Melandre wrote:
I just got a new boat which came as plain as you can get. Just a
smaller 18' bowrider. I have now purchased a basic Garmin fishfinder
and a Alpine marine CD player/stereo and a couple of speakers.

Now the hard part: installing and wiring these gadgets. So here are
some of the questions that come to mind:

1) as far as I can tell, I have only one, unused, "Accessory" switch on
the console. Should I plan to connect the fishfinder to that switch?
Am I right to think that the stereo does not really have to be on a
switch?


Is it a switch or a circuit breaker? Not everything needs to be
connected via a switch, but everything should be connected thru a fuse
or circuit breaker.

"Accessories" is a good connection for several items... fishfinder, GPS,
added lights... just remember that the circuit will have a max load, so
try not to connect to many things that will all be in use at once.


2) How do I connect the stereo to the battery? Should it be done at
the battery terminals or is it OK to splice the red battery wire (or
connect it to the fuse box?)?

Connect it at the lead to the fuse box... unless the 12V + wire to the
fuse box is too dinky, a common fault with mass produced boats. try
checking the voltage at the main lead, and start turning things on. You
should see only a very slight voltage drop.

Use eye connectors, not spade or forks. And get some dielectric goop to
put on all connections, especially crimps. It improves performance &
longevity tremendously!


3) there is no metal near the casing around the CD player/stereo. What
should I ground the stereo's black wire to? Am I correct to assume
that wiring to the stereo's own harness is not a good idea?

You're correct, that's not a good idea! If you look around behind the
panel, you should see at least one negative/ground common point. This
will be where several black wires come together and a heavier black wire
leads off to the battery's negative terminal. Attach the ground here,
unless there are more than 4 connectors already on it, in which case you
can add another quite easily... a small SS bolt, with a wire tying it to
the first common point, and then add up to 4 grounds to it (including
the one you took off the original so as to make room for the tie-in).

BTW many people who work on boat wiring are more careless with the
grounds than they are with the hot leads... makes no sense at all.
Ground breaks or shorts are just as disabling, more frustrating to
trace, and can lead to increased corrosion if they come in contact with
metal on the boat.

Fair Skies
Doug King