Running Wires From Cuddy to Aft under Gunwale

[danamags]

I have a 1977 Daysailer II.

Has anyone successfully run battery cables under the gunwale or under the seats from the cuddy to the aft of the boat? I would like to install a trolling motor power plug receptacle to minimize any wires running from the cuddy to the back? The below picture is not my boat, but reflects what my goal is.

Any advice or success stories?

Thanks.

https://picasaweb.google.com/1007155499 ... 2007417330

[GreenLake]

Just today I melted my trolling motor cable, because it wasn't screwed tightly enough to the battery - that is, I thought I had tightened it down, but it must have been something like the lug being wedged on the thread.

Anyway, in the middle of the lake it started smoking. The lug must have worked loose, and at those currents, having a poor connection is all it takes. The wing nut was too hot to touch.

So be sure whatever connector you use can reliably handle the current. Also, your cables should be the beefiest you can afford - best one or two AWG sizes thicker than what the manufacturer puts on - after all, you will have higher losses from the longer distance and some losses at the connector. (There's an earlier thread here somewhere...).

I was going to do something like that, and now, with the cable damaged, I'll have more reasons to do it - would be nice to be able to keep the batteries permanently up front. As mine is a DS1, I'd run the cables in a more accessible location, but I can see the motivation for doing it your way on a DSII.

[Alan]

That's what I did on my 1980 DSII. It works just fine.

My wires are inside the coaming, with the exit hole in the inner side of the coaming, at approximately the same height as the jib car. As nearly as I can tell, there isn't anything in the space between the benches and the outer hull, so there was nothing to obstruct the wires.

I drilled a hole in the cuddy bulkhead inside the cuddy. My wires are no. 2 marine grade cable, which is flexible rather than stiff like no. 2 house wire, so I needed a way to get them to the aft hole.

For this I climbed inside the cuddy with a folding tent pole, unfolded it and inserted it into the bulkhead hole, a section at a time, until it was visible through the aft hole. I pulled it out and taped a piece of string to it, then used the tent pole to pull the string forward through the coaming and out the bulkhead hole.

Then I taped the string to one of the wires, and used it to pull the wire through the coaming to the aft hole.

I repeated the process with the other wire, and voila!

I'm still trying to come up with a tidy way of connecting the wires to a quick-connect plug. Unfortunately, none of the plugs I can find are able to handle wire bigger than no. 6.

[Alan]

One more thought: Seems to me someone's boat had flotation material inside the coaming, but I can't remember whether it was a DSI or DSII, or which thread it might have been on.

[bm1981]

on My DSII the floatation on the starboard side was much less than port. However if you are running the wires up under the coaming you should be ok in either scenario.

[danamags]

folks, thanks for the advice and stories of your own conquests... i drill today so fingers crossed....

[Alan]

Good luck. I'd be interested in hearing how it turns out.

[danamags]

so climbing around the cuddy cabin trying to funnel a tent pole through a drill hole is either some sort of yoga that hasnt been invented yet or a good reason to go see the chiropractor. that being said, the drilling went well in the cuddy, nothing behind it - and the advice to go about the height of the jib car rail was good (and appreciated). drilling in the back found much thicker fiberglass then insulation - but about two inches deep and i was in the clear - then the fishing with a hangar and praying....luck was on my side. i've taken a ton of pictures of the process and will post them - but now i have to drive my butt back to west marine to get more wire since i bought 6 gauge and its too thick to fit into the trolling motor adapter plug. lessons learned... more to come folks....

[Alan]

Uh-oh. You might not want to go thinner than 6 gauge. We've had some threads about the topic, and the voltage loss over that long a run of thin wire is significant. (GreenLake, could you jump in here?)

On the other hand, no. 2 wire might be overdoing it, though, especially since the last time I checked at West Marine locally it was up to $15 per foot.

I'm tinkering with various home-made junction boxes, involving threaded studs and plastic knobs with female thread inserts.

That said, I'm glad it went well, and I'd love to see the photos.

[danamags]

i had some concern about the wire size going from 6 to an 8, but the minn kota plug adapter that i'm using is no way near large enough to handle the 6 gauge wire, so i'm having to go to an 8. if there was a trustworthy adapter or device i could use between the wires near the end of the 6 to put in an 8 link just to the plug, then i would use it - but i always worry about electrical connections when they are not readily reachable. is there a device you can use to bring it from a 6 to an 8 safely?

dm

[Alan]

Unfortunately, I haven't found anything manufactured, so I'm trying to rig up my own. There are terminal lugs crimped to the ends of the no. 2 wires, so I've used bolts and nuts to attach the no. 2 wires directly to the trolling motor wire terminals.

It works, but it isn't pretty or convenient, so I'm tinkering and waiting for inspiration.

[GreenLake]

Just went and got the parts for doing this on my DS1

According to the chart the marine guy had on his sales counter, over the length I wanted to run things, AWG 6 would have been marginal at 40 Amps. So I went to AWG 4. That set me back $3.50 / ft. Yes, you can get the stuff for $15.00, but why? It seems overkill.

There's an old thread here, that has a link to a chart of actual voltage drops based on current and length of wire run. That would be more precise than just a recommended wire size chart, but I'm sure, these sources will ultimately agree.

I found a connector that accepts AWG 8, and that seems to be the size of the leads that come out of my motor now. So I'm planning to cut those short, and connect the male part of the connector.

A short length of the cut off part, I'll connect to the female part of the connector and then from there to a 2-lead connection plate (just two metal plates with 2 screws each and an insulating back plate). That one is rated 65A, and I'll use it to make the connection to the main cable run (AWG 4) under the coaming to the battery.

Having those extra connections is annoying, but I don't see a way around them, if the goal is to have a connector and not run AWG 8 the entire length. (Now would be the time for someone to point out that the losses would come the same either way )

Anyway, that's the plan. So far, I bought 10' of the longer wire, but I'll trim that to the minimum - that stuff's heavy!

[jdoorly]

I just upgraded the 12V supply wires to my Minn Kota 55 from #8 to #1/0 due to poor performance. I had been looking for #2 but was stymied by the price, then I found this audio/battery Monster Cable for $1.48 per foot, and for my intent and purpose I think it is better:

Metra BC1/0S- 25FEET 1/0-Gauge Silver Battery Cable $35.24 on BUY.COM

I connected the negative battery lead directly to one of the batteries with a 1/0-3/8" lug. The positive connects to a 50A circuit breaker and I again used a 1/0-3/8" lug but compressed the 3/8" hole, by wacking the lug on it's side with a hammer to fit the #10 screw on the CB.

The bulkead connector is from Minn Kota. It has large blades and twists to lock like a 220V plug. It can take up to a #8 wire so I soldered short pieces of #8 to the end of each of the #1/0 cables.

The manufacturer's wires to the motor are #8 and I've cut them as short as possible between the motor and the bulkhead connector.

I can't measure a voltage drop between the battery and the bulkhead connector!

[TIM WEBB]

I think I'm gonna do this mod too. I've been running #8/#10 from the battery mounted just forward of the mast, through the drain hole in the bulkhead and some 1" PVC in the drain channel, back to the motor. I KNOW I have voltage drop, even tho I've never noticed the wires getting hot. I don't really need the plug, as the motor is more or less "permanently" mounted to the transom (read: the clamps are so rusted that they won't come off!).

But, just put a buncha $$ into new seals, brushes, prop, etc. for the motor, so staying with the troller for now. Here's a great source of stuff for Minn Kotas:

http://www.northlandmarine.com/MinnKota ... anchor_top

[danamags]

I've just about wrapped this up and have some lessons along the way. I'll get up the summary and some pics tomorrow.