vetus switch/fuse panels

[andyball]

Looking at the vetus panels on our new boat after one fuseholder got hot with a few lights on. Although vetus fit 10A fuses, which generally won't blow 'til twice that....the fuseholder inside is marked "6.3A" which explains why they get warm with a few lights on. From looking at an old replaced panel that prev. owner had left on board, eventually the heat can weaken the contact at the top of the fuseholder, creating a poor connection & thus even more heat...and so on.

They're still sold by vetus, but maybe they've uprated the fuseholders? hmm


Incidentally, the boatbuilders had connected several single loads of up to 15A to the panel- serious scope for overheating there, & used one switch with a total possible load of 17A+....predicatably the panel & fuse get rather hot when all items are on.

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[VicMallows]

You've analysed it 100% correctly. Can only suggest you build a new one yourself from scratch if you wan't to be certain it's really up to the job. Probably less cost as well...but a fair bit of effort.

Vic

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[Quartet]

The Vetus fusepanels are very nice pieces of kit, but I agree that the fuse sizing leaves a bit to be desired ! They sell replacement fuse holders for not a lot and you can of course fit fuses of less amperage, to suit your wiring. There's not much on a boat needs more than a 5 amp fuse when you sit back and work it out. Have you tried the circuit breaker panels ? They are superb and I've got all my electrics running through two of their eight gang units. Never a moments trouble. If you are running something with a high load, it is worth fitting a separate circuit breaker to cover it, the wire for it will be a bit heavy for a standard fusebox anyway.

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[steve28]

I have just re-built my p12 panel and the total cost was £8.64, this was for the switches and the fuse holders and its all working fine again.
I purchased the parts from cpc componets



steve

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[andyball]

Thanks steve, was going to look for suitable replacements later today....I'll start with cpc.

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[andyb]

Do you have a contact number for CPC? Thaanks

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[andyball]

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://custom1.farnell.com/cpc/Default.asp?cookie_test=1>CPC</A> 08701 202530


I see cpc's fuseholders are an exact match for vetus...right down to the 6.3A rating which is possibly where the problem started.


Index marine do some rated 15A according to their catalogue & rswww.com list some 10A ones which may snap-fit into the original hole, also 32mm fuseholders that may well fit & are rated 10A <hr width=100% size=1><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by andyball on 27/02/2004 11:41 (server time).</FONT></P>