Alubat OVNI 435-6 "Sakura": Electrical and Electronics panels

While the DC distribution system was well done from the factory, many additions and some modifications had been made with a great deal of wiring haphazardly added to the cabinet. The entire space was reconfigured over 23/25, and is now orderlly, well-labelled and safe. It should now be reliable and easy to troubleshoot.

Sakura is 435/6 and was built in 2001. For the time, the design and execution of the original electrical wiring and panels was excellent versus most I’ve seen, and the space available is generous. That said, needs/wants have changed over time and some DIY-calibre additions had been made and Sakura was due for a re-think and refit of her electrical infrastructure.
Most of the electrical and electronic/instrumentation systems converge and are controlled at the navigation station, where the DC switch/breaker panel is located alongside the AC panel.

DC Wiring and Panel Revisions

The factory wiring is neatly laid out with each circuit identified by push on numerical wire markers. It is well documented in the original drawings, though OE part numbers/details are not provided.

The objectives of the work done on the DC distibution system were:

identify and remove substandard, unsafe or potentially unreliable wiring.
Seperate AC, DC and instrumentation circuits where possible.
Ensure each circuit is properly secured, fused and identified
Consolidate fuses in a single location, standardizing on ATO/ATC fuses.
Create an uncluttered layout that is intuitive to use and straightforward to troubleshoot
Incorporate the new instrumentation and upgrades into a well-secured, identified, and intuitive layout with capacity for future revisions.
Revise the switch and instrument panel to simplify use, reduce clutter and reverse some of the "home handyman" modifications.

All of the previous owner-upgrades were removed and rerouted, rewired and labelled. This is time-consuming but I was able to correct several issues/inconsistencies and consolidate fuses, remove excess wire, and repair poor terminations typical in older boats. Wiring is now labelled, simple, logical, and secured. All fuses are consolidated in two ATC/ATO fuse blocks, one for navigational instruments, controlled by switch 10 on the panel and the other, 24/7, which will power the various alarm systems. A final mod will be to move entertainment and communications to switch #13, feeding a seperate 4cct fuse block.

Toggle switches had been added to the woodwork surrounding the switch panel over time as needs arose, and some were relocated from the main cabinetwork/panel to a new switch panel concealed inside the little drop-front cabinet above the chart table. This prevents inadvertent operation of things like alarms or AIS modes, and will further declutter the cabinetwork. This concealed panel is easy to replace or modify in future without damaging any visible cabinetwork.

Unlabelled toggle switches had also been added to the drop down nav instrument panel, where the MFD, Stereo, and VHF reside. This panel was replaced, a new stereo and VHF installed, and those switches will be relocated to the concealed panel. Detailed below.

As discussed below and in a seperate post , all of the interior lighting is now consolidated on switch 12, simplifying operation. This freed two 12v breaker/switches, one of which will control entertainment/communications, leaving the other as a spare.

The main harness bundles are secured, using large releasable cable ties and rugged screwed-on mouting stands, replacing the original small adhesive-mount pieces. This is a detail well worth the minimal extra effort.

The NMEA2000 cables are all new, and are generally located across the top of the space, seperate from any other wiring. You can see two four port splitters stacked in the photo. The old Raytheon NMEA0183 network has been removed. Each NMEA2000 cable is labelled, and a diagram and description of the the nework is found here.

The Cobham Sailor Fleet one control box had been mounted in this space and will be relocated to below teh nav station

Other Functionality

An additional switch panel was installed in the drop front cabinet. This will include switches for

AIS ON-OFF-STEALTH
SAT. ON/OFF/router only
AOC vhf auto fm
Alarms on/off

The photo shows mounting cleats being installed, with the switch panel at the lower left. The installation is now complete and there is a 12”x5.75” blank panel closing the right hand side of the cabinet, awaiting some future use.

Identification and Labelling

The panel was relabeled, and all of the wiring I touched was labelled. This Brady printer is excellent for this purpose, though there are some limitations with respect to font sizes. The labels shown in the printer are those used for the OVNI switch panel, and look "factory". Those on the right are the wire labels. These are particularly good, much better than the Brother P-touch labels I used in Windstar.

Navigation and Communications Panel

I have replaced the aged stereo with a narrower Fusion RA670. This left a gaping hole in the already abused drop-down panel at the nav station. Conveniently, there was a piece of the appropriate plywood aboard, so was able cut a matching replacement panel with a layout of my choosing. It occurred to me that this is the perfect time to also upgrade the RAY53 VHF to one with NMEA2000 connections and dual station capability, so I have purchased a Standard Horizon GX1850B and SSM70H RAM4 remote mic. The GX1850 does NOT come with panel mount brakcets. The MMB-97 bracket kit must be ordered seperately. The RAM 4 remote mic comes with a cable that is long enough to reach the steering pedestal. It is not necesary to buy an extension cable.
I likely overthought the layout. Everything is a bit higher than it was, and hopefully the chartplotter is now aligned with bottom edge of the breaker panels. The stereo is still located above the VHF because the hanging mic cable might otherwise have interfered with the stereo’s control knob. The mic can now be hung beside the stereo, much higher than before, which ensures that the cable is neither interfering with the stereo, nor resting on the chart table. The spacing between the devices should now be equal. (As I read this later, I can confirm that I overthought it...)

