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Port Bow Light and Anchor Light

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falco_esq
1st Mate

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USA
60 Posts

Initially Posted - 05/13/2004 : 20:57:23

More from the rookie,

My anchor light does not work. I replaced the bulb, cleaned all the contacts and tested it with the little 9 volt battery trick. The steaming light comes on but not the anchor light. Any suggestions?

Secondly, port bow light does not work, same as above. I heard I could get a battery powered bow light, red and green for temporary use. Any suggestions?

You guys rock, my boat will hopefully be in the water this weekend!

Jason

Jason
INDIANAPOLIS

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 05/13/2004 : 22:50:57

Your anchor light is probably spliced at the steaming light. Most masts only run the wires as high as absolutely necessary, so they only run the ground and the hot lead for the anchor light above the steaming and deck light, (the rest terminate at the steaming/deck light). Any splice is a potential problem. Continuity is everything in our simple DC world. Have you checked for continuity from the ground at the steaming light to the anchor light? Any wire will do, simply get a length of wire to run externally from the steaming light ground terminal to the mast head. Take your multi-meter and test for continuity at the anchor light. No beepy no continuity. If you have continuity on the ground side then you have the same test to run on the hot lead side but you will need to use a much longer wire and start from the deck plug.

As for the bow light... pretty much the same deal. If and when you discover a lack of continuity then you know you must replace the wire. If you do not find discontinuity then you are looking at new fixtures or rebuilding the ones you have.

Edited by - on

Sea Trac
Master Marine Consultant

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Vanuatu
1357 Posts

Response Posted - 05/13/2004 : 22:58:09

Frank gave very good guidance, for after you check one more common culprit. The deck plug connection general takes on water and, therefore, corrodes the contacts. Check those first, clean as appropriate, and then do as Frank recommended if still necessary.

Edited by - on

frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 05/13/2004 : 23:58:09

When I do continuity checks on the mast, I do everything from the mast plug. Since ground throughout the mast and boat, by the way, are common I just hook the negative of the meter to the ground pin and then go around the remaining pins with the positive lead. No beep or meter to infinity equals bad blub or bad wire. Next I check the blub and clean the fixture whether the bulb is good or not. Figure while I am up top might as well kill two birds. If the bulb is good and you are sure the fixture is good then you have the dreaded wiring problem. In 95% of my having to do this on my old boat, the problem was corroded fixture, bulb, or blub contacts. After you get the contacts nice and shinny then spray them with CRC electrical spray to help prevent it from returning quickly. If you do find a wiring problem I would suggest you go ahead and replace all the mast wiring, since the odds are that if you have a wiring problem with one light you will have one with another light sometime in the near future.
Good luck with your trouble shooting.

Edited by - frog0911 on 05/14/2004 00:01:31

falco_esq
1st Mate

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USA
60 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2004 : 19:19:43

Well, I spent the day trying to track down my problem. Jack's advice was pretty helpful. Here is what I have concluded. When I tested the voltage coming out of the deck plug, it only read 3.3 volts. When we had the mast plugged in, there voltage up the mast at both lights but only about 0.12 volts. So I am not getting enough juice at the plug to light the lights. (At least that is the conclusion I have come to.) I figure that I should be getting 10 or 11 volts at the plug. Does this sound right? SUggestions??

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by frog0911
 When I do continuity checks on the mast, I do everything from the mast plug. Since ground throughout the mast and boat, by the way, are common I just hook the negative of the meter to the ground pin and then go around the remaining pins with the positive lead. No beep or meter to infinity equals bad blub or bad wire. Next I check the blub and clean the fixture whether the bulb is good or not. Figure while I am up top might as well kill two birds. If the bulb is good and you are sure the fixture is good then you have the dreaded wiring problem. In 95% of my having to do this on my old boat, the problem was corroded fixture, bulb, or blub contacts. After you get the contacts nice and shinny then spray them with CRC electrical spray to help prevent it from returning quickly. If you do find a wiring problem I would suggest you go ahead and replace all the mast wiring, since the odds are that if you have a wiring problem with one light you will have one with another light sometime in the near future.
Good luck with your trouble shooting.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Edited by - on

Frank Hopper
Past Commodore

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Pitcairn Island
6776 Posts

Response Posted - 05/15/2004 : 20:26:06

13 and change. Re-terminate your deck socket, polish up the connectors at the power panel.

Edited by - on

falco_esq
1st Mate

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USA
60 Posts

Response Posted - 05/16/2004 : 13:10:20

Reterminate? Huh? What does that

mean? I am going to clean the connectors with WD 40 today.

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by fhopper@mac.com
 13 and ch

ange. Re-terminate your deck socket, polish up the connectors at the power panel.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Edited by - on

frog0911
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1349 Posts

Response Posted - 05/16/2004 : 21:36:24

I think by reterminate, Frank means remove the deck plug and then loosen the set screws holding the terminated boat wire. Clean the wire ends and the inside of the tube and set screw that holds the wire. With the problems you have I would be installing a new through deck plug complete with some CRC electric spray to hold down the corrosion. Four connector plugs run around $15.00 from WM.

Edited by - on

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The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.