Extending power lines on GPS unit

[mpdive]

Hello again to all. Thanks to all that helped explain the GPS maps on my earlier post. I put the unit in today and am going to go directly to the battery since it's the only place to pull a decent ground. My question is this....The wires off the unit are an extremely small gauge and I was curious if using bell wire used for garage door sensors would work for extending the leads. I have no problem heading to "Home Desperate" for supplies but it just seemed that the bell wire was the same gauge. Just a thought. If anyone has added on to their power leads and has suggestions it would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance for all the kind help.
Mike

 

[KD4UPL]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

I would not use that wire. It's too small and not rated for the use. I'm sure a GPS doesn't pull much current but I would run at least a #16 AWG. Fuse it with a 10 amp fuse. I doubt that Home Depot has any marine rated wire. House wire will work but the insulation isn't rated for use on a boat and the wire isn't really designed for the use. If you can't get marine wire at least use automotive wire from an auto parts store.

 

[jlinder]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

Are the wires you are planning to use stranded or solid? I would think the garage door sensor wires might very well be solid.

As for gauge they don't draw that much, and you can probably get away with a light gauge, but why? Assuming this is not a monster GPS, but some small unit I would feel comfortable with 18 AWG and fuse for about 5Amp. Try looking at the specs to see how much it draws before you settle on a gauge.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

You need stranded conductor wire also not solid, most house wiring is solid which makes it very undesirable in mobile applications

 

[Boatist]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

Without knowing what kind of unit you have hard to answer.
First if it is a small hand held unit some run off of 3 volts not 12 volts. Lowrance IFinder H2O C is an example, hooked to 12 volts will blow it up.

Is this GPS unit a combo unit with a fish finder?

I am not a big fan of running everything all the way back to the battery. Over time you end up with a wireing nightmare.
Usually better to run a wire pair big enough to support all your gear to a fuse block under your dash. Then fuse each device correctly. The power wire should also be fused near the battery.
Boats shake and rock and roll so stranded wire is a must.

I like to use marine wire pair with and outer cover of the proper size to the fuse block.
I will admit on my 1967 small boat I used a 12-3 extension cord and to this day it is working good. It was cheap and had a good external cover. Used the Black wire for +12 volts and the white and green for ground.

 

[mpdive]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

I would not use that wire. It's too small and not rated for the use. I'm sure a GPS doesn't pull much current but I would run at least a #16 AWG. Fuse it with a 10 amp fuse. I doubt that Home Depot has any marine rated wire. House wire will work but the insulation isn't rated for use on a boat and the wire isn't really designed for the use. If you can't get marine wire at least use automotive wire from an auto parts store.

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply. It is a Eagle Fishelite 480 fishfinder GPS combo. It has a molded 3 amp fuseholder to be wired inline of the positive lead. I guess running a larger gauge wire wont hurt anything and would be easier to splice anyhow. The leads from the unit are so small in diameter and appear to be 26 guage or something around there. I will definately do direct solder with all connections. I may just run the negative back to the battery and utilize the hot buss at the fuse block with the 3 amp fuse inline. Saves me running the hot back to the battery too and avoiding the spaghetti mess. Thanks for the advice. I will head to the store......
Mike
19' Sringray

 

[Fireman431]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

If you are going to run additional wire, I second the idea of running a quality 8-10 gauge power and ground to BUS bars under the dash. It gives you solid power and ground points for other applications and stops the long, unnecessary wire runs to the battery.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

You indicate that you have a +12 volt buss at the helm now. So where are all the other accessories grounded? Although you can wire this any way you like, it seems to me that some wiring upgrades may be needed on your boat. Bell wire is definitely out of the question. It is neither flexible enough for marine use nor does it have proper insulation. Stranded 16 AWG is acceptable and if you do wire to the battery, that run of wire needs a fuse within six inches of the battery to protect the wires, not the device. If it blows a fuse it is toast anyway.

 

[mpdive]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

You indicate that you have a +12 volt buss at the helm now. So where are all the other accessories grounded? Although you can wire this any way you like, it seems to me that some wiring upgrades may be needed on your boat. Bell wire is definitely out of the question. It is neither flexible enough for marine use nor does it have proper insulation. Stranded 16 AWG is acceptable and if you do wire to the battery, that run of wire needs a fuse within six inches of the battery to protect the wires, not the device. If it blows a fuse it is toast anyway.

Thanks for the reply. I had a power and grounding buss under the dash. I was just curious why Eagle would want a direct power like that. I'm sure it has to do with electrical interference. I went ahead and connected to the underdash power busses without having to spice anything. Less connections to worry about. Now the hard part...Learning how to use the thing! Thanks for taking the time to reply and the great advice. Everyones input is greatly appreciated!
Mike in SC
2005 Stingray 185

 

[Fireman431]

Re: Extending power lines on GPS unit

There are a lot of sensitive electronic that like direct wiring due to the spikes in power some may see from haphazard wiring. I had a Magellan GPS/chartplotter that used to shut off every time I would start the O/B. After moving the 12v+ connection to a dedicated buss bar, the problem stopped. The way I see it, the install instructions are probably written that way (direct wiring) to avoid unnessary problems and unwarranted returns.