I’m slow, not very experienced, but some days I pay attention. After reading posts the last few months it sounds like using solder is the best method for joining electrical wires.
Never done it, where’s a good place to buy what I need? Will also need to be buying more wire and a few other things like inline fuses. Hoping the recommendation will work for both.
Picked up my new to me boat yesterday and already making a few changes. Need to run more power to the console. First order of business is to hook up an Onix 8. Sounds like getting clean power can prevent issues. Longer term I want to hook up a DC charger.
If it doesn’t have issues now why change it? Personally got tired of spending money on expensive crimp connections and heat shrinking each end. Wire caps with a big ol dallop of liquid electrical tape and I’m good to go now. Trailers maybe a little different, but all the issues I’ve had with wiring, which has been many, none had to do with the connections going bad. Wire being broken around edges, critters chewing, losing ground contacts etc.
Plus in the event that I screwed something up, which is often, quite easy to redo without cutting ends and having to recrimp/heat all over again. Most will argue against but just going off all the non failed, old, dried out, wire caps I’ve seen in my fixings with no issues.
Waterproof marine butt connectors are brtter than solder simply because they require almost no skill to get right.
Soldering is slow and fussy and difficult yo do well.
Grouse
+1
It’s a good skill to know, but not the greatest for all circumstances. Such as if you have a high amp draw circuit where the wire may warm up. If the load gets high enough it can heat the solder and melt it, causing the connection to loosen up. Possibly causing a fire hazard.
” Such as if you have a high amp draw circuit where the wire may warm up. If the load gets high enough it can heat the solder and melt it, causing the connection to loosen up. Possibly causing a fire hazard.”
Solder melts at around 450 degrees F depending on the alloy. If your current load is so high as to melt your solder connection you have the WRONG SIZE WIRE.
In a marine environment you should use tinned copper wire.
Here is a great source for all things marine electrical.
” Such as if you have a high amp draw circuit where the wire may warm up. If the load gets high enough it can heat the solder and melt it, causing the connection to loosen up. Possibly causing a fire hazard.”
Solder melts at around 450 degrees F depending on the alloy. If your current load is so high as to melt your solder connection you have the WRONG SIZE WIRE.
Correct, the previous statement could not be more incorrect. This is why fuses are used. Also, if your wire does get to the temp that solder will melt you have WAY bigger issues going on, the insulation would be completely melted from the wire before the solder melts.
Don’t let the naysayers deter you Patk, soldering IMHO is the only way to go and it is easy. It is something that I teach my students in my classes to do, thats how easy it is, kids can do it well.
For most applications I use a small pen style torch that is filled with butane. It works in 90% of my applications but where it lacks is where there is wind. The butane torches do not like the wind. When it is windy however, the pocket style turbo lighters shine as they will not blow out easy.
Don’t get me wrong, solder guns are good too but the torch is quicker and better for remote use. One drawback of the torch is that if you put too much heat to the wire the insulation can be burnt back further than you like. A good quality electrical tape will remedy this though or good quality heat shrink tube.
Make sure you use a a paste flux and a don’t use to torch to melt the solder use the torch to heat the wire. If the wire is not hot enough the solder will not flow inside the wire but instead ball up on the outside. Here is a decent video on the procedure with explanations.
Thanks guys, that helps. Trying to do this first class. Also have a co-worker aka fishing partner that has been in 2 fire situations in boats. Trying to be smart so I never get to tell a similar story.
