Power cords

[UNIQUE_NAME]

Hi all,

Does anyone know if Marinco or Hubbell power cords use tinned
Wire? I seem to remember a comment that someone discovered
They didn't. Along those lines, has anyone had any experience with
Furrion power cords(they do not use tinned wire according to their tech).

Thanks,
Jim

 

[Boatsb]

Ive had great performance from Hubbel and less than favorable from marinco especially their worst moron offerings. I would think twice before going cheap on a power cord. I'm convinced you get what you pay for.

As to their being tinned I am not sure and it may vary by model.

 

[MikeP]

I replaced a plug on a Marinco 50A cable that was on the boat when we bought it in '04. The cable was not tinned but perhaps they are using tinned wire now - they currently claim "Marine Grade." But I don't know if there is an official certification specifying that "marine grade" means tinned.

 

[q240z]

None of the shore power cords I've seen (30a or 50, 125 or 250v) use tinned wire--not Marinco nor Hubbell. I have personally sworn off of Marinco products, though I will use a Marinco cord if it's got Hubbell plugs. On Furrion, I've used their receptacles but never their cords. At their price point, I'd be surprised if they were much better than Marinco.

 

[34Hatt]

I remember that post some what I remember.

Hubbell was tinned and Marinco was not.

But I also thought it was Scott "Boatsb" that said it

 

[GJH]

They use STOW rated cable which is heavy/severe use and certified as boat cable. It is not tinned, as they use molded terminations.

 

[Boatsb]

STOW is correct and it is for pretty rough service. Hubbell uses a high strand count and terminates well but the tinned and not tinned argument has no bearing on their cords. The fact they have a copper crimp barrel has no bearing on if the cable is tinned as marine tinned cable has individually tinned conductors and terminate just like non tinned. The biggest issue with the 50 amp cables causing them to fail is pulling the ends loose from the cable.

 

[saltshaker]

There was a recent discussion here about Furion cord sets.
http://www.samsmarine.com/forums/showthread.php?19551-Furion-Power-Cords&highlight=furion
I have one and am very happy with it. It was recommended to me by a friend who is a marine electrician and a live aboard. He's had his in use for about 3 years running pretty high loads to heat the boat in the winter and stay cool during the summer.

 

[UNIQUE_NAME]

Thanks guys. I was able to confirm with a marinco tech they don't tin their cables either
For the reasons stated above. In the planning stages of replacing the 2 30A inputs with a
50a 125/250v inlet and adding up the costs

Jim

 

[saltshaker]

Thanks guys. I was able to confirm with a marinco tech they don't tin their cables either
For the reasons stated above. In the planning stages of replacing the 2 30A inputs with a
50a 125/250v inlet and adding up the costs

Jim

It's well worth the investment. Much safer than overloading 2 30A 125V cords. Id use either the Furion parts or Hubbel. Much better quality than the Marinco stuff.

 

[Boatsb]

Thanks guys. I was able to confirm with a marinco tech they don't tin their cables either
For the reasons stated above. In the planning stages of replacing the 2 30A inputs with a
50a 125/250v inlet and adding up the costs

Jim

Im finishing one upgrade this weekend and will be doing a 4th soon (on my boat) but there are things you need to do for safety. You can not just add a 50 amp cord without new breakers and proper sized cable. Also if the boat has all 120 volt equipment you need to make sure the neutral is going to be large enough.

 

[UNIQUE_NAME]

Im finishing one upgrade this weekend and will be doing a 4th soon (on my boat) but there are things you need to do for safety. You can not just add a 50 amp cord without new breakers and proper sized cable. Also if the boat has all 120 volt equipment you need to make sure the neutral is going to be large enough.

Im finishing one upgrade this weekend and will be doing a 4th soon (on my boat) but there are things you need to do for safety. You can not just add a 50 amp cord without new breakers and proper sized cable. Also if the boat has all 120 volt equipment you need to make sure the neutral is going to be large enough.

I am swapping 50a breakers for 30a's in the panels. New 6g wire from the inlet to both panels.
The boat is 120v, but the house side doesn't really draw much. Hot water heater is the big item. I
Have alcohol burners mounted on top of the oven. The conversion is mainly for the a/c side
Draw. I'm tired of struggling with my 2 16k units. Whenever I run both it's a crapshoot whether I will
Take out a shotgun fuse.
That is The one issue I'm pondering, the 30a shotgun shells just after the inlet. Did you go with
50a shotguns/new connections or did you go with breakers?

