Vetus Bow Thruster Stuck on!!!!

[SailingYoungs]

Hi,

I have a vetus bow thruster on my boat, its about 7 years old. I'm having an intermittent problem when the thruster engages and gets stuck in the on position, and won't shut off until you switch off power using the emergency shut off switch. It only happens when charter quests are on the boat, not when I'm on it...

After the first time it happened, I took the solenoid to an electric shop and they told me to clean the connections. So, we did that, took it apart, sanded and cleaned the connections. I thought to replace the springs since that's what disengages the contacts, but I couldn't find the right sized springs anywhere.

It worked fine for a while, and then it happened again. Not under heavy use either. The guy just tapped it the first time and it got stuck, spinning him uncontrollably around the marina. After it ran for a while the motor was smoking pretty bad too, so one of the crew told the skipper there was a fire down below. Talk about freak out!

Could it be the springs? Could it be something with the control switches? Anyone have experience with this type of problem?

Todd

[ranger58sb]

Have you consulted with Vetus-Maxwell about it?

-Chris

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by SailingYoungs

After the first time it happened, I took the solenoid to an electric shop and they told me to clean the connections. So, we did that, took it apart, sanded and cleaned the connections. I thought to replace the springs since that's what disengages the contacts, but I couldn't find the right sized springs anywhere.

It worked fine for a while, and then it happened again. Not under heavy use either. The guy just tapped it the first time and it got stuck, spinning him uncontrollably around the marina. After it ran for a while the motor was smoking pretty bad too, so one of the crew told the skipper there was a fire down below. Talk about freak out!

It's not a complicated circuit.

I think it's time for a new solenoid not a partially repaired one.

[SailingYoungs]

It seems like my two options are to replace the solenoid or replace the control switch at the helm. I wonder if anyone else has had to replace either, and if one is more likely to go out compared to the other? New solenoids are extremely pricey.

[thinwater]

Normally I'm all about repairing and spreading dollars thin, but since the stuck thruster has excelent potencial to spin the boat into something expensive, I think a new switch and solenoid are the only sensible solution for an intermitant problem. If I had to chose one, the solenoid sounds probable.

Sorry.