Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

[johnhenry3]

Hi All:

I just purchased an '00 Baja Hammer with 400 hours. Has a 7.4 MPI and Bravo 1. A little background: the boat was vandalized and the batteries and stereo and speakers taken...wires nipped. The battery has been draining so I have been shutting off the master at the Pergo, and I just installed a solar trickle charger to the battery. I have a new battery (just one for now), and just replaced the ignition switch (and it cranks over).

So the questions are (easiest first):

1) The trailer switch should have an up, down and neutral, correct? Right now it seems stuck down, and I was able to tilt the drive up, but it will not go down. New switch is needed, right?

2) With ignition "Off" and key out, and all auxilaries "Off" the switches (trailer, tabs, hatch, etc.) still work. Is that normal? I thought the auxilaries needed to be "On" for the power to be "On" and the switches to work.

3) I found a spare yellow wire behind the ignition (and blower and red button...which I believe is the "kill" switch...right?)with a spade type end that I cannot easily trace back. Any idea what it is for (I know...rather obtuse). The blower worked before...but I didn't try it today...if the blower doesn't work I guess that is what it's for.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions/help.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

1) The trailer switch should have an up, down and neutral, correct? Right now it seems stuck down, and I was able to tilt the drive up, but it will not go down. New switch is needed, right?

I assume by "trailer" you are referring to the trim switch. I believe yours has a 2-position momentary switch, one position up, the other down. When released, it cuts the circuit which stops the trim pump (neutral). Whether or not the switch is bad can be determined by jumpering the wires to the switch to determine if the switch is bad or the pump/wiring/trim limit is the culprit. Should be pretty quick to figure out.

2) With ignition "Off" and key out, and all auxilaries "Off" the switches (trailer, tabs, hatch, etc.) still work. Is that normal? I thought the auxilaries needed to be "On" for the power to be "On" and the switches to work.

Pretty standard that most switches/trim/tabs/etc work without the key on. The ignition key normally controls the gauges and engine start/ECU. Most radios, lights, and helm switches are wired directly to the battery through a fuse panel.

3) I found a spare yellow wire behind the ignition (and blower and red button...which I believe is the "kill" switch...right?)with a spade type end that I cannot easily trace back. Any idea what it is for (I know...rather obtuse). The blower worked before...but I didn't try it today...if the blower doesn't work I guess that is what it's for.

Would be tough to tell without a Baja-specific wiring diagram. Time to get out the multimeter and test for voltage and continuity to various items. Could be the any number of things, but a kill switch/breaker switch is certainly possible if located nearby.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions/help.

See above.

 

[Don S]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

Quite honestly, if you aren't familiar with marine electrical systems and how they work, your best bet is to take your boat to a marine show that has a good marine electrician.
You have so many different things wrong, and an old enough boat, that you have no idea what has been done to it by previous owners. Obviously the battery switch isn't hooked up right, and who knows what you are seeing under the dash. Kill switches do not use yellow wires, but depending your wiring it could be a ground.
Don't make things worse.

 

[johnhenry3]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

Thanks. The switch actually states "Trailer" and brings the drive all the way up/down for trailering. I think there is a separate trailer trim switch. The switch works up (power the drive up)...but not down (it's stuck in the down position).

Good to know about power always being on...I'll use the perko.

And I'll try to trace the yellow wire back.

 

[johnhenry3]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

What do you mean by "battery switch?" The Perko switch? That seems fine, when it's in the "All Off" position, all is off (except perhaps the bilge).


Not to second guess you Don, as I appreciate your experience and background...but the electrical is well within my scope. I've done extensive house wiring and home theaters over the years...but never a boat. This is foreign territory to me (only real difference is it's DC rather than AC).

The daunting thing is some things have been rewired...most notably the stereo system. There seems to be two, or four of everything (when they ran the new wires they left the old behind). Unfortunately, the miscreants snipped all the wires to the same length...I will probably just do a total rewire on the stereo.

Everything on the engine looks clean and original (no patchwork of wiring).

One question. I have some big trucks, and those batteries are wired in series (both negatives and positives are bridged to each other). It seems the common way to connect marine batteries is wiring the negative in series, and the positive in parallel...correct?

 

[Don S]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

What do you mean by "battery switch?" The Perko switch? That seems fine, when it's in the "All Off" position, all is off (except perhaps the bilge).

Yes, Perko is just one manufacturer of battery switches.

Not to second guess you Don, as I appreciate your experience and background...but the electrical is well within my scope.

That's great. It just didn't sound that way in the original post.

One question. I have some big trucks, and those batteries are wired in series (both negatives and positives are bridged to each other).

When you do that, if you take 2 12V batteries and hook them in series, you have 24Volts.

In parallel, you still have 12 V, only a lot more amp hours (basically a bigger 12 volt battery)

I've moved this thread to the electrical forum. Lots of basic wiring diagrams and color coding help up in the stickies.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Ignition and all aux. switches "Off" but power still "On"

Big trucks are not wired in series. I've seen as many as six batteries but they are in parallel -- not series.