What's it called question

[Trimix]

I cant think of the name of the device that allows you to connect your wires together.

I've got a positive and negative feed coming to the console and these are then shared out across various devices. Is it a bus bar ? Connector block ?

I've goggled bus bar and don't see mine. Its black with two rows of eight bolts and jumpers to wire up whatever you need.

What do I call it ?

[Mollers]

Originally Posted by Trimix

I cant think of the name of the device that allows you to connect your wires together.

I've got a positive and negative feed coming to the console and these are then shared out across various devices. Is it a bus bar ? Connector block ?

I've goggled bus bar and don't see mine. Its black with two rows of eight bolts and jumpers to wire up whatever you need.

What do I call it ?

Where are the fuses for the ancillaries?

Could be a fuseboard or bus bar set up.

[butty]

One of these?

https://www.bluesea.com/products/cat...erminal_Blocks

[boristhebold]

Its a 'Bus Bar' they come in amultitude of sizes and uses.

You can have simple positive or negative bus bars or more complex with fuse boxes that also incorperate bus bars.

Standard practice by many rib builders in terms of a common negative is to use a single bolt and connect all the negative wires from instraments etc onto that single 'pole', which in my opinion makes things more of a pain for the rib owner and looks horrible.

When a rib builder cares about how his boat is built you can usually tell by having a good close look at how the wiring was done, good builders would normally use negative bus bars and positive fuse + bus bars or bus bars and breakers etc, and it would be neat and nicely labelled.

Blue Sea Systems do a nice range of bus bars and fuse bloacks etc etc

[Trimix]

Ah, that's it; terminal block

What else can I use then that would be more water proof ?

[Trimix]

Now I know what its called, I found this:
Blue Sea Terminal Block 30Amp - From £6.99 - Force 4 Chandlery

Its not in an area that's too exposed (unless I sink the boat)

Its just joining the battery supply to the auto bilge pumps (two of) and a few other minor bits.

Cheers

[bedajim]

I normally find most little bits I want here, or my very local RS

JGTech Blue Sea and BEP Marine Electrical Equipment

[boristhebold]

Originally Posted by Trimix

Now I know what its called, I found this:
Blue Sea Terminal Block 30Amp - From £6.99 - Force 4 Chandlery

Its not in an area that's too exposed (unless I sink the boat)

Its just joining the battery supply to the auto bilge pumps (two of) and a few other minor bits.

Cheers

Always sounds simple at first but depends upon your current set-up. Do you have one or two batteries, best to have two batteries with a switch unit and a device to control the charging of the batteries so that they are charged as needed rather than both being connected via a simple switch and then have danger of a bad battery killing off the good battery by sucking the power.

If connecting auto bilge pumps consider a good practice of having a circuit that is always on and a circuit that is switched on. My meaning is a circuit that is always on that your auto bilge pump is connected to and has a switch on the console for on but isnt dependant upon the battery switches being in the on position. Does that make sense, that way you switch your battery main switches off when leaving the boat but activate the auto bilge pump on switch on console if leaving in water for a length of time, that way you dont have anything else powered only your bilge pump. And when you dont need your auto bilge pump on if vessel is dry and out and about you just switch the console button to off position for your auto-bilge pump.

So for example my electrical set-up is routhly like this, twin battery bank with main battery switches and the battery charging unit, two circuits being a always on circuit and a switched circuit. A positve bus with fuses for always on circuit and a positive bus with fuses for the switched on items and a large negative bus for all the neagative feeds.

[boristhebold]

And of course adding stuff to your electrics you may need to calculate loading etc in terms of the circuit operating all the stuff, fuse and cable requirements and battery loading issues.

[HughN]

Originally Posted by boristhebold

...but depends upon your current set-up.

[willk]

Originally Posted by HughN

Positively hilarious!

[Poly]

Originally Posted by willk

Positively hilarious!

Oh no he's sparked a pun war!