Electrical Issues

I purchased my 1989 24' Grumman pontoon on July 21. The first weekend we had it out it was hard to get it started after we anchored it. We also had issues with the stereo. We'd have the radio on and about 5 minutes later the stereo would start automatically scanning channels. It even did this when I was playing music from a flash drive I had plugged in to the usb port.
Then this past weekend we took it out again. We unloaded it from the trailer and went to start it and it wouldn't start. It finally ended up draining the battery. There was a gentleman on shore that offered us to use his battery pack. So we did. It still wouldn't start and eventually drained the battery pack. The guy said we probably needed a new battery. So off to Fleet Farm I went. I got back and we put the new battery in. It started up right away. We had no problems starting it after we anchored it or beached it either. But...now none of the gauges work. Nothing. The previous weekend all the gauges worked except for the speedometer. This weekend, nothing. I should have noticed something was wrong when I went to fill up the gas tank. I turned the key on and the gauge didn't move after I had put the gas in. I just thought maybe the engine needed to be started or something but nope. After the new battery nothing works.
Any ideas??? A friend of mine had said there must be a charge issue while the engine isn't running and something is draining it. He said he would try and find all the items that needed to be grounded to make sure nothing was causing an issue that way. Also....could there be a fuse problem?? What about the stereo??
P.S. I called the previous owner and he said that he just bought the battery a year ago and it should be fine. He also said that he would charge the battery every 2-3 times he had the pontoon out. I feel that if the battery is good, then why have to charge it every 2-3 outtings?

Re: Electrical Issues

As far as your guages not working with the new battery I would look for a grounding issue, did you hook all the ground wires back up? Is the radio a marine radio? If not it may be having corrosion problems.

Re: Electrical Issues

What about fuse's any fuse's in line on any wires???

Re: Electrical Issues

It sure would point to a bad connection possibly on the main like to the console. either the ground or positive lead. I think if it was a fuse it would have been an on or off thing. Not work one trip and not the next and then work again.

Re: Electrical Issues

MinUph said:

It sure would point to a bad connection possibly on the main like to the console. either the ground or positive lead. I think if it was a fuse it would have been an on or off thing. Not work one trip and not the next and then work again.
I am having a related issue. I have a bad connection someplace under my console. I need to look over everything. Some times everything works and sometimes some gauges don't and some do. Been considering replacing the fuse panel. Its a 1999 vintage.

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This is how hijacking someones thread gets things off track. Please start your own thread.

Re: Electrical Issues

Running down a battery trying to start an engine does not mean the battery is bad and that you need a new one. It means something is wrong with your engine starting procedure or the engine itself. But since we have no idea what engine you have or what your starting procedure is lets start with that.

Gauges are not powered from the the "Boat" electrical system. They are powered from the "Engine" electrical system (the "A" terminal on the ignition switch to be exact). So start by making sure the first gauge in the string has +12 volts and ground when the key is in the RUN position. Gauge wiring is daisy chained from one gauige to the next so if one gauge looses power or ground, all gauges after that one will die. Since all of yours are dead, the first gauge (usually closest to the ignition switch has lost power or ground. That would typically be a purple wire for +12 volts or black for ground.

If your panel has a voltmeter -- what does it read with the engine running at 1500 - 2000 rpm (after you get them working of course). If the gauge doesnm't read higher than 13 volts the charging system is not working.

Re: Electrical Issues

Ease up, Silvertip. I don't think MinUph was necessarily looking to hijack a thread, rather explaining that he has a related issue... In fact, the response you posted to the OP would work for his situation as well. The two issues ARE very similar. Great advice, either way.

In addition to what Silvertip stated, often times if you don't have a meter to measure voltage on your dash panel, you may have one on your depth finder.

Re: Electrical Issues

I changed the rectifier on my motor and the motor still isn't charging when the voltage is tested at the battery. So I know that from sitting and from cranking to start that I need to charge the battery with the battery charger regularly. That might be what the P.O. meant by that. When I get time I hope to get the charging system on the motor working properly. If you find what the problem was could you post the answer that is how we learn what to watch out for.

