[Rhodes22-list] The magic of electricity

[BenCittadino]

Two great days of sailing this past week. Hit 5.6 knots over the ground and
buried the rail once (a little scary, are you sure this thing won't
capsize???).

Anyhow, the engine starts like a dream (I have electric start and motor
lift) and purrs like a kitten. HOWEVER, nothing else electrical works on the
boat all of a sudden. I have a '93, recycled '08 and it has two batteries. I
have the electrical panel high on the starboard bulkhead inside the cabin. I
also have two factory installed solar panels. Last summer, and up until
today the switches on the panel could be switched to energize the depth
finder, cabin lights, macerator (test only), radio, etc. 

Now to be frank I know nothing else about the electrical system on this
boat. I have no electrical test gear and will undoubtedly have a marine
electrician look at it. However I would like to give the tech some
information about how this boat is wired. Is there an electrical diagram
somewhere? Which battery energizes which stuff? Where do the wires go when
they leave the battery compartments? Which battery or batteries are charged
by the solar panels? I let her sit idle more than a week or two sometimes
and never have a problem with the lift or electric start, but the dinky
little items on the other circuit seem to drain that battery pretty readily.
Are there known issues I should alert the tech to with this set-up?

I recall now the boatyard where I put my boat up last winter had to replace
a battery (I don't even know for sure which one) upon launching this summer
and I think it was the one that has failed now (forward?).

I guess what I am asking is whether there is an archive entry or another
document that will start me on the road to undstanding the electrical system
on this boat.

Thanks;

Ben C
SV Susan Kay  
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