Those of you that know me well are aware of my biggest flaw; I'm great at starting and planning projects, terrible at finishing them. In my own defense, it's not my fault winter came early! Nobody can remember the last time we got snow in December. Ugh. In any case, come it has, so the hull work has to go on hold. It's a shame, too; at last check I had about an hour of sanding left and I was ready to prime the hull sides!

So I've pulled out the electrical plan I made a few months ago and given it a once-over. The attached photo gives you a pretty good idea of where the boat sits electrically; in the pits. The picture is of the location where the breaker panel USED to be. I had to rip that out this past summer while I was tracking down and fixing leaks. A quick check of the wiring reveals an electrical system that is far from current, to say nothing of ABYC standards. Some notable issues that need to be corrected:

1. As noted in the survey I had done in IL, the main elec. cutout switch is out of sight and difficult to reach.
2. Old wiring that doesn't go anywhere anymore needs to be removed
3. Breaker panel next to companionway. Really? I'm not entirely comfortable with that. I know, it was just fine for years. I need a bigger panel anyway, it's getting moved.
4. The AC system is limited to shore power use only.
5. One house battery and one starting battery. Uh, yea.
6. Modern infrastructure components such as a battery charger, inverter, and galvanic isolation are non-existent.

So these are the major issues. Little things such as modern conveniences, modern lighting, the non-functional mast lighting, will be addressed as I go along.

So my plan looks something like this;

1. ID and label all wiring.
2. Remove unused wiring, replace that which needs to be
3. Install conduit (PVC) and separate dc / ac ground busses
4. Design and install a centrally-located electrical board to hold all major components, i.e. battery isolation xfmr, battery charger, inverter, etc.
5. Design and install a new breaker panel in a more convenient location
6. Modernize as I go. The traditional 1-BOTH-2-OFF battery switch, for example, will be replaced by a series regulator and 1-2-OFF switch; an isolation xfmr will be installed between the shore power connection and battery charger for the ultimate in galvanic protection. The AC system will be inverter-based with an AC Source switch for dockside use.

That should get the electrical infrastructure up to par. Lighting and other ancillary equipment will come as the winter progresses, right about now I'm concerned with getting the infrastructure in. Once that's done I'll be able to plug in light and, more importantly, heat to get me through the winter!

Now where'd I put those dikes...?