Wheel Pilot Battery Switch

[elittke]

Am working on the final stages of my Raymarine Wheelpilot installation. I wired direct to the battery since that was easier to get to and the main panel is full. Should I be putting in another battery switch to completely isolate it when not in use? And do I need to wire it to both batteries or is one enough to run it?
Thanks
E

[Sailmonkey]

this should definitely be on a switch at the very least. And if it's not fused, disconnect it now and fuse it.

If you're not willing to install a breaker for it then at least connect it to the both position of your battery switch. that way at least you can control what battery gets used.

[jamhass]

1. Yes, you need some kind of protection (breaker or fuse) for the AP system.
2. Do NOT wire directly to the battery.
3. Somewhat better to connect to the house battery shut-off switch (on the house side, not the battery side), preferably to an attached house bus bar. This way you can easily disconnect ALL loads from the battery. Note that the house switch is NOT protection for the AP circuit.
4. Better ways to connect certainly exist, but depends on your electrical system layout.

Also: depends a bit on whether this is a short term fix or a permanent installation. If the latter, don't short cut the install. If the former, fix it as soon as you can.