Battery switch issues

[robbjd]

Has anyone relocated their battery switch away from the electrical panel? The panel is difficult to open fully due to the stiffness of the cables going to switch terminals. When I got  a closer look the insulating jacket on the start bank cable had been pulled back significantly (4"+) exposing 2" of bare wire. Due to the lengths of these cables I may have to run new wire depending on the final location of the switch.
John

[Dave Spencer]

Hi Robbjd,
Congratulations on your new boat!

There are many who have relocated or even eliminated the 1 - 2 - both - off battery switch.  There are numerous project reports in the Tech Wiki here:  https://c34.org/wiki/index.php?title=Electrical 
Jon W wrote up what is likely the best document on electrical systems when he redid his Mk 1.  https://c34.org/wiki/index.php?title=1987_MK_1_Catalina_34_Electrical_System_Upgrade
There are also quite a few discussions about the battery switch and charging configuration.  Use the "search" function in the blue band at the upper left (not the more obvious search bar in the upper right).

Regarding the stripped insulation, that's definitely a problem, I would implement immediate temporary measures with some electrical tape or heat shrink to insulate the bare wire thereby preventing a short circuit on a high power system.  You can permanently address the problem (maybe with a new cable) once you've determined what other changes to the electrical system you want to make.

It will take you quite a while to figure out all the systems on your boat but you'll get there.  You'll likely find some things you'll want to change and there are many here willing to share their experiences with you when you ask the right questions.

[Stu Jackson]

Welcome aboard.

In addition to Dave's suggestion to review tech wiki material about the location of battery switch(es), you can read about the various systemic OPTIONS for DC system wiring here, in the 101 Topics:

Electrical Systems 101   http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,5977.0.html

[LogoFreak]

Yikes! Good thing you could it before it shorted out. You could move the panel to where the C355 has it, just below the chart table. That's where I plan on moving mine.

[Ron Hill]

rob : It looks to me as though something had been on that bare wire!! 

I'd just take some heat shrink and slide it on to cover that wire.  Be sire to use a heat gun to shrink that tubing!

A few thoughts

[Jon W]

Like the others have said, cover those bare wire sections with tape or heat shrink tubing.

I relocated the 1-2-Both switch to the side of the battery compartment. At the same time I took it out of the charging system so it's now just a battery selector switch. House, Reserve, Both. Shorter cable runs, more aligned with current ABYC, and frees up space on the distribution panel.

[waughoo]

My plan is for a blue sea remote battery switch.  This will require two (for my set up): one for house and one for start.  But it will completely remove the long cable runs for load and charge.  I am still at the very start of this project, but it would be a possible solution for your problem.

[Patches]

I also followed Jon's lead when updating my electrical system last year, and placed the main battery switch where he did on the side of the battery compartment.  Also wired the charging directly to the house bank. I led power from the new main battery switch to a new Perko "On/Off" switch at the panel--which fit the existing hole when I removed the 1-2-Both switch there.

[robbjd]

Thank you for all the suggestions. WRT the residue on the cable's insulation, the previous owner had put bands of electrical tape to "label" his wires. One band for the house, two for the starting battery. He also used several metres of red electrical tape to make black welding cable RED  I'm in the process of replacing 4, 6 volt house batteries with 2 lithium 12 volt 100 Ah batteries, replacing an outdated solar charge controller with a Victron 100/30 blue smart controller, and installing a Victron Orion TR smart isolated DC/DC charger. The bare cable has been disconnected at both ends and taped. I like the idea of moving the switch to the battery compartment and having only one heavy gauge wire in the panel. As I explore the electrical system of this boat I'm finding many heat shrink connectors that were never shrunk!! So much more reading to do! Thanks again for the links!!
John

[Ron Hill]

rob : Just make sure you use a heat gun!!  Harbor Freight has the for just a few $$

A thought