ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

Joined
Dec 9, 2006
Messages
51
ok this may be simple but i want to understand something. if you hook a battery to the fuse block then you have pos and neg at fuse block right? heres the question most 12 volt items you mite want to install on a boat come with instructions showing you how to hook up directly to battery. do you just hook up to fuse block like you would battery? and is it safe to use those double prong things to add acc. thanks again "we shall bring this thing to life!"
here are some pics think ive got it figured out
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/alilditzie/P3070003.jpg

grounding plugs
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/alilditzie/P3070002.jpg

is doubling up like this ok?
http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/alilditzie/P3070001.jpg
 
Joined
Dec 9, 2006
Messages
51
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

what are the group of prongs in upper right corner i thoght they were ground? thanks
 

Dunaruna

Admiral
Joined
May 2, 2003
Messages
6,027
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

[colour=blue]
DANA said:
what are the group of prongs in upper right corner i thoght they were ground? thanks

Which one are you refering to?

There are many different types of fuse blocks, some of them have an area for ground bussing (a central point to connect all the grounds to). Only the positive side of the circuit needs to run through a fuse.

FYI, there is one (unusual) senario that requires a ground fuse but nobody here has ever mentioned it so I keep it to myself for fear of ridicule :$
 

FLOATNFUN

Recruit
Joined
Mar 5, 2007
Messages
2
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

DANA said:
ok this may be simple but i want to understand something. if you hook a battery to the fuse block then you have pos and neg at fuse block right? heres the question most 12 volt items you mite want to install on a boat come with instructions showing you how to hook up directly to battery. do you just hook up to fuse block like you would battery? and is it safe to use those double prong things to add acc. thanks again "we shall bring this thing to life!"
Think of a fuse panel as protection for the equiptment you are providing power to it will protect aginst power spikes and short circuits (ground to hot) you dont need a ground at the fuse block just the power in and power out through the fuse it will keep you in the safe in the long run!
 

FLOATNFUN

Recruit
Joined
Mar 5, 2007
Messages
2
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

Think of a fuse panel as protection for the equiptment you are providing power to the fuse will protect aginst short circuits (hot to ground) and power spikes (unusual with 12v) you dont need a ground at the fuse block just a hot or positive in on one side of the fuse out on the other this will protect the equipt. depth finder radio etc.
 

bruceb58

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 5, 2006
Messages
30,454
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

I am going to assume that the prongs you are talking about on the fuse panel are blades for blade connectors.

All fuse panels are different but some panels have one or two blades adjacent to the fuse. This is where you will attatch the positive wire to the device you are powering. The blades off in the corner are typically where all of the grounds connect.

Some fuse panels use screw posts for all connections. Since I don't see what you have YMMV.

Posting a picture of your fuse panel would help a lot.
 

drewpster

Commander
Joined
Oct 17, 2006
Messages
2,059
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

A fuse in a circuit provides protection from overloading in the circuit. The most basic scenario is this: A hot wire in a circuit is left to rub against something that is grounded. Grounded meaning anything connected to the ground side of a battery. When the hot wire rubs through and touches ground the circuit becomes overloaded and the fuse burns, or the breaker trips. This disconnects the hot wire and prevents the wire or the component it powers from overheating and causing a fire.
Fuses are most often placed in the positive wire. Most fuse panels are simply a central place to which all the hot wires are connected to individual fuses. Most panels will have one big hot wire that powers all the fuses. Then each fuse will have one smaller wire to each component.
So typically if you see a fuse it will connect to battery positive then to a single component.
The ground side normally has no fuse. In most boats I have seen there will be a "block" where a bunch of wires will connect to screws in a row. On this block there is normally one big ground wire connected to it, grounding all of the screws. Each wire connected to the screws are normally grounds for each component.
It is important to understand that you MUST verify which is ground and which is hot. A simple way to find out is to use a test light.
In my opinion it is best to connect a new component to the fuse panel or directly to the battery provided the component has an inline fuse in its hot wire. NEVER connect any component's hot wire without a fuse.
It is never a good idea to cut into an existing circuit unless the circuit is designed for it.

Summary: Fuses protect from overloads and fire.
Fuses are placed in the hot side. (battery
positive +)
Fuse panels are blocks of fuses where positive wires connect. (hots)
Boats normally use a separate ground block to connect all the ground wires to the battery.
Always verify which is hot and which is ground before connecting anything new.
New components should be connected to the fuse panel. Or the battery if there is an inline fuse.
NEVER go without a fuse.
 

byacey

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jul 20, 2005
Messages
443
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

I never saw a boat burn up from an electrical fire, but if it's anything like a volkswagen van I saw, it goes fast. I saw these guys pull into the parking lot of a coffe shop. The headlights were flickering and the motor didn't sound too healthy either. Three young guys jumped out and opened the engine access hood in the back,and there it was - the smell of burning insulation. Within 5 seconds there was now flames, and the young guys were even more frantic now. One of them found a fire extinguisher and doused the motor in white fog and CO2, but it wasn't enough. Then it really started to burn. This all happened within about a minute or so. Eventually the fire department showed up and hosed down the now 10 foot high flames leaping out of the engine compartment and the cab.Even the trendy curtains didn't escape the flames. Good thing it didn't reach the fuel tank before they put it out. Now imagine this happening on your boat in the middle of the water someplace. Now you have an idea of the importance of fuses and proper wiring.
 

gonefishie

Commander
Joined
Jul 28, 2004
Messages
2,624
Re: ok i flunked in electronics so whats the basic idea of a fuse panel?

The pic. labeled grounding block is correct, all your ground wires go there. It's not a good idea to double up like in the picture. Although it's ok to get by with that, but if the fuse blow it would take out two devices. If you have 2 devices that draw says 5A each so you run them through a 10A circuit. You really don't want anymore then 5A going to each of the device. Under normal operation, each of the device would only draw 5A but if something goes wrong, all 10A would go to the device and FUBAR. The idea of a elec. panel is to provide power distribution (neatly) and short circuit protection. If you don't, you would have a bunch of wires with in-line fuse attach to your battery. It would be a nightmare trying to connect all of them to the battery posts and figuring out which is which when something goes wrong.
 
Top