Rockhopper

Thanks Kudzucraft, do you know where we might buy these type of switches for boats at all? I’m struggling to find something online. Alternatively, is there a way of checking if the cable is rated for 15amps?

? Thanks, appreciate that ??

To clarify, the boat was built in 2002 and the pump that was fitted originally by Liverpool Boat Company connected to a 10amp fuse. That is no longer in use and we have found it in storage on the boat. Since then, the previous owners replaced said pump with a newer pump that was connected to a 15amp fuse. It has become apparent today with taking off the mains panel that he didn’t change the breaker switch over, so the newer pump requiring a 15amp fuse was connected to a 10amp fuse. We have just realised that today. We’re going to check the swap over of switches with a couple of neighbours to be sure as we want to make sure we’re safe above all else! Thank you all for your super helpful feedback, sincerely appreciated xx P.S. All noted on the AC and DC front, we’ll look into making the changeovers so we can remain safe!

My other half has removed the 10A from the water pump switch (see picture) and has put a 15A in its place. The 15A is from the radio and 12v and we don’t use that. To our joy the water pump is working again! Question is, are we ok to continue using the 15A for the water pump or could that cause problems over time? Sorry, our electrical knowledge is somewhat lacking!

Hi Tony I’m not clear with what you are saying in your first paragraph, please could you clarify? - thank you! In terms of using 15A for the water pump, I just read ‘Fuse:15amp’ on the pump itself (see picture) so we should be ok?

My other half has removed the 10A from the water pump switch (see picture) and has put a 15A in its place. The 15A is from the radio and 12v and we don’t use that. To our joy the water pump is working again! Question is, are we ok to continue using the 15A for the water pump or could that cause problems over time? Sorry, our electrical knowledge is somewhat lacking!

Ok, we have the panel off and the shower pump says 8A and the water pump says 10A. Most others are 15A. what should we try swapping it with?

I’ve added a picture of the switch that keeps turning itself off, its the switch on the main 12v panel. Its just the pump is not pumping water to anywhere, taps or washing machine.

Hello all! Hoping one of you lovely peeps might be able to help me and my husband resolve an issue with our water pump. Our water pump switch on the main 12v switch panel has been turning itself off during showers and when the washing machine is running more and more over the last 6 months. This last week it wouldn’t even allow a tap to run for 2 seconds before switching off. Now the pump is not working at all and when we switch it back on via the panel nothing happens. We want to try and identify if there is a problem with the power supply or the pump itself. We have tested the voltage to the pump with multi meter and the reading is coming back as 1.4v. We don’t believe this is normal and it should be reading 12v right? Please what steps can we take next to further identify what the issue may be? Apologies if all this sounds very simple to the experts out there, we are completely new at fiddling with electrics and water pumps Thanks in advance all! Kind regards Sarah

Thanks so much everyone, feeling slightly less insane than 20 minutes ago ☺️ We’re going to ogle the windows and vents tomorrow, we also suspect that the windows are the culprits. With the leak that’s happening not by a window, we think still think it’s the nearest window, but the waters draining backwards. ?

Yes they are, everything has a layer of foam, including the underside of the gunwhales inside.

The yellow arrows are pointing to the join in the wood that gets soaking pretty quickly.

☺️ Not sure why we call it air lock, said it once and stuck, me and the hubby know what we mean but understand might not translate to other folks ☺️ The one thing to note is that exactly the same thing is happening where there is no window. The windows channels are completely clean, do the cotton bud cleaning every month or so. Also, beneath the window, there is a piece of wood that gets wet too. I’ll post another pic... Thanks again all...

Hello Thanks already for your speedy replies Drainage channels all clear. We can confirm that it’s definitely not condensation. It’s been dry all day, downpour has just started and leaking immediately.

