Bow light problem- HELP!

[briand...@aol.com]

RE: 2000 Beneteau 411

Greetings,

My bow navigation light suddenly has no power. The stern light is working fine on that same circuit. Both navigation lights are connected to one panel switch.
So, it appears that the problem is forward of the 12v panel.

The bow light has 2 wires going into the bow pulpit. I can not find where they come out. The only possible place is through one of the welded mounting straps on deck.  But when I feel inside of the anchor locker, there are no wires in those areas. This may be masked by the thick paint type spray/glue sealing the deck to the hull.

Where does the harness travel from the starboard 12 v panel? Inside that hull/deck trough inside the boat?

Please help me figure out where to look for negative ground or positive.

Thanks,

Brian Davies
Babel Fish

 

[DAVID FLETCHER]

Take a look in the anchor locker

Starboard side up high 

Check to see if you have 12volts at that point

Sent from my iPhone

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[Brian]

Thanks David,

Where should I look aft of the anchor locker?

Where does the electrical harness go from the anchor locker to the starboard nav station 12v panel?

How do I get to it?

Brian Davies

Sent from my iPhone

[DAVID FLETCHER]

Start there it is common for the connection to give trouble or for the wire running up the pulpit to rub thru. 

 You will find the wire coming out of one of the four pulpit tubes. 

If you don’t have any luck with power at the connection then go hunting 

Run a long negative wire up to the bulb from a good know negative such as a power connection at the mast 

If you get the light working then you know it is in the negative leg.  

Then try it the other way with a positive lead. Light then you know the break is in the positive leg. 

Beneteau use negative busses off of a main wire. Check the negative wires at the panel.  There will be a dedicated positive wire from the panel to a wego block then off to light fixture 

Good luck 

Sent from my iPhone

[Dean]

I agree with Fletch. 

Check high up in the anchor locker next to the deck to hull joint starboard side (on mine) there was a wire broken there. 

Dean B50

[Btbogdan46]

In the Ben 40 (2010) there is a butt splice (2) that joins the port and starboard bow lights to the electrical feed from the electrical panel. Corrosion or bad crimping can cause this to fail. Look for the butt splice, check for voltage with a volt maeter and if you are getting 12v there, redo the butt splices. Suggest you shrink tube over them as well.

[Geste]

This thread is old but my issue is close enough that I'll just try adding to it...

The original AquaSignal bicolor bow light on my O400 fell apart so I replaced it with a Hella bicolor light. Threading the new light's 2 meter wire through the pulpit/rail was pretty easy and I now have about a foot if tha wire hanging in the chain locker.  Great.  However, one butt splice on the old wire has failed and the splice/s sit under the windlass platform and are almost impossible to reach and crimp.  

I will be much happier if I just pull a new 2-conductor wire from the light's wire (in chain locker) to the DC panel on port side.  This is a 2-cabin O400 witth one head in the forepeak. I have been probing to try to figure out where that original wire runs, but I can't see where it goes from the chain locker.  I am guessing it runs overhead through the liner,  But has anybody else fought with this or gained any insight on how the Beneteaus route bow wiring?

Thanks,

Jim

[Mohammad Bayegan]

You can always use a signal tracer to trace your wire.

Marengo  B49

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From: benetea...@googlegroups.com <benetea...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Geste <jim....@gmail.com>
Sent: Saturday, March 9, 2019 3:00:13 PM
To: Beneteau Owners
Subject: {Beneteau Owners} Re: Bow light problem- HELP!

 

[DAVID FLETCHER]

I had an OC400 and know the boat well. 

The positive wire is part of harness which runs along the port side. 

If you want a new wire run it above the liner at the port edge. It just lies in the small cove. It might be little tricky behind the head. You will need to take the inside of the cabinet out. No big deal. 

If it was me I would run a positive ( red) 10 gauge wire and just find a good negative in the front end of the boat. Could use the windlass negative. 

Sent from my iPhone

[Geste]

Thanks,  I have been looking for a tracer in the sub-$100 vicinity, but most seemed to have limited range/sensitivity and I wasn't sure how helpful they'd be given some of the voids and uncertain path.   

For $40, though, I think I might have a start:

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAJBP8V66655&Description=nf-816&cm_re=nf-816-_-9SIAJBP8V66655-_-Product

Not very specific, but plenty sensitive, IF I can trust the charming music video :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usB35k_atkM

Jim

[Mohammad Bayegan]

I have seen some in Amazon for around twenty  five dollars , I have one and it works fine. Just attach the signal sender to one end and your prob should detect signal for quite a few feet away. I have used it in my house 100 feet away from the sender it worked fine.

Once you find the wire you can pull a new one to a more convenient location and just replace that small piece.

Marengo B49

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From: benetea...@googlegroups.com <benetea...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Geste <jim....@gmail.com>

Sent: Saturday, March 9, 2019 4:24:04 PM
To: Beneteau Owners
Subject: Re: {Beneteau Owners} Re: Bow light problem- HELP!

 

[DAVID FLETCHER]

I might be wrong however I am pretty sure that a tracer (voltage) pen will only work on AC with voltage over 48 +\~

Sent from my iPhone

[Mohammad Bayegan]

The signal box has it's own battery and all it does transmit signal that the prob that comes with it can detect.  They use this for  telephone line wiring , TV antenna, audio wiring or any other wire.

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From: benetea...@googlegroups.com <benetea...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of DAVID FLETCHER <davidcf...@rogers.com>
Sent: Saturday, March 9, 2019 5:07:52 PM
To: benetea...@googlegroups.com

[DAVID FLETCHER]

I want to  get one of those. Where do I buy one, it would be super handy!

Fletch

Sent from my iPhone

[Geste]

Fletch, Marratu,

I have an insulated, pencil-type AC-only detector that will find insulated live wires if the tip of the probe is close enough; I have never found a DC equivalent that will work on an energized line.  The 2-part tone generator toops assume that you are working on  a de-energized circuit. Old--fashioned basic telco tone generators are useful for finding a circuit on a block/panel in a phone closet, but they won't necessarily pick up a RF tone from a wire buried behind sheetrock or underground,  The $40 unit that I am ordering from NewEgg bills itself as an underground cable finder and should be good enough for the boat.  I hope.

I see plenty of more capable gizmos of this type but for much more $$$.  One caveat I see for the cheap ones is that unless you get some distance between the sender and receiver, you will always get a tone that doesn't necessarily indicate a wire,  I saw some that have a "null tone" feature (tone goes silent when over the wire) but those were a few more $$.

Spring project!

Jim

[Mohammad Bayegan]

Amazon has it under tone generator and tester.

Marengo B49

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From: benetea...@googlegroups.com <benetea...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Geste <jim....@gmail.com>

Sent: Saturday, March 9, 2019 10:29:15 PM