What is the purpose of 2 shore power cables.

[Irish Rover]

My new to me power catamaran has 2 shore power cables and I'm curious to know why. In most places in the Med you're lucky to get one shore power outlet never mind having two. Do they both need to be connected or can I operate with just one, and, if so, how much will this restrict what I can use on board. This will be my first time having air con but I don't think we're going to use it much, if at all - we live in Türkiye, we have air-con in every room and I doubt any of them have been used more than a couple of hours per year.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

Check the plugs, they may be 16 and 32 amp or even one might be 3 phase.

 

[simonfraser]

one for each hull

 

[MapisM]

My new to me power catamaran has 2 shore power cables and I'm curious to know why.

Because three would be excessive, obviously!

 

[Clancy Moped]

The second shore power line is probably for the air con supply.

 

[Irish Rover]

Check the plugs, they may be 16 and 32 amp or even one might be 3 phase.

Boat is in Croatia and I won't be seeing it until mid April. I got an owners manual online but it doesn't say. It may be obvious when I actually lookat it properly but I do recall seeing the 2 shore supplies showing separately on the electric panel and both showing 32A - photo not clear enough to be sure.

 

[Irish Rover]

Because three would be excessive, obviously!

Yeah. I was thinking it was done specially for a Paddy, to be sure, to be sure.

 

[Elessar]

My new to me power catamaran has 2 shore power cables and I'm curious to know why. In most places in the Med you're lucky to get one shore power outlet never mind having two. Do they both need to be connected or can I operate with just one, and, if so, how much will this restrict what I can use on board. This will be my first time having air con but I don't think we're going to use it much, if at all - we live in Türkiye, we have air-con in every room and I doubt any of them have been used more than a couple of hours per year.

Usually two 16A supplies.
On mine one does the domestics, the other the aircon. Genny is 32A so does both.

 

[Daydream believer]

Dunno if it means that you have to plug into 2 separate shore sockets, or not. But, if berthed alongside. I just hope that I arrive at the marina before you do

 

[Irish Rover]

I didn't learn a lot from this thread but I feel s small bit less stupid now I realise the answer is not entirely obvious

 

[MapisM]

More than not being obvious, it's rather a matter of not existing at all.
I mean, there isn't just ONE answer, because there's more ways than one to configure twin AC shore cables.
But finding out what's what should be a matter of minutes, when you will be onboard.
Just fiddle around and see what happens.

BTW, also your photo above doesn't help a lot, because as you said it's not clear enough.
It's unusual to see only one AC Vmeter in a boat with two AC power cables, anyway.
Or is the small switch under the display a plug1/plug2 selector, maybe?

 

[st599]

Does it have a check that they're both the same phase?

 

[snowbird30ds]

2 shore power connections can be very dangerous, get 2 different phases and you have much more volts.

 

[Irish Rover]

I've no idea what the last 2 posts mean????

 

[Bouba]

Some boats have one in the front and one in the back....so if you park front in or reverse, you don’t need a cable draped all over the deck

 

[snowbird30ds]

I've no idea what the last 2 posts mean????

A lot of marinas have power points supplied by 3 phase, each outlet on a different phase to keep it balanced, phases are a sine wave 120 degrees apart, if 3 are connected in the same system you'll get 415 volts as opposed to 3x the amps, 2x are 300 ish volts, don't trust my maths I'm not an electrician and I'm pi55ed.
Mixing phases in a 240v system is not a good plan.
And if you need more than 16a in a boat stay in a house.

 

[Daydream believer]

Some boats have one in the front and one in the back....so if you park front in or reverse, you don’t need a cable draped all over the deck

What would happen if a boat parked sideways to a long berth ( or rafted, so the crew did not realise what another crew member had done) & both were plugged in by error?
How many smaller boats have the incoming socket by the bow, where every wave over the front soaks it? Sounds like a good design - if it does actually exist
.
It would not be unreasonable for a boat to have 2 cables- a 16 & a 13amp one. It is possibly what the OP has. No one has asked him if he has one or 2 sockets on the actual boat, so he can only plug one cable in. He may only need 13 amp but carry a 16 amp for when 13 amp sockets are all taken up.
Or 2 to extend the length.
This whole thread is probably because he has not actually looked at what he has got.

 

[vas]

nice boat IR, I guess you'll be jamming the bow facing door open (and the aft salon one) and no need for aircon.
Curious, the single salon port side seat looks like it could have engine controls hidden under the small table in front of it?
Or you have to be up on the f/b to operate the boat at all times?

Back to your Q, I feel that from the symmetry of the el.panel, the fact that there are 3small buttons under each led gauge (and the fact that in another photo I found on the web the port side shows voltage and not Amps as your does) I'd go with the each hull one shore power. Which means that you'll be most likely using the stbrd one as that's where the galley and the master cabin is!

cheers

V.

 

[Irish Rover]

nice boat IR, I guess you'll be jamming the bow facing door open (and the aft salon one) and no need for aircon.
Curious, the single salon port side seat looks like it could have engine controls hidden under the small table in front of it?
Or you have to be up on the f/b to operate the boat at all times?

Back to your Q, I feel that from the symmetry of the el.panel, the fact that there are 3small buttons under each led gauge (and the fact that in another photo I found on the web the port side shows voltage and not Amps as your does) I'd go with the each hull one shore power. Which means that you'll be most likely using the stbrd one as that's where the galley and the master cabin is!

cheers

V.

Thank you. Flybridge operation only. Salon controls are an option but not fitted on mine. Mine is a 4 cabin version and, while the galley is stb, as you say, the grill on the flybridge is port side.

 

[billskip]

Just a guess, but the panel says 220v high voltage...this could indicate 2 or 3 phase supply at 110v.
Some places have 230/240v single phase making 410/415v ,possibly far to high for your boat ,so a separate cable for the requirement.
ie: 1x3 phase cable and 1x1phase cable...just a guess ....but both would have different plugs ..
I think new boats today are fitted with electronic devices that automatically detect incoming supply and adjust accordingly.

Just a thought....

Edit just seen post #2....