is this a European wired boat?

[JoeRuncer]

A broker is telling me that this is a North America boat wired for 120Volts AC, but other listings have 120V labeled directly and not 220V as the panel indicates. The wiring for North America vs. Europe is different and I want to know which one it is. The panel is from a 1992 Island Packet 35, how can i definitely tell the difference?

[UNCIVILIZED]

Measure the current. And don't fully trust this to a broker, as most are clueless about boats, sadly.

[Cavalier]

Turn off the AC supply.

Open the panel by removing the perimeter screws so that it hinges down.

Check the AC side of the panel.

A European built boat will typically have brown, blue and green wires for live, neutral and ground.

An US ABYC wired AC system will have black, white and green.



Also check Canada's modifications to ABYC:

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafet...ection8-67.htm

Sent from mTalk

[redsky49]

Look at the shore power inlet receptacle. Look at the AC receptacles in the cabin. Check the wires on the back of the panel for colors and gauge. Look at the battery charger voltage requirements. Same for water heater.

Plenty ways to check!

[JoeRuncer]

I ask a question and in 11 minutes I have a clear answer, Thank you for making CruisersForum" such a great place!!!
Joe

[rwidman]

You could also look at the labels on the appliances and this wouldn't take any electrical knowledge.

[dlymn]

I guess you appreciate that the issue is only relevant for the mains voltage system. Most hot water services are 12 volt and so will work equally well in any country. All of the 12v wiring will be fine (barring deterioration)
The problem comes when you feed 110v into a 220/240v system. In order to save money the original builder might have used a lighter gauge wire in the 220/240v circuit. If you apply 120v to this circuit, the wires will overheat. It's all to do with delivering amps to the appliances. 220v requires half the amps to deliver the same wattage as 110v. Reduced amperage allows for reduction in wire diameter.
The PO might have already changed all of the power point and so that test won't help. Wiring colour might be an indicator but it depends on where the boat was built and how fussy the builder was.
I would get an electrician to look over the circuit and see if the wire size is large enough to carry typical loads.(10 amps in 220c, 20 amps in 110v))

[Zai]

If you take a close look at the gauge, it looks as if it is registering 115 volts.

[Sandero]

As others have noted previously there are many ways:

Look at the shore power inlet receptacle
Look at the AC convenience receptacles
If there is an inverter look at the make and model number
Test the current with VOM
Look at the wiring colors used
Look at other installed devices that might run on AC current.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by dlymn

I guess you appreciate that the issue is only relevant for the mains voltage system. Most hot water services are 12 volt and so will work equally well in any country. ))

Hot water services are 12 volt? With the exceedingly rare exception.....On what planet?!?!


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[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by Sailmonkey

Hot water services are 12 volt? With the exceedingly rare exception.....On what planet?!?!

emmersome big wires going to yer heater skipper...

Or on the planet X10 or X20...

[Dave22q]

A lot of good answers here. An additional thing to consider is that the European breaker panel might mean that the boat has been converted to run on US power. Unless the boat was totally rewired there is a risk that some of the original wire was not replaced. That creates a real fire risk as the conversion roughly doubled your amps in all circuits.

[Sailmonkey]

It may also be that IP uses the same panel for boats wit a 30amp125 inlet or a 50amp250 inlet


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[Djarraluda]

Originally Posted by Cavalier

Turn off the AC supply.

Open the panel by removing the perimeter screws so that it hinges down.

Check the AC side of the panel.

A European built boat will typically have brown, blue and green wires for live, neutral and ground.

An US ABYC wired AC system will have black, white and green.



Also check Canada's modifications to ABYC:

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/marinesafet...ection8-67.htm

Sent from mTalk

To be more detailed - ISO codes use the Brown and Blue plus Green and Yellow stripes for the earth (or ground) connection. It is a lot wider than just Europe.

[dlymn]

[QUOTE=Sailmonkey;2234249]Hot water services are 12 volt? With the exceedingly rare exception.....On what planet?!?!

My error sailmonkey. I was thinking about my setup. Let's try refigerators.