R1Guy,
Our boat is pretty much wired per the reference Gord provided and it works well. We also have the option of using the 3 independently controlled air conditioners to heat the boat [and dehumidify by running A/C] when at the
dock.
Here are a few additional considerations for you to ponder since you will be needing to upgrade wiring, shorepower cord and inlet[s], etc. [These were all included in our AC
electrical rewire
project years ago.]
1) Shorepower inlet considerations: [3]
~ I strongly recommend you install
SmartPlug inlet[s] on your boat. [Their shorepower cords are top quality as well...] It will pay for itself in time and $ saved not having to replace the 1939 design still in use in the US today. [
Ask me how I know...] [Or hard wire the 50A cord to the boat, storing the cord in a lazarette...]
Of course, you are stuck with the old twist-lock
plug design on the
dock side of things here in the US...
~ Improving accommodation with a 50A cord [i.e., 4 wire 6 AWG]: It is a monster to handle- especially in cold
weather. Therefore we have shorepower inlets on both port and starboard so we can choose the most convenient one [typically opposite our desired walking route]. This requires a seperate selector switch [e.g., A-B-Off; Our two inlets are wired using circuit breakers with mechanical lockouts which allow only one to be on at a time...] This allows you to choose which infeed is connected, or have both off. [i.e., the unused infeed outlet is isolated so no one could be shocked by touching the exposed terminals...]
~ We chose to keep our 30A cord[s] [unless you hardwire the 50A cord to the boat...]: We use ours [for handling convenience when traveling in warmer weather] when we don't need 50A of AC
power. [e.g., no heaters, but using the
battery charger and
water heater...] To accommodate this I installed a 50A SmartPlug on the end of the 30A cord [i.e., 3 wire, 10AWG] so it would
plug into the boat [instead of making a 30-50A adapter]. Since the 50A inlet on the boat has 2 hot 110V legs, I also jumped the one hot wire in the 30A cord to the 2nd hot leg of the SmartPlug [inside the SmartPlug on the 30A cord.] In this way, both legs are hot [so everything in your AC panel works] even though you are limited to 30 Amps of 110V AC... The
trade off is you are reliant on the 30A circuitbreaker on the shorepower pedistal since your boat will have 50A breakers... We move around a lot, and are willing to use it this way [and we haven't had any problems.] Others may prefer to only use their 50A cord.
2)
Inverter: Think about connecting it as another selectable AC
power source [e.g.,
generator, shorepower, inverter] INSTEAD of passing through all your shoreside power and having it automatically come on if
shore power is off. Chances are if you have an
inverter in your 30A AC system is isn't rated for the 50A anyway, so this approach saves you having to replace the inverter, and I believe is safer. [I'm never surprised by AC going hot unexpectedly...] Doing this will also require a seperate circuit breaker to turn on the
battery charger if the inverter is also a charger. [And of course you need this with a stand-alone battery charger anyway...]
3)
Galvanic Isolator: Now is the time to install an appropriately sized
Galvanic Isolator [one with capacitors].
4) [Future] Isolation Transformer: If you feel you might travel to destinations with 220V AC only shorepower [Europe, etc.] where you might want to install an isolation transformer, consider running your new 50A infeed wires [i.e., wires that run from inlet on boat to AC panel on boat] in a way [route] that accommodates a future isolation transformer install. [e.g., A
route that leaves a loop of wire in an area where a transformer could be installed...]
I hope this makes sense and some of it may be useful. [If it doesn't makes sense, please consider consulting a
marine electrician.]
Best wishes with your
project.
Cheers! Bill