Shore power mains inlet location

[Wing Mark]

Are there any rules about this?
Should it be in a locker?
Is a downward inlet on the transom OK?
Better to notch the washboard and put it 'indoors'?
Any experience of better more waterproof connectors for the boat end?
Best to keep the cable out of the cockpit as it's a trip hazard?
Your thoughts please!
TIA.

 

[northwind]

Depends on the boat, and your parking preferences, some put them in the anchor locker as they park forwards.

I put mine in a locker previously as it was then out of the way, using standard ceeform connectors and a cutout in the top of the lip to allow the locker to close.

Apart from ceeform the other connector used is the marinco ones.

 

[PaulRainbow]

Depends on the boat, and your parking preferences, some put them in the anchor locker as they park forwards.

I put mine in a locker previously as it was then out of the way, using standard ceeform connectors and a cutout in the top of the lip to allow the locker to close.

Apart from ceeform the other connector used is the marinco ones.

Please don't use Marinco ones.

One example: How to Avoid Shore-power Problems

 

[PaulRainbow]

Are there any rules about this?
Should it be in a locker?
Is a downward inlet on the transom OK?
Better to notch the washboard and put it 'indoors'?
Any experience of better more waterproof connectors for the boat end?
Best to keep the cable out of the cockpit as it's a trip hazard?
Your thoughts please!
TIA.

Where you put it will depend on your boat and how/where you moor it, to a degree. I moor stern to, so i fitted mine on the outside of the cockpit coaming, so no lead in the cockpit etc.

I don't think you'll find a better plug and socket than the Ratio range: Inlets and Accessories | Energy Solutions

 

[cherod]

standard industrial blue 3 pin in the cockpit ,,, ok gets wet and shorts out in heavy rain when left for a few days but hey ho , just pour the water out , swing it around a bit and back in ,, hey presto .

 

[[70521]]

Mine is fitted under the transom seat because that is where the person who installed it decided to put it. If I was to fit one from new it would be in the anchor chain locker at the bow.

 

[Kukri]

The ex boat had no plug and socket and the shore cable passed from the consumer unit out through a ventilator. I’ve been persuaded by Paul into the Ratio ones now and the socket goes in the common place on the forward cockpit bulkhead, but there is a “loco cab” over it.

I think it’s really important to think about residual current. Wooden boat owners are paranoid about it and I’ve carried this attitude over to plastic boats. Plug in and watch your anodes shrink like the morning dew!

 

[LittleSister]

My shore power socket is tucked under the side/aft deck - open to the side (facing into the cockpit), but out of the rain. Seems to work - never been an issue.

Another boat of mine had the socket in a 'pocket' recess (we called them 'toffee lockers'!) in the cockpit. A bit more exposed than the above, but the same principle.

A yet previous boat had no mains installation aboard, but on the occasions I wanted power (e.g. occasional battery charging, power tool or computer use) I would drop the boat end of the shore power cable down a cowl ventilator, and in the cabin it was plugged in via an adapter to a conventional single or multi outlet mains extension lead.

 

[LiftyK]

Mine is on the transom facing into the cockpit. It is recessed and has a thin cover that is almost flush when not in use. When we are on power the plug is horizontal and covered by the flap. It works fine even during downpours.

 

[KompetentKrew]

standard industrial blue 3 pin in the cockpit ,,, ok gets wet and shorts out in heavy rain when left for a few days but hey ho , just pour the water out , swing it around a bit and back in ,, hey presto .

I second @northwind's advice to use Ceenorm connectors - they have some waterproofing.

The shore power cable that came with my boat has a connector at least one end that I now know to be made by Walther - I'm sure many boaters would recognise it, and I think it lacks any waterproofing at all.

The Walther gave me loads of trouble simply from ingress of dampness, not even light rain from what I can recollect - I bought a couple of different brands from Farnell just to try, and the Ceenorm is clearly better.

• https://uk.farnell.com/w/search/prl/results?brand=ceenorm
• https://uk.farnell.com/search?brand=walther&current-rating=16a

 

[Wing Mark]

Thanks all.
Currently (no pun intended) the inlet is in the anchor locker, it seems very wet. We have had some serious rain and there's a pile of wet rope in there.
Maybe rain is getting in via pulpit mount or something.

