Units that intermittently draw high
current (such as a
windlass or your compressor) are best wired directly to a
battery bank, with an appropriately-sized breaker or fuse close to the
battery. This is because if you fed them through a breaker on your DC panel, the
current surge and transients from the heavy load are more likely to disturb
electronics like your
instruments, and also because the fewer connections you have in a high-current path, the fewer the points of potential failure.
There's no reason you cannot use 10-2 duplex wire of the appropriate gauge to feed the
compressor.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Paul Elliot
For that matter, I don't understand why they should care about a cable with properly done in-line connections.
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Every connection is theoretically a point of failure. Connections are subject to the quality of materials used, the workmanship, and the effects of
corrosion. Most
electrical codes don't
permit any connections in places where they cannot be inspected, and I try to follow that goal in
boat wiring as well. The higher the current, the greater the risk posed by bad connections.