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a reminder to not be a cheapskate

Discussion in 'Technical Discussion' started by BoulderGT3, Jun 7, 2019.

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  1. BoulderGT3, Jun 7, 2019
    #1
    BoulderGT3

    BoulderGT3 Senior Member

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    I have really good relationships with the guys that haul the boat out, the tech I use for the MAN's, A/C guy and so on. I feel lucky to live in FTL where you really can find good people
    I'm in the Exumas and a 50A connector hits the water Saturday and fries. The guy next to me has a connector but I'm not comfortable with the 3 to 4 wire conversion. I don't want to screw up the dock power or the boat so the gen is on. Not a big deal.
    I've taken my boats to Treichel Marine for years as they do warranty stuff on vikings so they know them well. I call at 8am Monday which is a terrible time for them. They drop everything and talk me through backtracking the circuits with a DVM to confirm the wiring is right.
    I always feel like a pay a slight premium there but I has a prop speed issue and they redid it a year later at no charge. On this issue, it was no questions asked, just how do they get me off the genset. It's starting to feel like it's a great deal. I could say the same for the MAN guy I use, the AC guy and one and on.

    Not being preachy at all but I was reminded that it's nice to have good working relationships based on something other than trying to get the lowest price.
  2. Pascal, Jun 7, 2019
    #2
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    How does a shorepower plug falls in the water and fries? I ve never dropped one but I would think that if you let it dry, spray it with anti corrosion spray it will be fine
  3. captholli, Jun 8, 2019
    #3
    captholli

    captholli Senior Member

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    Ti
    THWN tinned copper wire will wick water just as well as cotton. One u drop a plug in the drink its always best to cut the shore cord back a couple of feet and if possible re-new the plug. If your in a remote local than soak the plug in a bucket of fresh water for a few hours disassembled and then bake the plug at the lowest heat setting in an oven for an hour or two before re-attachment.
  4. BoulderGT3, Jun 8, 2019
    #4
    BoulderGT3

    BoulderGT3 Senior Member

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    The connector was plugged into a shore power extension that was on when it went in.
    I've never had a connector go in before but rinsing with freshwater and lots of WD40 and contact cleaner is the approach. In this case, the connector was ruined.
    The wires wick a lot of water.
  5. Pascal, Jun 8, 2019
    #5
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    That s why you ALWAYS turn off the breaker before touching any shore power plug. I am always amazed at the number of breakers i find ON when going into a transient slip along with the number of empty slips I see with a shore power cord left behind and a little LED proudly shining on the plug
  6. BoulderGT3, Jun 8, 2019
    #6
    BoulderGT3

    BoulderGT3 Senior Member

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    Of course but you do see them hot all the time laying on the dock.

    In my case, I had a 50’ 50A extension from the dock post through my hosel and then connected to my shore power cord on the boat. Someone pulled the extension from the dock side which pulled the connection with the boat shore power cord through the hosel and into the water. Poof.
  7. BoulderGT3, Jun 8, 2019
    #7
    BoulderGT3

    BoulderGT3 Senior Member

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    Should say hawse pipe above.
  8. AnotherKen, Jun 17, 2019
    #8
    AnotherKen

    AnotherKen Member

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    Modern bathrooms have electric sockets that are protected from shorts, so I suspect it would be easy to find a circuit to protect the plug.
  9. Capt J, Jun 18, 2019
    #9
    Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    They do have a circuit breaker. Problem is, once the plug is submerged in saltwater, it's impossible to get all of the salt out of it, so when you use it again, it's compromised.
  10. AnotherKen, Jun 18, 2019
    #10
    AnotherKen

    AnotherKen Member

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    Oh, I see. In that case you might try applying a little chlorine to the salt, chlorine and salt bind together very easily. This will essentially create a basic form of table salt out of the sea salt, at that point you could probably rinse it clean with fresh water. I am not saying this is guaranteed to work, but it just might. Just make sure you have a good form of protection against fumes, like a simple nose plug and scuba gear, and goggles. Chlorine in it's gaseous form is not something you want to inhale.

    Another, maybe safer approach would be to put a combination of baking soda (the more active the better) and just enough fresh water to make a paste. Spread the past over the affected surfaces, leave it for 10 minutes or more then scrub with a stiff brush and fresh water.
  11. Pascal, Jun 18, 2019
    #11
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Depends on the plug. Some are molded on the cable and can’t be removed.

    With a removable plug, you can take it apart, rinse every piece, lube, Cut the end of the cord and reinstall

    No need to use some odd chemical concoction
  12. AnotherKen, Jun 18, 2019
    #12
    AnotherKen

    AnotherKen Member

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    Yeah, I was thinking of molded because they would be hard to easily clean, I would probably use a popsicle stick to spread the paste or dip the plug in a jar of chlorine bleach or something. I hope people would be careful about using lube in a plug, get that wrong and you get a fire the next time you plug-in.
  13. captholli, Jun 18, 2019
    #13
    captholli

    captholli Senior Member

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    Dielectric paste or gel would be your friend as far as lube is concerned. Thermal imaging of power posts with well worn female pins & shore cables plugged in show tremendous advantages of dielectric in before and after imaging. Dielectric paste should be in every yachtsman's spares cabinet for everything from DC bilge pump connections to main switchboard circuit breaker lug terminations.
  14. AnotherKen, Jun 18, 2019
    #14
    AnotherKen

    AnotherKen Member

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    Thanks for the info, that may be what they meant by lube, to me I thought it was something more flammable like a petroleum based oil or grease.
  15. Pascal, Jun 18, 2019
    #15
    Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    Dielectric grease is indeed what I meant by lube. Always have some onboard
  16. C team, Jun 19, 2019
    #16
    C team

    C team Senior Member

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    What Pascal said. I always keep Dielectric grease onboard and use it religiously.