AC power stopped working

[zachduckworth]

Hi,

I took my Islander Bahama 30 over to Catalina this weekend and had a great time. On the way out I saw that the AC power stopped working. By “AC power” I mean that the monitor that displays the polarity on my switch board went dark, the AC outlets stopped working, and (most importantly) the battery charger doesn’t work. There’s a main AC switch but it’s basically dead. The 12V system is fine.

I have no idea what could have happened; nothing weird or obvious happened. I did wash the boat just before taking off. But I unplugged from shore power before washing. So I’m at a loss. Any ideas what I should troubleshoot first? Thanks!

[ItDepends]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

Hi,

...On the way out I saw that the AC power stopped working. By “AC power” I mean that the monitor that displays the polarity on my switch board went dark, the AC outlets stopped working, and (most importantly) the battery charger doesn’t work. There’s a main AC switch but it’s basically dead. The 12V system is fine.

You need to be a little clearer here...

It sounds like you are saying you unplugged from the dock and went sailing and you are worried that AC power has disappeared? Have I got that right?

[smac999]

Your ac comes from the dock…. So as you sailed away. You have no longer have ac. Go back to the dock and plug in.

[ItDepends]

Originally Posted by smac999

Your ac comes from the dock…. So as you sailed away. You have no longer have ac. Go back to the dock and plug in.

Say it ain't so...

[zachduckworth]

To be more clear-
I came back and hooked up to shore power and no AC power from the shore connection.
I have an inverter that allows me to run my AC equipment off the batteries. For example the AC outlets.
Everything on the AC system is dead. 12V is working fine.

[ItDepends]

That could be about a hundred different things…

With AC power if you have no idea where to start, let your fingers do the walking, and call an electrician.

[zachduckworth]

Originally Posted by ItDepends

That could be about a hundred different things…

With AC power if you have no idea where to start, let your fingers do the walking, and call an electrician.

Yes, I agree. If it was DC I’d try messing around with it but AC ups the ante a bit.
But before I drop real money I wanted to see if there is a troubleshooting checklist

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

Yes, I agree. If it was DC I’d try messing around with it but AC ups the ante a bit.
But before I drop real money I wanted to see if there is a troubleshooting checklist

Why don't you look at some of the video clips?

https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...roubleshooting

[goboatingnow]

Get a good multimeter or simple phase tester and probe the AC circuits.

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

Get a good multimeter or simple phase tester and probe the AC circuits.

I don't know that you need a "good" multi-meter? I've just bought one for $13 on eBay that would do the job.

I'd hesitate to suggest someone use a multi-meter if they didn't know what they were doing

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

To be more clear-
I came back and hooked up to shore power and no AC power from the shore connection.
I have an inverter that allows me to run my AC equipment off the batteries. For example the AC outlets.
Everything on the AC system is dead. 12V is working fine.

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

Yes, I agree. If it was DC I’d try messing around with it but AC ups the ante a bit.
But before I drop real money I wanted to see if there is a troubleshooting checklist

Have you already checked all the easy stuff?

Breaker on at the dock pedestal?

Maine breaker on at the boat inlet?

Shore power breaker on at the AC distribution panel?

Breaker on at the inverter?

-Chris

[capt jgw]

AYBC requires a breaker within a couple feet of wire from the power inlet. Sometimes they're well hidden. So look for that, it may be tripped.

[zachduckworth]

Update -
Went to slip, breaker was flipped off. I turned it back on and AC works again. I will need to investigate the inverter issue further to see why I wasn’t getting anything when not on shore power.

[zachduckworth]

The end of the story is so funny that I hesitate to share it.
Ok.
The boat doesn’t have an inverter. It has a charger. No AC power while underway. I learned this from the PO today.
So… lessons learned!

[coopec43]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

The end of the story is so funny that I hesitate to share it.
Ok.
The boat doesn’t have an inverter. It has a charger. No AC power while underway. I learned this from the PO today.
So… lessons learned!

I can't see the funny side. (Maybe quite serious though )