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Where do the wires normally run for, say, the overhead lights in the salon and the V berth. The wires on Orion were duct taped to the cabin side and were run through the middle of the overhead stiffeners. I would like to know if the wire run for the port side lights actually do run overhead or through the bilge. I can't imagine that they were originally just duct taped to the cabin side and call it good.
I'm thinking of running everything that I can in 1/2" poly pipe so it can be pulled and replaced as needed.
I'm going to mount a speaker port at the forward end of the overhead storage and starboard outside of the bookshelves in that useless little V between the hull and the bookshelves. Someone talk me out of that if it's a bad idea. Also, I'm guessing that I have to run the speaker wires as far away from the 12V as possible or can they run in the same raceway without static?
I'm also guessing (lots of that going on) that the 14/2 I got will suffice for everything and that the love amp draw of the new LED lights (.7) will allow me to run several on one 15A circuit, freeing up some breakers.
Advice?
Thanks
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Ok my two cents worth that might not be worth even that.
Running speaker wires next to 12 volt wires... usually it is high voltage such as 110 and 220 that will create interference in other wires near them. I don't think that 12 volts will do that. Emphasis on the "think"
As to the gauge.... to run for the lighting circuit... I would run the largest gauge you can afford and is easy to work with. Reason being is that even if LED's don't draw much, you might want to in the future tie in a fan or other electrical device to that circuit rather than run new wiring to it. I am still using the stock wiring in our boat and it is so overrated for running just the LED lights I now use that I felt very comfortable putting 6 fans on the same circuit and just tying them in at the light fixtures. It saved me a lot of work and expense when I installed the fans to be able to do that. You just never know what future projects will bring. I can run every interior LED/Light Fixture and all the fans on the same circuit with amps left over.
Yep.. they loved duct tape at the downeaster factory 
I think they just used it to hold the wiring up till the vinyl was up. Mine is wired like you described.
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110/220 VAC carries a 60hz (or 50hz) signal so any speaker wire near it will pick up the very distinct 60 hz buzz.
The AC wire carries a magnetic field around it which resonates with the speaker wire giving that sound. Since the DC isn't carrying a waveform, you don't get that interference. But would probably notice some interference when you turn something on or off. It can also happen if AC somehow creeps into your DC system (eg through a cheap battery charger).
My outdoor speakers are on the outside walls of the cabin on either side of the companionway, and indoor speakers are mounted on the bulkhead between the head and the salon, and in the bookshelf on the starboard side. The radio head unit is at the nav station.
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OK, that helps a lot. Scott, any idea what gauge your wiring is? I got a 250' roll of 14/2 which his oversized for the lights but your idea of adding fans is a good one that I hadn't thought of. Since I haven't started running yet, I can still upgrade to 12/2 if that's what you think you have.
Any idea what the fans draw and where did you find they worked the best? I know they've saved a couple hot nights for us but those were clip-ons.
I'm contacting Blueseas to get a new panel next week. It looks like that whole (painful) process will go faster if I take the nav station out so I'm going to do that next. That process is really easy compared to what I'm anticipating the wiring to be. Of course once I start and get the hang of it, I'm sure it will be easier than sitting here talking about it and the result will be a panel I can actually trust.
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Our fans are caframo fans
http://www.caframo.com/marine/.....cco807.php
that do a 360 degree swivel thing. you can get them at west marine but they are pricey.. 100 each... I got a deal on the ones I got.. 60 to 70 each. In real world they don't draw a lot of power. less than an amp each. They have a low voltage shutoff, 3 speeds, and 2,4,6 and 8 hour timed run times. They work really well and are very quiet which was the biggest draw for me. However due to the swivel arrangement I have a couple that have started to exhibit issues after about 2 years of heavy usage. Seems like the contact surfaces for the electrical current in the swivel joints .
I mounted one in the galley near the companionway, one over the forward part of the chart table, on near the forward starboard light fixture in front of the bookshelves, and one near the light fixture over the port settee, two in the vberth cabin mirrored port and starboard just in front of the forward port holes so that you could create a breeze from or two the open portholes.
Sigh.. I'm not sure the exact size It isn't a two strand wire but two separate wires run on our boat. A blue and a Brown? Ah blue and black for the positive and negative.. let me look at the boat manual that has the wiring diagrams in it it might have size on it. I think it says 14 gauge on it but the wires I have seem bigger to me... anyways the breaker is labeled 15 amp so the wiring should be able to safely carry more current than that so that if it trips at 15 amps the wire is still safe up till that 15 amp . here is the link to the owners manual and the electrical digram is on page 25 of the pdf.
http://downeasteryachts.com/wp.....manual.pdf
When all is said and done I'm a big fan of over kill in all aspects of electrical systems. Wire size, connectors, tinned wire, heat shrink, and dielectric grease on all exposed connector and connections etc..
I have purchased marine wire and cable ends from these guys several times and gotten a good deal.
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A fox/hound also works well for finding where wires go. Though I haven't ever used it on my boat yet.
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So using a hunting dog is good for finding where the wires go.. Dang I never knew now I'm going to have to get one.. recommendation on the breed?
lol
couldn't resist
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A quick note to add on the wiring for the speakers. I use shielded tinned wire, it should when possible not run in the same trough as other wires, but it will more than likely eliminate any feedback or interference from other energy sources. The wire is spendy. Travis
Travis and Kim
S/V WundorStar
DE 38 Ketch
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shielded wire is the bomb but yes very spendy!!
I use it once in a while for ethernet cables that have issues running near high voltage lines in businesses and such. It works wonders but is definitely very spendy...
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