new boater need some idea on how to fix or set up some stuff

[bullred]

Hey, I am new to boating and just boats in general if I'm being honest. I bought a gulfstar trawler mid 1970's model for a good price to be a live aboard because rent prices are so high around me. Well I bought a standing AC unit for the boat hooked up to the marina pedestal and worked for a while but now i'm having problems with it kicking off the power to that set of plug-ins. Im having to reset the power manually on my panel but when it gets hot 80's to 90's it shuts off every 5 minutes and I'm not sure how to fix it. I'm new to all of this and my step-father who talked me into buying the boat is busy and I hate bothering him so much about it and when I do look it up I can never find anything that really helps fix my problem. Any opinions or ideas of how to fix or where to looks to fix it would be just awesome

 

[CharlieO.]

What else runs off that circuit?
Welcome to power management.

 

[Comodave]

Welcome aboard. We need more information. What brand and model A/C unit is it. Maybe a photo of it.

 

[bullred]

What else runs off that circuit?
Welcome to power management.

To my knowledge just the AC unit whenever it trucks everything else stays on just that one outlet goes out

 

[bullred]

Welcome aboard. We need more information. What brand and model A/C unit is it. Maybe a photo of it.

It's a stand up AC unit from Hisense

 

[bullred]

Welcome aboard. We need more information. What brand and model A/C unit is it. Maybe a photo of it.

 

[bullred]

What else runs off that circuit?
Welcome to power management.

the ac unit is the only thing that powers off then it cycles off and on at random times i checked for everything on the ac unit and cant find anything wrong itll just cut off then cut on but itll run all night no probem just during the day does it cycle

 

[Comodave]

That looks like a portable unit, correct? If so I would take it off the boat and plug it into a house circuit to find out if the problem is with the A/C unit or the boats electrical system.

 

[bullred]

That looks like a portable unit, correct? If so I would take it off the boat and plug it into a house circuit to find out if the problem is with the A/C unit or the boats electrical system.

I just tested it at a house and it works fine so you think it might just be pulling to much power?

 

[Comodave]

If it works on a standard house outlet then it isn’t pulling more than 15 amps so it should work on the boat. Do other things work when plugged into that outlet?

 

[PhilPB]

Not all marinas have 100% reliable power. If it is having problems only during the day it may be a problem with the marina's power supply/management (too many ac's running in 80-90 degree days) or the pedestal you are using. Are other boats in the marina experiencing daytime power issue(s)?

 

[Comodave]

That would be something to try, moving the boat power cords to another slip.

 

[bullred]

If it works on a standard house outlet then it isn’t pulling more than 15 amps so it should work on the boat. Do other things work when plugged into that outlet?

Yes other things plugged in work and it never turns off but if I have this thing plugged in when it's hot outside just turns on and off over and over I can't seem to find a reason all other outlets stay on and continue to work just whatever my AC unit is plugged into just switches off and I have to reset it

 

[jleonard]

You MAY have only one circuit with a 15 amp breaker for all your outlets. ( my Albin was like that). Even your on board battery charger plus the a/c may be more than 15 amps.
You may need to wire a separate circuit for the A/C unit.

 

[bullred]

Not all marinas have 100% reliable power. If it is having problems only during the day it may be a problem with the marina's power supply/management (too many ac's running in 80-90 degree days) or the pedestal you are using. Are other boats in the marina experiencing daytime power issue(s)?

Only myself and another couple live on board at the marina and they aren't very reclusive I can never catch them coming or going the other boats here people only come and weekends but they are all still plugged up so I'm not sure

 

[bullred]

You MAY have only one circuit with a 15 amp breaker for all your outlets. ( my Albin was like that). Even your on board battery charger plus the a/c may be more than 15 amps.
You may need to wire a separate circuit for the A/C unit.

Any videos I can watch to do that or should I just have someone come work on the boat for me to do it? I'm not really that good of a handy man when it comes to boats yet haha

 

[PhilPB]

Only myself and another couple live on board at the marina and they aren't very reclusive I can never catch them coming or going the other boats here people only come and weekends but they are all still plugged up so I'm not sure

In my marina most boats that have ac run it 24/7 whether someone is on the boat or not.

 

[PhilPB]

Or, as a test, to eliminate the boat's electrical system, can you get a 12 AWG (thick extension cord) extension cord and plug that into your pedestal and directly to the air conditioner? If it works that way, you have isolated the problem to the boat electrical system and need to have an electrician come in to figure it out.
It's never a bad thing to pay an expert to figure this stuff out and no one needs to get hurt if they don't know what they are doing.

 

[bullred]

Or, as a test, to eliminate the boat's electrical system, can you get a 12 AWG (thick extension cord) extension cord and plug that into your pedestal and directly to the air conditioner? If it works that way, you have isolated the problem to the boat electrical system and need to have an electrician come in to figure it out.

I don't think my pedestal has a direct plugin for something like that it has the 3 prong hook up for the shore power but I don't think it has a plugin just for a appliance like the AC unit

 

[PhilPB]

There are adapters but I think you need an electrician. In my book, certain things you don't mess with if you don't know much about it and you or others can get hurt.

Pay for someone who is qualified to look at it.

 

[Brooksie]

Sounds like the machine itself has a thermal overload device in it as, if I understand you, it resets itself after it cools down. Has it got filters? Clean them. It only draws 12 amps so try blowing a fan in/on it to cool it

 

[Comodave]

Is the A/C powering on and off or is it rhe compressor going on and off? Plug an LED light into the same outlet as the A/C and watch when the A/C goes off does the light also go off or does it stay on.

 

[mvweebles]

Just to be clear, you are tripping a breaker inside the boat, not the one on the pedestal, right?? Check the breaker that trips - does it say 15A on it? According to the plaque on the AC, it draws 14-amps when cooling.

Unplug everything and turn off all breakers except the one that powers the outlet for your A/C. See what else is on that circuit and unplug it (if anything). This includes cell phone charger, PC power adapter, microwave, battery charger in engine room, bedside alarm clock......everything. Plug in your A/C and see if it still trips.

If the breaker is 15A and you're overloading it, an option would be to ask an electrician if it's possible to run 12-gauge wire to your outlets and upgrade the 15A breaker to 20A.

A lot of assumptions in the above. But please......find competent help. This type of work isn't incredibly complex, but many a boat/house have burned down due to ignorance.

Good luck -

Peter

 

[mvweebles]

Sounds like the machine itself has a thermal overload device in it as, if I understand you, it resets itself after it cools down. Has it got filters? Clean them. It only draws 12 amps so try blowing a fan in/on it to cool it

Good point - in my post a moment ago, I was not sure what was tripping for the OP. I had not thought of the AC itself. If it's the AC that's cycling on/off, it's something else. Check voltage on the boat, and check outlet grounds.

OP - here's an adapter for your pedastal. Trust me - they're handy to have around. As someone up-thread mentioned, plug directly into the pedastal via extension cord into your boat andsee if that solves the problem.

Amazon.com

Peter

 

[Delta Riverat]

The AC unit may be shutting down due to over temp. These things always have an exhaust hose that is supposed to be vented outside. The good ones have 2 hoses, one for intake of outside air to blow across the condenser coils and the other to blow it back outside.