Horn is driving me insane

[Mmenhart]

So I am redoing my boat. I am a aircraft technician so when I get done fixing a plane oil don’t want to turn wrenches at home too. Over the years I have paid people to basically screw my boat up instead of fix it. I am sure my issue is from someone I paid. The reason I’m sure is the most recent thing I had done was the ignition switch. Well when I got it back it kept flooding out. While when I took it back they told me it was my power pack and want 1500 to fix it. Not willing to just hand over that kind of money with out a secon opinion, my opinion. What I found was the crossed a wire from my primer solenoid to the power pack and positive wire from power pack to the primer. This made my primer stuck open and was dumping filial to the buttery flies, also melted the diaphragm and took out the power pack. The swamped the ground and hot wires a directly shorted it out.

Now my horn doesn’t work. Tested on a battery and it’s dead. Bought a new one installed it and still doesn’t work. Replaced the switch still no go, tested the switch did not have voltage. Found that some put the hot on the interior light switch. After switching the wire found 12 volts to the switch and when I press the switch I have continuity. When I hook the horn press the button it kills everything, radio, fish finder, lights, and radio. The horn makes a noise but not a horn. It just pulls the solenoid closed and that’s it. So I removed the switch and horn connected with jumpers to a battery. The second I hook the last wire up to the switch the horn sounds. If you push the button it stops the sound. Also seems to be shorted since the wired burned me lol. Why would the switch be open when not pressed then closes when pressed with a meter but be the opposite and shorted when wired in series to a battery. Also why would it kill everything running on the boat when installed. Seems like everything is wired to the horn and just has a huge draw. The ground seems to be fine also. If needed I can take a video. Please help. I’m losing my mind with this one. Thanks in advance

 

[ahicks]

Geez, it would seem to me like an aircraft technician would have checked voltage to his switch prior to replacing a horn, no?

There is NO difference in the logic required to troubleshoot when servicing a boat OR an airplane......

My bet is you WILL learn (get frustrated enough) to do your own work on your boat sooner or later. Been there....

 

[Mmenhart]

Geez, it would seem to me like an aircraft technician would have checked voltage to his switch prior to replacing a horn, no?

There is NO difference in the logic required to troubleshoot when servicing a boat OR an airplane......

My bet is you WILL learn (get frustrated enough) to do your own work on your boat sooner or later. Been there....

I had the horn out and before installing it tested on a battery is why I didn’t check voltage first. I have definitely learned to do my own work it just got about ten grand and had to fix everything I took it in for and even buy parts that they broke trying to fix the original issue. The biggest one was having the lower floor replaced. They quoted 1700 when they were done they said 3400. I asked them don’t you think you should have let me know. His reply was I didn’t think you would care you wanted the floor. Even worse they put the boards down then one piece of carpet over everything. So now the edges are fraying and not even a year old. It gets better. They didn’t put the new fuel sender in that I ordered through them and want to charge me to pull the floor back up and yes you guessed it the carpet will need replaced and they want me to pay for that too. I re did the carpet took about a day. Trying to figure out how they went over 1700. I also did the rest of the floor, helm, and bait wells. Took me by myself 4 days to do it all and I had to cut the v. They had one big rectangle.

 

[Mmenhart]

Geez, it would seem to me like an aircraft technician would have checked voltage to his switch prior to replacing a horn, no?

There is NO difference in the logic required to troubleshoot when servicing a boat OR an airplane......

My bet is you WILL learn (get frustrated enough) to do your own work on your boat sooner or later. Been there....

I do have voltage there. But when I press the horn button the horn sounds for a second but kills everything. Like it is drawing all the power from everything else. I am thinking bad ground so it’s stealing everything else’s ground, however it has continuity. As I’m typing this I’m thinking just cause the meter rings it could have continuity but be a high resistance.

 

[briangcc]

Not trying to be rude but you might get a better response if we knew what boat you were working on.....

Year
Make
Model
Length
Power - outboard, inboard, i/o

From the description and not knowing precisely what was done, my starting point would be breaking out a notebook and tracing wires to see where they go & what they do. If this is an older boat then that's your wiring diagram. And that should lead you on the path as to what exactly is wrong as more than likely you will find a few shade-tree "fixes" that should not have been made in the first place.

 

[ahicks]

It sounds like you know how to get through this. I must have misunderstood....

"Now my horn doesn’t work. Tested on a battery and it’s dead. Bought a new one installed it and still doesn’t work."

You clearly know how. It's far more likely this is about the patience that it takes to get the job done correctly. Just like you don't take short cuts working on a plane, the same applies to your boat. -Al

 

[Mmenhart]

Not trying to be rude but you might get a better response if we knew what boat you were working on.....

Year
Make
Model
Length
Power - outboard, inboard, i/o

From the description and not knowing precisely what was done, my starting point would be breaking out a notebook and tracing wires to see where they go & what they do. If this is an older boat then that's your wiring diagram. And that should lead you on the path as to what exactly is wrong as more than likely you will find a few shade-tree "fixes" that should not have been made in the first place.

I left the boat info out because it’s an electrical issue. I know when I work a problem if I know the plane I normally automatically go for something that I find wrong a lot. If I work the same problem on a different plane it is never the same issue. So basically I didn’t want tunnel vision on a specific issue that peopl might know of. If you think it will help it is a 1999 Lund Pro-V Magnum SE. has a 225 Johnson ocean pro and a 9.9 kicker to match. I have recently has a new trolling motor and battery charger put on. Only owner and have never had any problems until recently. The ground on my ignition switch went bad. I took it in to have it replaced and while it was there had a fish finder installed. That’s when I started having all kinds of electrical problems. I have pretty much figured it out except this horn. What would take power from everything and make the horn pretty much just click. Then even more odd why does the switch work properly with a meter. It is open then you push it and it closes. But when bench testing with a separate battery the switch is working backwards. With a meter it is a normally open switch but on the bench it is normally closed and it even melted the switch.

 

[Mmenhart]

It sounds like you know how to get through this. I must have misunderstood....

"Now my horn doesn’t work. Tested on a battery and it’s dead. Bought a new one installed it and still doesn’t work."

You clearly know how. It's far more likely this is about the patience that it takes to get the job done correctly. Just like you don't take short cuts working on a plane, the same applies to your boat. -Al

I work a lot of electrical issues and with a wire print can see how it works and what could be causing the issue. I don’t have a print and have never ran into an issue like this. The only thing that makes sense is a bad ground or the horn switch is powering everything which is causing a huge load and the battery can’t support it. If I have time I will draw a print of where the ground and power are coming from I am to the point that I’m over thinking it.