Hi everyone,
I just purchased Tropicbird, a well maintained 365 sloop. I'm trying to figure out how to fish wire for overhead fixtures and am finding the liner quite the obstacle. How have others addressed the need for overhead lighting?
Welcome!!
We haven't had to, except for running wiring behind the cabinetry on the port side. We have one main overhead light that we just converted to LED. We also have lights over the nav table, the ice box, the head, the galley stove and two overhead in the galley. We also have spotlights on most of the bunks.
In various projects like that I have found that a borescope is really handy, it lets you see what you are up against. Holding up my iPhone and taking a picture has also helped.
P.s. Our lighting to our main overhead in the cabin is actually run below the liner in nice looking wood track, so there isn't any waiting above the liner between it and the deck.
Wiring in the overhead is dicey.
Our galley overhead light always had weird intermittent problems until I moved the main winch on the cabin top. Turns out the original factory wires had been smashed by one of the winch bolts.
I've also had to cut and abandon two fish tapes while trying to run wiring for my forward solar panel.
I'm opposed to sandwiching any wiring under the head liner. It can't be inspected and is too easy to pinch with all the various deck mounted hardware, grab rails etc. Not to mention deck mounted things you may add after the fact. An electrical fire under the head liner would be unimaginable to me.
And any hole you drill in the head liner is just enough place for water to drip out of. The area below gunwales makes a better raceway for running wires forward and aft.
Pete
Now Pete...
I can't imagine anyone inspecting the wiring throughout the boat on a regular basis let alone next to never, that is not a valid reason to not run wires overhead. Remember there is wiring from the factory running up there and these 365's have stood the test of time. Lighting from above is desirable and to do that the careful installation of the appropriate wiring is required. It can be done and done properly.
An electrical fire anywhere on the boat would not be good, that's why one should update their electrical panels and make sure that their loads are properly protected by circuit breakers designed to carry the appropriate amperage.
I know that your boat doesn't leak so badly that drilling a hole in the overhead liner drains water to the bilge and neither does mine. We believe in maintenance and re bed our deck fittings as necessary. The area below the gunwales makes an easier run for wiring fore and aft but if you want overhead lighting one must head up sooner than later. I have added several overhead lights. It was not easy but doable. The most difficult was the one in the V-berth but it is also the most satisfying to have. I also have one in the head ceiling and installed two miniature halogen cans over the ice box. I also installed a red LED courtesy light above the companion way that provides ample light at night to navigate the steps and galley. The fixtures don't fill up with water when it rains, I don't smell smoke when they are on and I can now see.
Dale
All I can say is give me a 10 amp circuit and I can show you how to start a fire with only 5 amps. That's 60 watts. Partially drill though a pair a stranded wires and sever most of the stands and there you go. Not all shorts are dead shorts like we expect. Pinched and partially shorted under the head liner you will never smell it.
I had to calk the mounting holes in my head liner. Especially around my radios in the nav station which is a low spot. In the mean time, the one piece molded head liner does a good job of shedding water from leaks and condensation that runs into the bilge. Someday I will find that leak. Its not obvious to me after re-calking in that area for the second time. But I suspect the sliding hatch cover mounting holes that support the traveler. Its on my todo list.
Pete
Forgot to mention. After running some halyards back to the cockpit I drilled 6 holes above the galley to install cam cleats. Without knowing it I drilled through a pair of wires up under the head liner that were thankfully dead ended. A remnant of some former circuit the other end of which I have no clue where it is. I added these 2 to the my growing list of phantom wires that need to be traced out documented for removal.
Currently I am in the process of creating a master schematic for all the electrical systems currently on my boat. Its a daunting task which does not provide any information as to the physical location of each wire, harness or terminal blocks as of yet.
To me, wires routed under the headliner is akin to electrical and plumbing buried in your yard and needs to be mapped. Pete
Pete,
It's time to take time to go sailing...
Dale
Dale, do you see any downside to running the wire in a track mounted under the headliner like Della and Dave do? That sounds like the best of both worlds to me.
The track is visible, the overhead is not.
Dale