Pontoon Wiring Guide

[pontoon puppy]

Good morning, I am new to the Iboats forum, and am enjoying being able to find everything I need. i have a 1993 Premier Majesty 24 foot pontoon. In the process of installing my new Hummingbird depth locator, I bumped some wires and they came disconnected. to make this long story a little shorter, i need help figuring out which wires go where. Ever since i bumped the wires, the battery goes dead after a day of not being used. I have disconnected the brown wires, I think they go to the aerator, and the battery seems to hold a charge. Also do the gauge lights and interior lights do not work anymore. I don't really care about the aerator, but I would like the lights to work. Can anyone help me out with how these should be wired. I read somewhere that the gauge lights need to be connected to the Nav lights. Do I need a diode, can I run them to go on when I turn on the Nav lights, without a separate switch for the lights. HELP, please.

 

[MinUph]

Re: Pontoon Wiring Guide

I doubt very much you will be able to find a useable wiring diagram for your boat. But lets leook at it piece by piece.
The Aerator would be connected to a switch so it will not run all the time and wear down the battery. It may be a switch that says on/off/auto. Or just on/off. This switch is for power only. The other aerator wire is ground.
The gauge lights will be the same idea on wire will power them all. You may need a tester for this and connect one test lead to ground and find a wire that supplies power with the other test lead. This will only have power with the ignition key in the run position.
The interior lights will also be on a switch. Find the loose wire and connect it to the switch. You can trace all these wires back to their original accessory (light, aerator,etc.)
When all is said and done be careful around your wiring next time :facepalm:

 

[EricJRW]

Re: Pontoon Wiring Guide

I can totally relate (see sig... also a '93 boat). I always take a bunch of pictures before I touch anything. That being said, boat wiring is pretty simple, once you get the hang of it. There's a book out there (Amazon) just on boat wiring. I redid most of my connections, as my fuse block was shot. I'm not quite done, but close. I would recommend digging in an making your own wiring diagram. Once you know the color codes, tracing things is not bad. Most likely it's just a bunch of bad, corroded, poorly crimped, etc. connections. Cut all the old connections off and put new lugs on. It's definitely worth the effort. It will take a good part of the day, but you'll feel better knowing everything is snug, clean, and tight.

Eric.

PS. Here's a before and after picture of my work. The right-most picture is my next job.