Prior posts and musings on this subject

One of the items aboard is a vintage UK OTA TV amplifier. I'll probably remove that along with the other cabling that remains.

Before:

Owner-added Toggle Switches

There are 7 toggle switches that were added by the prior owner. Some of these could be replaced by the now surplus breakers, and some can be hidden in a separate switch panel.

The 7 owner-added toggle switches include:

At breaker panel

nav lights - (pulpit/off/masthead) this is adjacent to the breaker for this circuit so it will remain there. Not sure why it needed an "off" position.
Gas Detector (on/off) to relocate to companionway with other alarms, or in the new switch panel. I would think these alarms should be on a 24/7 circuit, and controlled as a group.
Silence - (on/off) this disables the transmit function only for the AIS transponder: A separate switch is not required for this functionality.
AIS (on/off) To be relocated to a concealed switch panel, using a DPDT centre off switch. This will combine switches 3 and 4.
Fuel Gauge (Port/off/stbd) This is adjacent to the breaker for this circuit so it will remain there.

strange that there is only one fuel gauge, and that a toggle switch was added. I suspect that the BMV 712 replaced the second fuel gauge, necessitating the selector switch. Strange given that there is a now-redundant voltmenter on the panel, which could have been replaced, but perhaps the BMV didn't fit that opening. (Black ones are available.) It may be possible to reinstall the original fuel gauge and reolcate the BMV712.

Beside VHF

Sat Comm. (on/off) This turns the Cobham sat system on

This will be relocated

AVO (on/off/on) This toggles the VHF/FM antenna between sources or automatic mode. Likely AIS/vhf. Not sure what’s become of the FM antenna, though there’s a cut-off piece of coax in the PS cockpit locker. The radio seems to work fine.

These two switches will both be relocated to a concealed switch panel.

So, 5 of 7 switches will be relocated, and two of those combined, further reducing both visual clutter and the potential for inadvertent operation.

The horizontal drop down cabinet contains a length of finger duct and was used only to store some junk items. An acrylic switch panel could easily be installed inside this cabinet, hidden behind the door. This would hide any switches installed there, and the panel could easily be reconfigured as needs change, without butchering any woodwork.

Based on scaling the 40mm hinge in the above photo, the opening meausres approximately 120mm X 350mm. I could mount the panel from the top and leave room below for junk. Will incorporate a USB charger so that phones could be charged inside the cabinet. Less clutter….

DC Breaker Panels (house loads)

There are 15 breakers, in columns of five, across two panels as pictured below

The columns of 5 are (sort of) grouped by function:

1 compass/nav lights
2 mooring light
3 (blanked with marker, had been labelled "top light" which actually meant the "steaming light". Relabelled.
4 Deck light
5 Fuel gauges
6 Water pump (white label)
7 bilge pump portside
8 bilge pump starboard side
9 shower pumps
10 electronic board

Need to confirm what is actually connected here. (This was reconfigure and is now distributed via a fuse block. It controls:
Mfd
N2k
VHF
AIS
RADAR

11 12V plugs

should attempt to have USB chargers and fans wired to this cct.

12 Int lights/transom light

the transom light is actually connected to #15

13 interior lights. (Future use- water maker?)
14 interior lights. (Reconfigure to Entertainment/comms?)
15 interior lights. (Interior lights)

#15 is actually connected to the transom light.
Need to understand which lights are on which breakers. Perhaps there is a good reason to switch branches separately from this panel? Can/should this be done from one breaker?

Options

AIS - this should likely be switchable independent of the other electronics, and combined with the ‘silence’ switch.
Silence - likely means AIS, Rx only.
Watermaker - at some point there will be one.
Sat Comms/LAN - should this be a separate breaker on the main panel?
Radar - should this be switchable due to its power consumption? (it is switchable at the MFD)
Entertainment - should this have its own cct, separate from Navigation electronics? Combine with comms and switch each within the new switch panel? Entertainment/communications?

Labelling

Black inset of label field on breaker panel is approx 8mm X 28mm. Unfortunately the smallest label Brady offers is over 9mm wide. (3/8”) M21-375-595-BK.

Circuit protection at Nav stn.

I have ordered two 6 pos fuse blocks for use in the house panel area at the nav station. One will be for the entertainment ancd comms equipment, one for the NMEA/navigation equipment, as energized by the panel switches 10 and possibly 15. 24/7 circuits will likely be supplied from a similar fuse box at the battery box.

May 2024

My prior post was obviously written under the influence of a very positive state of mind.

As I explored further, it became clear that the various electrical upgrades over the years were not installed very thoughtfully and much needed undoing. Breakers were relabelled, (or repurposed and not labelled) switches added. Furthermore, the new N2K network, the ethernet and satellite networking, the AC wiring additions, and the loops and coils of excess cable from those upgrades plus some of the cabling from the older NMEA0183 instruments were all stuffed into the main electrical area, and simply cable-tied and taped together. Photos are incomplete and don't show the worst of it. That's enough on the sins of a darker past...

I excavated, untangled, and removed the NMEA0183 wiring and anything else that is now surplus or was really substandard. I separated, routed and secured the various systems, and labelled many wires and cables as they were identified. Even though systems are now upgraded, there is much less cabling and other clutter choking the space. I will likely locate the satellite communication and LAN router to some other nook nearby.