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Old Shore Power cord, For the Record

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
After replacing the perhaps original shore power cord with Smartplug, I tossed it on a shelf in the garage.

Still worked, the cover faded and a bit nicked. The cockpit plug retaining ring had broken, the socket plastic a bit scratched and deformed. And it was hard to plug in, and too loose to be sure the connection was correct.

So--give the old cord away? Seems wrong to offer somebody else equipment I had doubts about, even if unproven. And I remember a member in Ventura who woke up on his boat in the slip to a funny smell, and indeed his shore power cord was melting.

So how bad off were the wires inside the cover?

Not bad at all, it turns out

: IMG_4881.jpgIMG_4882.jpg
 

bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
When I switched to the “smartplug” inlet and bought one of their cords, I cut the ends off my old cord and made a pigtail adapter. I figured I wanted the option in case I ever find myself in a place ever I want power and need to use a “normal” cord.

The wires inside were fine.
 

toddster

Curator of Broken Parts
Blogs Author
Dunno... how can you tell if there isn’t a fault somewhere down in the middle? I’ve got an old formerly-white one like that. Came to me with the boat. Works all winter to keep the boat from freezing and charge the batteries. May have accumulated some slight scorch marks at the boat end? Actually in the upper 50th percentile for my marina, which tends to lean toward Home Despot stuff.

Just got email from the marina that they’re going to be Cord Nazi’s this season. (And I thought I was the Cord Nazi, gently informing the neighbors about electric shock drowning (now all the kids hate me) and unplugging cords left hooked to the pedestals but the other end left loose on the dock (WTF?)).

Anybody know of vendors that have the smart plugs on a spring special deal of any kind?
 

G Kiba

Sustaining Member
I have an unused SmartPlug end if anyone is interested? I will let it go at a reasonable price.
I intended to just replace the end and re-use my "came with the boat" cable. When I stripped the ends, I found the conductors were black and smelt burned. I cut back 3' and then 3' more to find the same. I'm not sure what had happened but ended up discarding the cable and buying an complete SmartPlug cable. PM if interested. We can work on the price and shipping. I'm happy to help out another Ericson owner in need.
 

Tin Kicker

Sustaining Member
Moderator
Dunno... how can you tell if there isn’t a fault somewhere down in the middle?

Part of what I do is inspection of electrical systems and the answer is to inspect the cord closely. There are generally two types of damage to wiring, physical and electrical. Physical is more common in the middle and electrical at the ends with the connections. It makes sense, because the middle of a wire or cord has max exposure to cooling air so generally runs the coolest while the ends have the resistance associated with the connectors.

For damage to happen away from the connectors takes an initial physical damage. Go over the cord inch by inch, looking closely for indentations which may have a small puncture and penetrations which could let moisture into the jacket. Moisture is the enemy because corrosion creates heat. Since each wire is insulated, damage to the cover doesn't necessarily mean there will be damage to the copper inside, but it becomes a place to watch closer over time. Any darkening of the area means that heat has been created and that's a failure which requires replacement, splicing, or just cutting the cord to that length with a new connector. You can use liquid insulation from a hardware store to seal minor cover penetrations to prevent future moisture entrance.

Since moisture can routinely get to the exposed copper at the connections, keep the copper clean. Soft fingernail emery boards, Scott-brite, and a Dremel with a wire brush tip work well. Once clean, people argue about the pros and cons of dielectric grease with the emotions of a "Which oil is best?" debate. Again, any indication of browning of the insulation means there is corrosion or resistance inside and cause for rejection.
 

KTROBI_VALHALLA

Member II
I ordered one last Monday from Hodges Marine Electronics for $263.20, no tax, free shipping. It shipped the same day and I will have it today. Their prices are hard to beat.
 
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