Shore Power

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1

I decided to replace the boat side plug to my shore power cord. Original to the boat it was time and I discovered the following:

  1. Mariner Cat’s shore power receptacle showed no corrosion but the wires were attached with flat blade lugs and over time all three connections were far from tight . Flat lugs can not be tightened effectively.

  2. The cable wire itself was corroded over 15 inches back from the plug. Only the neutral wire. I stopped cutting and measure the resistance and there was a 0.3 ohm difference between the other two wires. (0.9 / 0.6 /06 ).

I ordered a new cable. Probably a good idea to check receptacles for loose connections and measure the resistance to check for corrosion.

I have had the GFI trip on the boat and this lead me to changing the plug.

40 plus years is long enough…

1 Like
2

Thor,
Do you mean corrosion in conductors of the shore power cable or the conductors from the boat’s plug to the boat’s electrical panel?

I have replaced the boat’s plug by purchasing only the “guts”. That is sufficient and less cost than the entire receptacle with its mounting plates.

I found a loose connection and burned insulation for about a foot between the boat’s receptacle and the boat’s electrical panel.

Ward Woodruff
N33 #8 Margery
Niantic Bay, CT

3

Thanks for the heads up Thor. I will check these lugs and wires as soon as I can.

I’ll also check the receptacles and the screws on the breakers. On Sunday I noticed a problem with my battery charger and a loose wire could be the problem. 44 years…

Tom
26C #28
4 days until splash. And I’m not ready again. Funny how 6 months melts away.

4

Tom

I believe the laws of quantum mechanics apply to boat work. When I was two days from the boat we’d arrive and two days mast, boom, sail, rigging, engine and other work and we were off… rinse and repeat at haul out. Now I am a 5 minute walk and the simplest task takes weeks…

5

The other part of quantum mechanics that applies is the uncertainty principle. Even after you’ve assembled everything that you think you could possibly need, you won’t discover what you really need until after the project is underway.

Jon
N26 #115 - Inua
Kingston, NY

6

The cord was corroded at least 2 feet back on the neutral wire which I think was the lower wire when plugged in. And the corrosion was present across all the strands. The receptacle itself was fine but the wire lugs were loose. I was just going to replace the plug and socket but now need a new cord.

There was. a measurable difference in resistance so there was more corrosion to be found. I sprayed the new plus connections with BoShield and will do the same with the cord end.

It’s an easy thing to check with an ohm meter.

7

Clearly Jon you are a master mechanic and physicist…