Some Battery Switch Questions

[captainron19]

Single outboard and putting in a 4 position battery switch. Having boat repowered next week so thought this would be a good time to get the switch in before going for the motor to be installed.

Couple of questions...

1. According to the diagram I need to run a jumper cable between my negatives of both batteries. I bout some 4 gauge black cable and the metal hubs to put on each end to go to the negative terminals...... I'm not sure how they connect since I cant tell if they can be crimped or not..... is soldering them in place ok?

2. Gonna use 1 position of switch for outboard obviously and another for all my electronics. I already have a positive feed coming from one battery to my console for all of my power along with a ground wire going to same battery. Where should that main ground wire go now? Also...I have a couple of items directly wired onto the battery terminal (transom bilge and main bilge pumps)..... can I just wire them directly to the switch or do I have to run them back to my console where the rest of my hot leads are? Also, those 2 pumps have ground directly onto the battery, can I still ground them on the battery neg terminal?

 

[NYBo]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

1. Your jumper should be the same gauge as the main cables to the motor's starter. Can you post a picture of the connectors you have?

2. You are confused about what the switch does. You use it to select which battery (or both) powers the entire boat, not which set of electrical items gets powered. Except for the automatic bilge pump circuit (if any, which should be connected directly to one battery, preferably a deep cycle), everything gets connected to the common terminal on the switch.

 

[captainron19]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

Dont have a pic.....motor is off the boat right now....about to be repowered and actually it isnt an automatic bilge pump...no float switch on them....I have them operated by a switch on the console.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

Everyone gets so wrapped around the axle regarding running this off bat 2 and ONLY the engine off bat #1. Gee whiz folks, study the diagram that has been placed here about a zillion times and discussed to death. to try and isolate circuits defeats the purpose of the switch. If you wire it the way you are describing, you would never be able to start the engine from BAT 2 if BAT 1 did indeed take a dump. Here is how it works. You wire everything, including the engine to the COM terminal on the switch. The only exception is perhaps an automatic bilge pump that should go to the largest battery in the system. Now then. Using the switch you can start the engine from either or both batteries. You can charge either or both batteries when the engine is running, and you can run the accessories from either or both batteries. Use the switch as intended. Otherwise don't bother adding one as you are limiting its capabilities and usefulness. You don't need a switch if all you want is to power accessories from BAT 2 and Engine from BAT 1.

 

[NYBo]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

Dont have a pic.....motor is off the boat right now....

I was referring to the connectors you have for the black jumper wire. Maybe we can tell you how they are supposed to be attached to the wire.

 

[captainron19]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

oh sorry..... dont have them handy with me right now....they are the metal ring hubs similiar to these.... http://www.amazon.com/Heavy-Duty-Copper-Terminal-Battery-Cable/dp/B003U8I1IM/ref=pd_sim_sbs_auto_9 but they are actually open also at the end near the ring part

 

[NYBo]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

Those are meant to be crimped.

 

[captainron19]

Re: Some Battery Switch Questions

OK just made up a little diagram for my plan right now.... so you guys can let me know if I am on the right track...

FYI I bought the boat a couple of months ago and it was a wiring nightmare. Previous owner was super lazy when it came to electronics. To give you an example.... there are 2 bilge pumps (1 int he main bilge and one in the transom). For the main bilge he ran the wires to battery box in rear and installed a switch in there for on an off. For the transom bilge pump he did the same thing but left bare wires in battery box and would touch them to battery terminals to pump out the transom.

I wired both pumps now to a new switch panel on console but left them getting power from the battery so basically the wire for the transom pump is directly to the battery but is wired also to switch panel at console to turn it on and off.

Am I close with the diagram I have below? Can I simply connect the positive wire from bilge pump to the "C" terminal on switch and take the ground wire to the battery I would like to run that pump off of? in this case the stbd battery.

Also...I bought all new wiring for switch and battery terminals. I have about an 8-10 run of wire between the 2 neg terminals of batteries and about the same for terminal 1 of switch to the positive of the port battery. Switch is going to be mounted to outside of STBD Battery box so i bought an 18" pre-made section of 4 gauge wire to go from terminal 2 of switch to positive of STBD Battery. Is the same gauge of wire (4 gauge) ok to use between the battery negatives and terminal 1 switch to port battery positive?