accy switch on the console...then ground the black to one of grounding buses in the bilge. Is this really that simple or am I missing something. Any help is greatly appriciated - I'm not the electrically inclined (if you know what I mean)
 
It is that simple, but I didn't bother running mine all the way up front and instead just fused it at the positive bus, and added a switch inside my transom shower door.
 
Sorrento 25 said:
It is that simple, but I didn't bother running mine all the way up front and instead just fused it at the positive bus, and added a switch inside my transom shower door.
Click to expand...

Neat Idea.

Try to ground it to the ground bus that serves the hot power bus - probably located near eachother. The items powered by the hot bus are grounded to the respective ground bus.
 
Hampton said:
Neat Idea.

Try to ground it to the ground bus that serves the hot power bus - probably located near eachother. The items powered by the hot bus are grounded to the respective ground bus.
Click to expand...

NO speaka da english...
in other words...I really dont understand what you are talking about. is there an easier way to say this that an wiring moron like could understand?
 
Find the group of wires where you get your light's power from. Find where the items that get power from those wires are grounded. Ground your lights there. Chances are, any ground will work. They are usually all tied together in boats with a single electrical system. The conservative route would be to use my method above. Taking your light's ground to the engine block would probably work.
 
The term "bus" or "buss" is probably more airplane talk than boat talk. It basically is a physical electrical interface where many devices share the same electric connection. This allows signals to be transferred between devices (allowing information or power to be shared).

It's a chunk of metal to connect a bunch of wires to in order to share a power source or common ground.
 
Taradise said:
This was somewhat covered in an earlier post

(http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6462&highlight=accy)

but I need a little reassurance. ON my 240 SD I am going to install some unterwater lights (by Barnegat) this weekend. They came with one 4' wire the has the red and black leads.
Click to expand...

What kind of lights are you adding. ( Just curious ) I searched ( Barnegat ) and didn't see any lights except a Light House.:grin: I have thought about adding some that's why I'm asking.

Bob
 
ALRIGHT GUYS...I'm totally confused now...I brought the boat home and went out to look at the fuse panel under the helm. The only spare or unused fuse I have is #11...so I looked up the fuse diagram in my manual and it says #11 is for the 'CO Monitor' (first of all I have no idea what this is) and #14 is for ACCY but it is taken. I did have the dealer install a Lowrance Sonar/GPS...I thought this ACCY fuse would only work if the ACCY switch was turn 'on' on the control panel so why would it be taken (maybe by the GPS). So now where the heck do I wire the red leads from lights to so they will come on when I flip the ACCY switch.

Honestly...I feel Electricallly stupid! Help please!
 
Taradise,

It seems they may have wired your Sonar/GPS directly and bypassed the Accy Switch. The following assumes that is the case because it works with or without the switch on. Get under the dash and trace the wires from the Accy Switch and see where they go. They are probably dead ends. Follow the wires to your GPS as well. Here are the options:

1) They wired the GPS from the "Hot" side of the fuse box through its own independent fuse. How to tell - Pull that fuse out. If the GPS still works, ignore the GPS, put the fuse back, and wire your lights from the other side of the fuse (so your lights use that fuse as a safety).

2) They wired the GPS from the far side of the fuse box, then bypassed the switch. How to tell - Pull that fuse out. If the GPS doesn't work, they are using the fuse, but not the switch. Buy an in-line fuse from anywhere (single wire in one end, fuse in the middle, single wire out the other end). Wire your GPS to the other side of the fuse with the in-line fuse in the line somewhere where you can get to it and replace it. Wire your lights through that fuse and through the switch. The fuse provides safety, the switch turns it on and off.

3) The switch and accy fuse are not related. Consider getting an inline fuse and switch for your lights. Very simple: Take a wire from "Hot" side of fuse box (this side is wired to the battery - use a voltmeter or light bulb with a ground), wire it through an inline fuse, wire that through a toggle switch from most any source (marine would be best), and wire that to the lights. Run the black wire on the lights to a ground. Mount the switch somewhere handy. Be done with it.

Make sure the fuse and switch are of the appropriate rating - 10 Amps will probably work fine.
 
installed the lights today...just haven't wired them yet - probably should have checked to see if they actually worked first but I didn't...

I thought I would share a few pix...
IMG_25451.jpg

IMG_25441.jpg
 
I want to see picture of the light after you get them installed. I was thinking about doing something very similar to it.
 
chuck1 said:
I want to see picture of the light after you get them installed. I was thinking about doing something very similar to it.
Click to expand...

I'll be sure to take some once they are wired and the boat is in the water...I am looking forward to some really laid back crappie night fishing with the lights on, radio down low, kicking back with a cold one with my lady!!! I am also hoping to talk her into a skinny dip at night now and then...we could make good use of that swim platform :)
 
Thanks for the pictures! Is it just one light or one on each side?
Be very carefully and don't try that night dip and fishing at the same time. (Grin)
 
Those look great, so I hope I am wrong about what I'm going to say. On a friends boat we installed the same lights under his swim-platform. I thought these lights, (barnegat bay) expressly warn you not to mount them below the water line?
 
Cocktail Time said:
Those look great, so I hope I am wrong about what I'm going to say. On a friends boat we installed the same lights under his swim-platform. I thought these lights, (barnegat bay) expressly warn you not to mount them below the water line?
Click to expand...

I'll have to check into this...that is the first I've heard that...they say they are sealed and ported - or something like that...I sure hope your wrong...this might be an interesting topic for a new thread - "who has their barnegat lights installed under the H2O line? how have they worked"

I'll wait and see if anyone chimes in on this and maybe I'll start that thread tomorrow...

either way...thanks for the heads up and I sure hope you are wrong...
 
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