I was wondering if anyone might have an idea about my situation, it is as follows. I am having an issue with my accesory switches (bilge, live well, lights, ets) and I think it has to do with over loading a circuit. Lets say I turn on my nav lights then I turn my bilge on the light cuts out, but the bilge does not turn on. Same thing with my fish finder, if it is on then I turn on my live well switch the finder goes off and will not come back on until I turn the boat on and off again. This is an on going thing between my switches and power stuff. I am baffled and all of this boat stuff is new to me so if anyone has any idea what the heck is going on and can steer me in the right directions please let me know. Thank you.

A few months ago I had a similar problem in that my fish finder, bilge and livewell would not operate. At first I thought the pumps were old and ready for replacement but the live well pump wasn't that old although the bilge was the original. Also, my nav lights were intermittent. I checked the switch panel with a meter to see if maybe the switches were bad but they did have current. When I checked the wires from the panel to where they connected at the pumps I had no current. This looked like a wiring issue and after consulting with the good folks at Boaters World I ran all new wires to my equipment. I did need to replace the bilge pump but everything else was good to go. The cost was minimal doing it myself. Had there been a wiring issue to the motor then I probably would have taken it in for service.

Things to consider are:

Are there loose connections either at the panel or the equipment? Could there be a splice in the wiring instead of one continuous? Use heat shrink at your connections. I went a step further and used liquid tape on top of the heat shrink. How old is the wiring, is it still in good shape? Mine was green and black no matter where you cut. Had to replace. I was told minimum 12 gauge. Are any fuses / breakers of the proper size for the equipment? If the wrong size they could heat up and trip. Check the owners manual for each component.

Hope this helps. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

Thanks Mark! Yeah I checked connections, they seem to be good. I do think, after further research and talking to some buddies, that it is the wiring. I need to run newer and bigger wire and the problem should be good to go. Thanks again. I am a huge fan of this site! If you have a question or problem I can count on getting useful help and info.

Just in case you're still having issues with your electronics, here's a tip. If you don't have a volt meter, it's a great investment for a salt water boat, and all the connection issues you're gonna have. remove the plate that the switches are mounted to if possible, or gain access to the backs of the switches. Start turning on suspect items. When they turn off suddenly, use the volt meter to test voltage across each connection (red wires) working toward the feed location. Remember you're measuring difference of potential, so if both sides are hot, it will read 0-volts, and if they are both dead it will read 0-volts. If it reads 12-volts DC, then one side is hot, and one side is dead. This is your trouble spot. Even if it reads just a few volts, then it's not a good connection. There should be no voltage drop over any connection or switch. If everything checks out ok, don't forget to check the grounds. You can check the grounds (black wires)by selecting the continuity test, and looking at the resistance to flow. The higher the resistance, the poorer the connection. If it doesn't "ring" or make a noise to tell you it's a complete circuit, then the connection is broke.

I had an issue with my docking lights shutting off after being on just a short time, and found that a connection was fair, but under load was heating up and breaking down. A poor connection will heat up and break down. It's a domino effect. That's why I prefer to check the connections under load. Be carefull, hope this helps someone.

That's excellent information rip. Thanks for sharing.

Great news I got my boat up and running again! WOOT!! but I ran into another snag..for some reason I lose powere to my fishfinder when i try and teurn on the bilge and aerator and vise versa..not sure what is causing that unless I am not uing the right fuses. Any comments? Thanks a million I have learned so much from you all.