2002 Sundancer 280: DC issue

spacetiger

New Member
Jul 11, 2017
5
MD
Boat Info
280 Sundancer
Engines
dual 4.3/Alpa drives
Hello,

I hate for my 1st post to be a cry for help, but there it is... I need help from the wisdom of the group.

My issue is I have no DC power to operate anything on the house or boat side.

I have connected shore power and get confirmation on the voltage meter I have AC power. I can turn on all AC accessories (microwave, fridge, interior AC lights, etc).

With the AC inverter powered on, nothing DC works.

From the engine side, I can turn on power (2 switched) and can start either engine. So I know both batteries (one for each engine) is good. I would have thought with both switches on, the batteries would power the dc side even if the engines are not running (no output from the alternator).

I will check to see what the house battery is doing. Are all DC powered items powered downstream of the house battery? I suppose that might explain why no DC powered ites work.

I did a search on the site but did not come up with a same issue thread (this was the closest: http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/dc-power-problem.62229/), but is was a bit different.

Hope someone has seen this problem. I will go check the house battery and will post back.

TIA,
Jerry
 
yes, all on, nothing tripped.

I checked the 3 batteries, House at 95%, the engine side are 78% each (still strong enough to power the engines on).

I did find one of the negative side cables loose - it was upstream of the house battery. I thought I found the problem, but to no avail, still no DC powered items works (bilge, blower, radios, trim tabs), but strangely, the dash lights for the items on the dash show green as if those accessories are hot (see pic)... but if you engage the switch, the item selected does not work.

Jerry
 

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Did this start all on it's own? Meaning was it working a week ago? Or is this the first time you powered up this season? If the latter, I'd start at the batteries and make sure ALL connections are on the proper posts and that you aren't missing any wires that were disconnected for winter.
 
Last edited:
Dennis,

I noted the problem last week, first time out of winter hibernation for me. I had a tech perform the winterizing and have contacted him about what he did to the electrical side. He does not remember. I did find a negative terminal loose but tightened it so all terminals are on solid. Still have the same problem.
 
OK, I'd still start with checking the various cables connected to the batteries. One could be hiding behind the batteries, or possibly even a smaller gauge wire is connected to the wrong terminal. At this point, with the info given, this is what makes the most sense... that something got hooked back up wrong.

You have one battery for the ?port? engine and the other two batteries are wired in parralel to provide for the stbd engine and house, right? Best way, by the way, to test batteries is to fully charge them then load test them.
 
Sounds like a possible EIM problem. Did you turn on all the switches and light up the pad or did they come on by their self?
 
Hi Greg,

The dash lights only come on when I have both keys in (turned on) and the right switch on. The dash lights do not come on via the shore power path/AC inverter.
 
Hi Greg,

The dash lights only come on when I have both keys in (turned on) and the right switch on. The dash lights do not come on via the shore power path/AC inverter.
If all those lights are on and you didn't turn each one on individual then you most likely have a switchpad or an EIM module problem. Will the blower or anything work?
 
Think Greg is right on the money, been playing with this problem for years. Try putting a little thumb pressure on the center of the pad see what happens, sometimes it will light up and work for a little while. I keep doing that until one day I bite the bullit and buy the pad.
,
 
If all those lights are on and you didn't turn each one on individual then you most likely have a switchpad or an EIM module problem. Will the blower or anything work?

Thanks Greg for the help

Where do you find the switch pad and where are the EIM modules?
 

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