Kicking 60amp breaker

My wife and I were out yesterday trying out a new prop. Prop was great except I found out my engine is bolted too high. Kept losing water pressure and getting alarms.

When I loaded the boat, my wife didn’t get it up on the trailer as far as needed. I strapped it down before I realized it needed to go forward a few inches. I backed it back into the water long enough to crank it up a few inches. A 4000 pound boat has to be exactly right on trailer to pull right. While it was backed down it flooded my battery compartment and my double auto bilge pumps kicked on and pumped it out.

I got home and started getting boat ready for a guide trip. I noticed I had the 60 amp breaker for my engine tripped. When I reset it, I hear a motor running down inside by the transom then it will trip the breaker. I checked every switch on the boat and none were on. I reset it again and tried the hydraulic jack plate and engine trim before breaker tripped again. I still hear a motor noise deep inside the boat. I’m thinking I have an auto bilge pump locked up and trying to run. The pumps are 1200 gph. Is it possible a pump motor like this would trip a 60 amp breaker? I have never tripped it before.

Getting to the pumps involves removing my 3 100 pound golf cart batteries. That is a back-breaking job since they are jammed into a space with my two other batteries.

I have no other idea what I might be hearing. Any ideas?


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Possibly the float switch stuck in the on position. Causing the bilge pump to run on your drive home overheating it and causing it to short out tripping the breaker. Do the bilge pumps have a manual,auto,off switch. That would be a way to eliminate or verify the bilge pump is the problem

a bilge with no water on it will get hot for sure , might be the issue , if all else fails you could do a little unhook of the wires under the dash and possibly trouble shoot if its one of the bilges that way ?

I had one clogged with trash and stalled a couple of months ago. It was extremely hot when I realized what was going on. Couldn't here it run. It got replaced

Ask Excel....or call Rickey

I find a clamp-on ammeter (I have a Fluke 365) indispensable for tracing faults without detaching any wires - try to borrow one. Find the wire that has the current and trace it. DC motors draw the most current when the rotor is locked or jammed, maybe the noise is a hum. 60A is a lot, that's a lot more than locked-rotor amp draw, so the motor may be burnt - if that what it is.

Ask Canepole


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by "G"

Ask Excel....or call Rickey

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It will be Rickie in that bilge ... Dux ain’t climbing in there with a brand new hip :yikes

Rickie

The small wires of the pump would burn up with 60 amps going through them

All the properly wired bilge pumps I've seen have a 10-15 amp fuse, maybe something else has gotten wet and has shorted out.

You have two issues I think.

1: your auto bilge pump float switch is stuck. Chunks of plastic baits, line, weeds, anything that has fallen down in your boat and washed to the back can stick the float.. Pretty common actually. But it wouldnt be running if it was shorted. If you can reach the pump, the float is either going to be ON the pump itself, or somewhere near them mounted at the same level as the bilge pump. Poke it with a broom handle and it should shut off. That'll help you source your other issue without burning up your pump.

2: something else is shorting out, nothing back there should have an issue with getting wet though so that is interesting. Maybe the water actually moved a couple wires to something and now they are touching. Id take it to the dealer and let them dig through and find it if you dont have the means. You just need a multimeter and a lot of time.

Your 1200gph bilge should pull about 3-4A, if the motor overheated and stuck I doubt it could even pull 60A. Might be possible, but I really really doubt it.

I think I located the culprit after laying on my stomach for 1/2 a day unhooking about 100 wires, removing 5 batteries with a chain and a come-along, then removing the battery box floor. This boat has a wash-down pump that is built in way back by the livewell. Once I got the floor out of battery box, I could hear it plainly. I hooked it up and cycled the switch which is located on both the dash and transom. Cycling the switch shut the grinding noise off then it won't restart. I'm assuming the motor is fried. Under warranty.

I'm leaving the batteries out except for the cranking battery which all my accessories run off of. I'll leave the floor out of the area that hides the wash-down pump so Excel has easy access to it, and as soon as I'm able to ride, I'll get somebody to take me and the boat to the Union City,TN plant. I won't need it for 3 weeks or so and that should give them plenty of time to replace the pump.

BTW, the Storm Cat 230 is a 23 foot version of Excel's Storm Cat catfish tournament boat. Catfish guys need a wash-down pump so they can spray down the slimy floors and decks. I've found it very nice when somebody decides to dump a container of nightcrawlers. Before they get ground into the floor, whip out the coiled up garden hose and wash it all down.

Thanks for the comments. The wash down pump is by far the largest pump on the boat with heavy wiring. I just couldn't wrap my head around a stuck bilge pump or aerator. Wiring on those is too small to carry 60 amps.

I have a shur flo washdown pump. It is a self priming demand pump with 45psi. Draws 10 amps. Handy tool. I use it on dirt daubers and bird dodo mostly.

Glad you found it