Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

[Big Bubba]

Hello everyone,
I just bought myself a 1991 Lowe 20 foot Pontoon Boat. I am getting it ready for the season and I am having a problem with the 2 front rectangular head lights that is between the green and red corner navigation front side lights. Basically the 2 clear lense headlights at the front of the pontoon boat mounted to the deck are not comming on at all. I have a few swictches and have tried them all and those 2 headlights do not come on at all. There is 1 swtch that has a red lense on it that is not lighting up when I depress the switch to either position. There is 3 wires going to that same switch and look like one of the red wires traces down to the front of the boat towards the lights but not sure which one it is leading to becuase the toons are in the way somewhat. Could the switch be the problem since it is not lighting up itself when it is depressed or do those lights only operate when the engine is running, which I haven't tried yet since I found the problem with those 2 headlights not working today. Let me know becuase I am baffled on this one and I have also checked all of the fuses too which are good and the bulbs in those 2 lights look like brand new also. Thanks Bob

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

Bulbs that look brand new can be bad and the fact that docking lights generally are nothing more than automotive driving or fog lights stuck on a pontoon means they probably got wet and have popped. Remove them and test them with an ohm meter or battery charger. If they are halogen, holding them in your hand will pop them as the oils from your hand will ruin them. The switch that has two positions is not for those lights. That switch controls the navigation lights (red/green) and the anchor light (white all around). You simply need to follow the wires backward from the light to the switch that operates them. If you have power at the switch but not after, its the switch. If you don't have power at the switch, you have a fuse or other wiring problem ahead of the switch. If you have power before and after the switch but not at the light (actually measured voltage at the light) then the light itself is bad. In other words, follow the juice until you lose it. That's where the problem is.

 

[Big Bubba]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

UPDATE to my problem. I did some extensive troubleshooting and found out that the 30 amp fuse was burned out. I intitially thought the fuse was good by eyeballing it but according to my meter today it was bad so I replaced it and the lights work. I did manage to mess up the left front light by trying to take the light bulb out which is made as one unit so Iam looking for a new light to replace the one I goofed up on today. I learned alot today on how to troubleshoot the problem. For now on I will do a continuity check on all the fuses even if they look good and don't look blown by the naked eye. Something learned today but the hard way. Thanks again, Bob

 

[jtexas]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

you probably know this, but just to be on the safe side -- those headlights are ok for docking, and maybe making your way through a wooded creek, but you can't legally use them for running lights.

 

[rickdb1boat]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

http://www.pontoonstuff.com/pontoon-boat/113-pontoon-boat-electrical-parts.asp

 

[JUSTINTIME]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

yep docking lights

 

[zibzer]

Re: Electrical light problem on Pontoon Boat.

heres another trick for you bubba when checking fuses.. if they look like they blew up (black all over and no sign of remaining filament) its usually a short (12v to ground).. if it looks new, and is still bad, its usually because of excesive current draw... cheers! glad you got it figured out!