Re: Fuse box question
Unless wiring changes have been made or other accessories added, whatever the box is labeled with is the fuse it should contain. However, fuses protect the wiring to the devices that circuit feeds, not the devices themselves. Think about it. If a fuse blows, it is either due to a short in the wiring or the device itself has begun to draw current than the fuse can handle. If the latter is the case, the device is generally toast. However, a circuit that can handle 15 amps of current safely but is feeding only a very low current device like a basic stereo, there would be no need to have a 15 amp fuse but there would also be no harm in using a 15 amp fuse. On the other hand if a circuit has wire that can safely handle 15 amps is used to feed a high power amplifier, then that circuit would be greatly overloaded regardless what size fuse was used and the wire would get hot, melt the insulation and possibly start a fire long before the fuse actually blew. Clear as mud? Best we can do since we have no idea what gauge wire each circuit on the boat is wired with. Rule of thumb is to never insert a fuse greater than the capacity of the wire. Refer to "ampacity charts" to determine current ratings for wire size and wire lengths.
