Shore power, sort of?

[Sundancer]

We were sitting on the dock in Friday Harbor and all of our power went out. Others on the dock seemed to have the same problem. We were about to leave, so I didn't think anything about it. When we got home and I plugged the boat in I noticed that I don't have any power past the "normal" lights on the panel that indicate a good source. I checked the bilge circuit breaker and it seems to stick out farther than the other breakers. I can't push it in to reset it, so I'm guessing it's not blown. It seems to stick up a little higher than the 10 and 15 amp breakers, but I can't push it in to reset it. Is there another place to look for a blown fuse or breaker? I've looked at the manual and wiring diagram and this appears to be the culprit. Is there a trick to resetting the red button? :huh: Or is there something I'm missing? When I turn the main panel breaker on, I get nothing on the meter. Turning on the other breakers doesn't change anything. I have no power!

Any suggestions before I call the private practitioner?

 

[SCORPIO]

Aren't the bilge breakers for 12volt DC and the panel in the cabin for 120 volt AC? I haven't studied the diagrams but how would a 12 breaker failure affect the 120volt AC shorepower? Sounds like you may have a bad breaker or something fried in the shorepower inlet. Are the terminals on the cord set burnt at all? Do you have a gen set?

 

[Sundancer]

I did check the short power cords and they look new and clean. Our friend had the same problem on his own generator a few days before and he burned the prongs pretty good. I suspect you are right on the bilge breakers. All are 12 volt, but one says 50 amp and is labeled switch panel. I thought it might have something to do with the main breaker panel. If I had a bad breaker, I guess I could pull it and replace it. It's a piece of cake to remove. I've also tried different cords, a regular old extension cord and the shore power cord as well. The results are the same. The strange part is when I tried our Honda generator on the driveway, the lights look good on the panel, but I still don't have power once I flip the breaker. The other cords don't even light up the reverse or normal lights?? I'll tear the main breaker apart tonight and replace it and see what happens. Hopefully that's all it is! My batteries REALLY need a good charge! I'll keep you posted! I've never had a breaker go bad and never considered that as an option. It IS a 21 year old boat and this and the replacement refer door gasket are the only issues I'm chasing right now, so I feel pretty good about it!!

 

[Sundancer]

I did pull the breaker earlier tonight. It's a Carling so it should be readily available at Radar Electric here in town or I could go to Sea Ray I suppose. We'll see if that fixes it. It does have a rattle inside, so I don't know if that indicates anything of if they just rattle! I HOPE this fixes my problem!

Thanks Chris!!

 

[boatmailster]

use ohm meter to test before you buy a new one

 

[Sundancer]

I don't have an ohm meter, but I did connect a 12 volt light to it. It has three poles and two of the three work just fine. The 65 VAC doesn't show any power. The other two are 30 VAC and I see current across those. I'm pretty sure it's fried! Looks like it was replaced in 2007 because I see a "2007" number stamped on it. I'm guessing that it was replaced back then. The local Sea Ray dealer was about as helpful as piece of wood. He didn't want to deal with me at all this morning, so I'll try again on Monday at some of the local electrical distributors to see if they can help me.