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The pontoon has a 90hp Evinrude. My starting procedure is to put the idler arm up slightly then choke it (pushing in the key while turning) and then turn the key all the way to start. When we first launch it, it takes a few trys to get the motor to keep running. I have no clue when it comes to electrical parts on a boat. I might just have to break down and take it to a mechanic. :-(

Silvertip said:

Running down a battery trying to start an engine does not mean the battery is bad and that you need a new one. It means something is wrong with your engine starting procedure or the engine itself. But since we have no idea what engine you have or what your starting procedure is lets start with that.

Gauges are not powered from the the "Boat" electrical system. They are powered from the "Engine" electrical system (the "A" terminal on the ignition switch to be exact). So start by making sure the first gauge in the string has +12 volts and ground when the key is in the RUN position. Gauge wiring is daisy chained from one gauige to the next so if one gauge looses power or ground, all gauges after that one will die. Since all of yours are dead, the first gauge (usually closest to the ignition switch has lost power or ground. That would typically be a purple wire for +12 volts or black for ground.

If your panel has a voltmeter -- what does it read with the engine running at 1500 - 2000 rpm (after you get them working of course). If the gauge doesnm't read higher than 13 volts the charging system is not working.

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Re: Electrical Issues

cin ,,,, take a bit of time and polish up the battery terminals and the connectors and if you dont have a disconnect switch unhook the battery after use. and once warmed up a motor should start by just turning the key.

Re: Electrical Issues

newbie4life said:

Ease up, Silvertip. I don't think MinUph was necessarily looking to hijack a thread, rather explaining that he has a related issue... In fact, the response you posted to the OP would work for his situation as well. The two issues ARE very similar. Great advice, either way.

In addition to what Silvertip stated, often times if you don't have a meter to measure voltage on your dash panel, you may have one on your depth finder.

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Most people don't "intend" to hijack a thread but they do because they generally have nothing to add to the OP's situation and it detracts from trying to stay on point. Once a thread starts, it should not be necessary to continually go back to the beginning the re-read everything. Hijacks, intentional or not, make that necessary. And please understand that I was not scolding. I made a simple request and even said "please". These forums are very different than the conversational forums some folks participate in as the topic is general in nature. Here, we are troubleshooting a specific issue. If someone says "I had the same exact problem and here is what I found" -- that is a perfectly acceptable response as it relates directly to the issue and may solve the OP's problem. If someone says, I have a similar problem but this and this happens, that is not contributing to the issue, it is confusing it.

Re: Electrical Issues

Cin, some good advice here. Always best to start with the easy stuff yourself and then take it to a pro before you pound yourself. Old boats have problems. You got this boat at a great price, and it is worthless to you if it doesn't work. If it were me, I would start with tracing all the wiring down and make sure all connections look sound and no wires are frayed. Never hurts to make sure the battery terminals are clean either. Takes a few minutes with a proper brush to remove all the corrosion. I can't tell you how many times I have helped someone with a problem with this. Terminal corrosion can cause problems with idle, starting issues, and all sorts of goofy things.

Just a thought, but I generally don't replace a battery w/o first having it load tested. At least that way, you know. Putting a new battery into a bad electrical situation is only a fix for a very short time. I have never, ever, had to charge my battery between uses unless someone left power on. I would tend to agree that there is an electrical issue that might be hard to chase down.

Have you pulled the spark plugs and also checked you fuel system too? You might have more than one issue of course.

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Just a thought about the wiring issues. Not familiar with Grumman toons, but in my case I have flat topped u-toons and the space between the toons and the deck make a perfect nesting place for critters. I found one nestled among the wiring and cables on my recent purchase. Luckily no damage done. But we all know how much mice and squirrels LOVE wiring!

Re: Electrical Issues

Thank you all for the good advice. I have no clue on how to check the electrial issue but I have a few neighbors who are going to look at this for me. I have a new battery so the terminals are clean. The radio still starts scanning channels after it's played for a bit. It is not a marine battery so there could be some corrosion or it may need a new harness. (My daughter and her fiance looked at it briefly and that's what they think it is)
We took the pontoon out yesterday and it was hard to start it again. It has a brand new battery with only 1 use on it so I have no clue why this motor is so hard to start.
I live in Hudson, WI so if any of you with experience with these types of issues would care to check these things out for me..I'd be up for what you'd need for your time, within reason.