Thanks

Jim

 

[Boatsb]

If you are running lots of 120 Volt you need to run 2 lines to the panels with 2 neutrals or you will need to share a neutral between the panels. Most 6 Ga cable I see is 4 conductor but its better ti use 2 3 conductor versions and keep the 2 lines separate. I have done some with a new line to each panel and a new 50 amp breaker there which is the most upgrade of the options. I also did some with 30 amp breakers in waterproof mounts at the inlets. Its all in what you want to accomplish. If you need to run both AC's on one line run a 50 to each panel but put the breakers in at the inlet instead of the damn fuses.

 

[UNIQUE_NAME]

If you are running lots of 120 Volt you need to run 2 lines to the panels with 2 neutrals or you will need to share a neutral between the panels. Most 6 Ga cable I see is 4 conductor but its better ti use 2 3 conductor versions and keep the 2 lines separate. I have done some with a new line to each panel and a new 50 amp breaker there which is the most upgrade of the options. I also did some with 30 amp breakers in waterproof mounts at the inlets. Its all in what you want to accomplish. If you need to run both AC's on one line run a 50 to each panel but put the breakers in at the inlet instead of the damn fuses.

I Was planning on running 2 6g 3 wire from panel to inlet connection. What breakers did you use in place of
The fuses?

Jim

 

[q240z]

I upgraded the 30a shore power service to 50a 250 on my 1968 Chris Craft Commander 42 last year. It's not difficult if you understand electricity, but it's very easy to let the smoke out of expensive equipment if you miswire it.

One thing you'll want to do is make sure you balance loads between the two hot legs. On my install, I've got the AC systems and the plugs I use to power heaters in winter split between L1 & L2. With every appliance and hair dryer onboard running, I draw 27a on L1 and 29a on L2. Since L1 and L2 are out of phase, a 6ga neutral should be fine so long as the loads are roughly balanced.

I've got pix of my old v. new panel at https://sites.google.com/site/1968chriscraftcommander42/home/Upgrades/shorepower

 

[Boatsb]

I would run the 2 single lines with neutral on each. Figuring the 100 foot run from the dock ped to the boat and back 6 ga is not going to handle everything that you can use on a 50 amp 250. I think it's rated for about 60 amps so it will cover the 2 x 30 at that length. Plus remember the issue of increased heat and resistance.

I used 2 8 Ga 3 conductor cable one for each panel and only ran a 30 amp breaker. It gives me the theoretical ability of 90 amps and redundancy. I know electricity seeks the path of least resistance but having 2 neutrals tied to the same source ( the power cord inlet ) and common other places in the boat has worked for years on the split 30,s and if you upgrade to 6 ga its even better.

 

[UNIQUE_NAME]

I really won't be balanced all that well. L2 has 2 16k A/c units that will be pulling 28-30'ish amps. L1 powers the house but only the hot water heater will draw big and that is intermittent. For those of you who have done this, what breakers did you use to replace the shotgun shell fuses?

Thanks,

Jim

 

[Pascal]

I often check cables and plugs for heat and a few months ago I found one warm 50qmp cord on the 70 footer i run. Odd thing is that the hottest point was about 15' from the plug

Turned out the entire cable was heavily corroded from end to end but the worst sPot was not at the plug

Ended up replacing the whole 80'... I ordered marinco from West mega yacht services which was advertised as tinned. It was not... Ended up buying the cable from Ward in FTL, tinned

Never seen a cable failing in the middle before, never figured out why all 4 conductors were corroded (black) in 8 years...

Afaik it was originally supplied with the glendinjngs.

 

[SKYCHENEY]

The black was probably from the heat. Maybe it got kinked there once or something ran over it.

 

[q240z]

I really won't be balanced all that well. L2 has 2 16k A/c units that will be pulling 28-30'ish amps. L1 powers the house but only the hot water heater will draw big and that is intermittent. For those of you who have done this, what breakers did you use to replace the shotgun shell fuses?

Thanks,

Jim

If you're digging into the panel, you can connect the ACs to whichever leg you want.

The breakers and panel I used are described on the web page I linked to...they're sold by FactoryMation.