Hello We have a couple of leaks on the boat that we are struggling to identify the root cause. The first one is immediately underneath our bedroom window. We thought it was the window seal and have sealed the outside temporarily so nothing can in. There are no wet patches around the window anywhere since we have done this, however, it seems to be getting in underneath still, driving us mad. Please see first two pictures, one of the lower part of the window frame (we have removed the lower part of the wood) and the other close up. We have the same problem going on in the air lock at the stern end. Again, I’ve attached two pics to give you a better idea. It looks like it’s the steel but can’t see anything outside that shows where water could be getting in. Is there something obvious that we’re missing here and is it easily fixable? Thanks in advance! Sarah

Morning all Thank you as ever for the speedy replies It was indeed the lack of sufficient electrical supply (thank you boater Sam). We have been so used to the solar topping everything up over the past few sunny months that we didn’t pay attention to the batteries being lower than norm when we fired it up yesterday following a week of dreary days. Charged the batteries and hey presto, heater working no problems, purrs beautifully Thanks again all for your replies, until next time Sarah

Hello all, We recently had issues with our diesal heater, it was firing up but then cutting out after about 5 minutes. Wjen ut cut out, there was a ittle bit of noise beforehand and some smoke, then nothing. We sent the heater off for a full service as it had been a few years and we know they can build up with carbon. Heater returns this week, services and fault codes cleared. Bottom line is, we re-fitted the heater today, ran for about 5 minutes, then the clicking stopped and system turned off after another minute. We are thinking it might be the fuel pump itself that needs replacing but are frankly rather clueless as have never maintained one of these before. Do people think its the little fuel fuel pump that needs replacing? Weird though that it was clicking like normal before it stopped again. Or could there be something else going wrong that we’re missing? Thanks in advance, Sarah

And yes Nicknorman, the lack of the polarity light was causing confusion as the reference guide for the boat indicated that it would light up when shore line power was connected, got us scratching our heads and overthinking everything!

Ok, I did post a reply via my phone a few hours ago but it didn't seem to show, anyhow, that's by the way... We are delighted to confirm that we are now successfully connected to the shore line power! Hurrah! We followed your instructions Nicknorman and turned the inverter off at the switch on the unit itself and on a green operating keypad pinned to the wall. We also removed the plug from the unit (thanks Alway Swilby ). With the shore line power connected, we then tested all the switches 0-3 and found that the red 'system on' stayed lit and the power sockets worked only when turned to switch 1. All other switches turned the red light off and thus the power sockets didn't work. At first we thought it was too good to be true as the red light on the bollard outside was not flashing which indicates you are drawing power. However, we were aware we only had lights on and a phone charging so we plugged a fan heater in to bump up the usage and hey presto, the red light started flashing! Double confirmation Strangely, the lights in the ceiling remained on during all switch turns, not sure if that's because they run from the solar unit? I'm full of other questions but will leave it there for tonight I want to thank you all again for your generosity at taking the time to reply to my post, just amazing, you're all bloom'in lovely P.S. Rusty69 was spot on, the issue was us not knowing how to work it!

Oh my, overwhelmed by the responses, amazing! Thank you all Just out at the moment but will be back at the boat around 10pm so will certainly follow your advice and tips to help us get to the bottom of this! I’ll keep you a posted on how we do. Thanks again everyone!

This is a picture of another switch which we believe is connected to the solar panal system to the right. We haven’t touched this as we we’re told it’s unconnected to the other switch, but now I’m questioning that.

Hi Paul Thank you so much for your speedy reply. Ok, so I checked the switch and when turned to 0 and 3, the ‘system on’ light goes off and the power to the boat ceases. When turned to 1 and 2, the ‘system on’ light stays red and power remains on. The inverter stays on every turn, so all 0-3 switches. The light for the ‘correct polarity’ doesn’t come on at all, don’t think we have seen it on since we purchased a few weeks ago. My other half said that the generator is not connected to the boat but powers to a 13amp socket and another 16amp. Not sure what that means and I do t think he does either

Hi all We have just bought a boat that was previously used as a continuous cruiser and we are trying to connect to shore power without success Connecting cable has been checked and that’s working ok as is the bollard, so clearly something to do with the boat. We have a Sine Wave Inverter that we leave on. The RCD control has a switch marked 0-3 and we have turned it to position 1 as outlined in the boat reference guide (although for a Sterling converter) and all other switches and nothing seems to happen. The light on the panel for ‘system on’ stays lit red but the light for ‘’correct polarity’ does not come on at all. According to the book this light should come on when connected to shore power. I’ve attached a pic of our unit if it helps. Is there anything obvious that we could be missing here? Like another switch we need to think about? We also have onboard solar system and generator which we have been told should not be affecting anything. Any or guidance on this would be greatly appreciated. Thank you all very muchly