"Roger Long" wrote in
:

Was this nuts?



Absolutely not. Every circuit, even the house battery banks, themselves,
have proper fusing or breakers in every circuit, including the primary
circuit, in Lionheart. Even when the wiring will handle more, circuits are
protected with 20%-over-load ratings. House batteries are fused in the
jumper links between the 6V batteries in series.

In circuits where light loads, such as electronics, have much lighter
wiring, sub fuse or breaker panels are installed to protect that individual
instrument's wiring from overcurrent conditions. NO wire can be burning
because of a short. I sleep very comfortably, well not worrying about
electrical fires, anyway...(c;

I regularly see stupid wiring in highly flammable plastic boats made of
highly flammable epoxy where dangerous circuits are between where people
are sleeping and their only fire exits. A 20A breaker feeds an unfused
stereo. Someone has cut out the inline fuse from the VHF transceiver so
they could make the wiring look really neat, because the fuse made the wire
too long...hooked to another 20A breaker that will make that wire explode
if the radio shorts it. The fine wires to instruments and the compass
lights is hooked straight to a 15A breaker. None of the individual wires
could ever survive the 18A it takes to trip it, but we used it because the
total load of the 12 gadgets hooked in parallel to it was nearly 12A. They
should have all been hooked to an aux fuse panel inside the helm, fused
independently to protect all these branch circuits, then the fuse block to
breaker in the boat should have had larger wiring rated above 15A.
Dangerous wiring like this is, unfortunately, "normal" when manufacturers
are all cutting corners to see how cheap they can make 'em at maximizing
profit margins. Boat owners exacerbate the problem installing the extra
gadgets with no regard to their own family's safety-at-sea.

Ever ask yourself why there are breakers on your boats mounted in FLAMMABLE
wooden boxes no electrical inspector would allow in your home? Your home
comes under the National Electric Code because it's hooked to the primary
electrical system. All electric boxes must meet the code. Your boat is a
plug-in appliance, and NMMA fights really hard to keep it from becoming an
NEC inspected problem for them. No electrical code would allow them to put
cheap plastic fuseholders unprotected in the engine compartment where the
gas fumes are.....like my Sea Ray came with. The AM/FM radio fuse was 6"
from the CARBS on the Merc 175 Sport Jet! Do you think those cheap plastic
fans pulling fumes out of the bilge are REALLY explosion proof? Explosion
proof motors aren't made out of plastic.....EVER.

Sleep in peace....(c;