I think I have a galvanic 'lack of isolation' too, so I am not using the 'installed' shore power, just plugging in a double-insulated battery charger to the cable.
And sometimes a plastic kettle or plastic cased fan heater.

From my racing days I still tend to think of the pointy end as being wet, the esteemed afterguard never worried if water was up to the bowman's knees.
I'm not really convinced about mains on small seagoing boats!


Plugging in at the bow is sort-of convenient, as it's right by the meter, but the cable is maybe 30ft long and looks untidy.

 

[starfire]

Where you put it will depend on your boat and how/where you moor it, to a degree. I moor stern to, so i fitted mine on the outside of the cockpit coaming, so no lead in the cockpit etc.

I don't think you'll find a better plug and socket than the Ratio range: Inlets and Accessories | Energy Solutions

I'll second Paul's dislike of the marinco connectors, work of the devil.

Use either the ceeform type, or better still the Ratio connectors, they are the people who produce the connectors for most electric cars

 

[PaulRainbow]

I second @northwind's advice to use Ceenorm connectors - they have some waterproofing.

The shore power cable that came with my boat has a connector at least one end that I now know to be made by Walther - I'm sure many boaters would recognise it, and I think it lacks any waterproofing at all.

The Walther gave me loads of trouble simply from ingress of dampness, not even light rain from what I can recollect - I bought a couple of different brands from Farnell just to try, and the Ceenorm is clearly better.

• https://uk.farnell.com/w/search/prl/results?brand=ceenorm
• https://uk.farnell.com/search?brand=walther&current-rating=16a

[pedant mode]

Northwind didn't say Ceenorm, he said ceeform. CEEform is just a generic name for the type of connector and both the Walther and Ceenorm that you mention are of this type.

[end pedant mode]

That said, some of the Ceenorm ones look good.

ABB connectors from Screwfix are also reasonable.

 

[lustyd]

I don't think you'll find a better plug and socket than the Ratio range: Inlets and Accessories | Energy Solutions

Those look really nice. Do they work with standard power cable connectors though? Looks like there's nowhere for the flap to go, and the flaps don't usually fold back that far in my experience. I notice they have their own connectors without flaps, hence the question.

OP, bear in mind you'll (technically) need a switch near the inlet. I didn't fit one on my old small boat, choosing to just unplug instead but technically there should be a main switch. My new boat has both of these in a cockpit locker with the cable entering under the lid in a small cutout.

 

[Laysula]

Mines on the transom, which was where it was when we bought the boat. I have two shore cables, a short one for home berth as we normally berth stern to, and a long one for odd occasion when we are bows to.

 

[johnalison]

Ours is the ordinary blue marina type in a recess in the cockpit, partly protected from rain, and has given no trouble. I have often seen them in exposed positions, as on a friends’s IP, when the socket was a substantial chrome type and presumably effectively waterproof, though that doesn’t prevent the owner from plugging or unplugging in the rain. In our case this will as often as not be with the cockpit tent up.

 

[Wing Mark]

The outdoor mains socket I have at home seems far more waterproof than anything I've seen on a boat, but of course it is the wrong gender.

In the long run, I don't expect to have shore power very often, so I'm not rushing to invest in fixed battery chargers and galvanic isolators.
Maybe what I need to do is test the RCCB on the pontoon!

The socket on the pontoon is pretty much out in the rain I suppose, but at leasr that should have less salt in it!

 

[jamie N]

As Paul Rainbow has said, ABB stuff is usually very good; it's what they do! I'd also suggest that the connector pointing downwards is of great benefit, as gravity works in draining splashes from the socket.
Again with the 'Offshore Hat' on, it's what's used everywhere offshore.

 

[Poey50]

I'm another Ratio fan. They seem and look just right for a reasonable price. As previously said they will go anywhere convenient.

 

[LadyInBed]

I'd also suggest that the connector pointing downwards is of great benefit, as gravity works in draining splashes from the socket.

Also, if fitted in the cockpit, when the shore cable is plugged in it doesn't stick out so far.
For the same reason, I prefer to have mine in a locker with a cutout in the lid for the cable.