Do you know what's Fun

[KWKloeber]

@everyone

On the water heater (Seaward, Attwood, etc.) the Hot is always the higher of the two.  If they are at the same level then it doesn't matter.

[melp64]

my left one was the higher of the two. but just out of curiosity is there a reason why the hot is always the higher one?

[KWKloeber]

my left one was the higher of the two. but just out of curiosity is there a reason why the hot is always the higher one?

@Dan

Because hot (less-dense) water rises so you want to inzie at the bottom and outzie at the warmest point.
Just like a home WH — although the cold supply is at the top, there is a dip tube inside so it fills the tank from the bottom up.

On a horizontal-lying tank like ours there's not much difference in height bottom to top. On a vertical WH like the Raritan it's more pronounced. 

[melp64]

This weekend I finish all the plumbing with the exception of the aft tank supply. I need to find a filter that is small enough to fit under the sink. I had every intention to reuse as much as possible but as you see from the pictures I had to install new ball valves. I saw that I had a 3/4 line coming out by the toilet, so I was getting ready to run new when I traced that hose back to a thru hull Is that the way all boats feed the toilets either lake water or salt water? not quite sure what I'm going to do with that situation.

[Jon W]

That's the way mine is plumbed. I added a small inline strainer before the toilet inlet to keep stuff from entering the toilet. I'm in salt water.

[melp64]

well I only have a few more weekends before I have to close it up. So far this weekend I wired all my lites to the existing wires( I hope they are good) I read an article on here about a shrink wrap that had solder in the center and when you heat it the solder melt and make a good connection I bought kit with a 120 pieces in it and it really works awesome. The black lights I had to add a piece of wire to to make them long enough to reach the existing wire. You need a little bit of room to heat the shrink wrap.
I am still waiting for my countertops to be completed so I can get them installed before I close the boat up for the winter.
A couple of people asked me what Im going to do in the winter, Im going to learn how to sew and make all my cushions.
I also drilled a 3/4 hole for the vent But I found out its really thick right there and I have to get a longer threaded vent so I can put a nut on it.

[waughoo]

Those solder connectors are pretty cool.  You do have to make sure your copper is clean though.  If there is any dark or corroded strands, youll want to use some snad paper and try to get the bright.  If the wire is tinned, this isnt an issue. 

[Noah]

Strictly speaking, those solder fittings are frowned upon by boat electricians and not "approved" by ABYC. Their standards say you must have a crimp connection as your primary means of connecting.  Of course there are lots of things owners do (including me) that are not up to their specs, but I do use proper marine crimps and heat shrink as they are easy to use and give me a bit more confidence that I did the job "the approved way". ;-) 

[melp64]

That standard is no different than the electrical code that now says you have to have a plug on a range hood or a dishwasher. They want it to be able to be unplugged and replaced. How many times do you replace your range hood or replace the dishwasher in your home.  The difference is that these LED lights last a long time If I have to change them Ill cut the wire and use another shrink wrap.

[Noah]

I am quite certain that the reason for the ABYC electrical code's requirement to crimp wires is NOT because they want them to be easily removable. Quite the opposite.

[KWKloeber]

That standard is no different than the electrical code that now says you have to have a plug on a range hood or a dishwasher. They want it to be able to be unplugged and replaced. How many times do you replace your range hood or replace the dishwasher in your home.  The difference is that these LED lights last a long time If I have to change them Ill cut the wire and use another shrink wrap.

INCORRECT!
We are not talking about crimped bullet terminals or 1/4" quick disconnect terminals (which would be for easy removal.)  We are talking about crimped/adhesive heat shrink BUTT Terminals. 

Solder-only connections are not allowed per ABYC for a reason and should not be used.  ABYC does permit crimped-solder butts that are heated to seal the heat shrink and the solder flows AFTER they are crimped.

 if you are unfamiliar with proper marine electrical methods, it's always helpful to ask before doing.

[melp64]

A butt joint you can easily take apart where the soldered one you can't. I certainly took enough of those apart installing the ones I did. Same Principle, but thank you for the information.

[Noah]

 It may be semantics or your (misunderstanding) of what a crimped butt splice with heat shrink is, but they are permanent. They are NOT intended to come apart and if done properly, must be cut out to be removed or replaced. If you can pull it apart it was done incorrectly.

[melp64]

Well from Noah's last post you can see there isn't much difference between the two connections. But for guys that don't work with wires much I can say for 8 bucks and a heat gun (or lighter) the heat shrink solder connections were awesome and very easy to work with. I get the ABYC doesn't approve of these connections but from Noah's post you can see the only difference is that one is crimped and one is soldered, both make a good connection if it's done properly.  Thanks Noah it's good to hear more than one side of an idea.

[KWKloeber]

Non-crimped, soldered-only connections are IMPROPER on a vessel.  NOT because ABYC doesn't approve them, and if you "don't know" proper marine wiring it's best to do your research before stating that they are "equivalent".