Pulling Wires, Etc.

Maintaining an Ericson frequently involves passing wires, cables and hoses to repair non-functional systems or install new equipment. It sometimes seems that Ericson put together a skeleton of wiring and plumbing and then afterward built the boat solidly around it, like a time capsule encased for posterity in the foundation of a building. Passing new wires is often a challenge requiring time, ingenuity and a high tolerance for frustrating obstacles. The more one does this, the more clever solutions are learned. If your boat is not near your home or hardware store, it pays to bring all that is needed prior to commencing the project. Here is a list of a few things I have used. What would other Ericson owners add?
Time (it always takes longer than predicted)
A drill with a long bit and hole cutter (either hole saw or spade)
A fish tape
A wire hanger and a stiff, heavy, insulated single-strand copper wire
Tape (usually duct tape or strapping tape to attach the pulled wire or hose)
A headlamp
A mirror on a flexible handle
A grabber
A staple gun (to repair the Ericson headliner)
Replacement zipper pulls (for the corroded aluminum pulls that will break at the wrong time
Cable ties and hangers
Labels and a camera (next time you do the same job, you will never remember what you did)
A well-stocked tool kit
Also helpful would be a pint sized circus contortionist, and a trained snake that can tolerate a cable taped to its tail.
Mike Jacker

Nothing to add. Great list.

--Don't hestitate to drill new hole in bulkhead. 1 1/4" spade is good.

--When removing multiple old wires, leave one as pull-through.

--Transducer cables with big connectors that don't fit through conduits can be cut and spliced despite warnings against. Use connector strip or push-in box.

--I have every wire flagged with it's identity at multiple points in its run. It's overkill, and the labels are often hidden by loom, but surprisingly useful.

--Recall that an iPhone on Selfie is a mirror, with flash, that takes grand pictures of hidden zones for study.

Extra bits of hose for chafe guard. You want to make darned sure you don't get a short where you can't see it and fix it.

Milwaukee Tools right angle drill attachment and stubby-bit drill bit set. Check out the Labels section on the home page of my blog. I have 14 links to articles where I discuss this tool. Used it throughout the refitting of Oystercatcher, including the rewiring. Incredibly helpful in those tight spaces (which are just about everywhere).

Roscoe

I second the right angle drill attachment. I could never have installed refrigerant tubing when converting my ice box if I didn't have that. Great tool!

+1 Wire Labels

Every time I pull a new wire or touch an old one, I label it using MaineSail's How-to guidance:

http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/wire_labeling

The Brother TZ labels stick really well but the clear heat shrink is the key to long term durability of the label. I got mine from ewire on eBay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-2-CLEAR-25-FT-2-1-Polyolefin-Heat-Shrink-Tubing-/201291679356

I got 25 feet of 1/4, 3/8, 1/2 and 3/4 diameter and have not run out of any size yet. I have labeled 90% of my wires and cables. You can get by with just the 3/8 and 1/2 unless you are labeling very small wires (where you will need 1/4) or battery size cables (3/4). Sometimes you need the next larger size to get the heat shrink over an attached connector you do not want/need to remove.

I have a little Brother PT-D200 label maker that works great. It runs on AA batteries or 12vdc adapter from AC.

I use the TZ labels for other things besides wiring, like label plates (See pics below). I've got 6, 9 and 12 mm black letters on white TZ tapes for wires and 9 and 12 mm white letters on black tape for other labels. I get the TZ tapes from Image Supply.com:

https://www.imagesupply.com/collections/brother-tze-labels-tapes

I have all the labeling gear in a box that goes to the boat with the box containing the wire, connectors, crimpers, heat gun, etc. Every time I pulled a new wire or got into an area with wires that I hadn't touched yet (not too many of these left) I would plan extra time to label the wires and cables in that area. Eventually, you get to them all.

Mark

What Mark said. I do the same thing, same Maine Sail method. I've labeled damn near everything in the boat (wires, switches, handles, knobs). Sometimes seems pointless at the moment, but not a month or two later.

One "free" label trick I learned years ago, when wiring houses, is to save some of the outer jacket that you strip off cables. Cut it into one or two inch lengths, write the label on it with a sharpie, and slip it over the end of the hot wire before you add the terminal. (Some shown in the photo below.)


That said, if I started over, I think I'd order-in large spools of individual wires, instead of using jacketed cables for every device. For one thing, there ended up being too many cables in the main chases, and it overwhelmed the peel&stick zip tie anchors. I need to go back in there and re-support all those cables. I like this kind of cable support, that's made to be nailed to studs. I'll need to figure out some way to glue or screw them in place.

I've had mixed results with the Brother labels. (In part because clear heat shrink is not available in BFE.) They work OK on flat panels though.

I used wire label flags designed to be printed on a home printer.

And...they don't stay put on the wire, tend to tear off easily, and look kinda ridiculous.