Hey guys. I was motoring back after dark last night and my Nav lights wouldn’t turn on.(BTW the sunsets are incredible with the Sahara dust around) Anchor light was fine. Started back to dock slowly and after about 1/2 mile the light turned on. Back at dock I could toggle on off and they worked fine but I need to get this figured out and it’ll be tough to do if they are suddenly “working” while I trouble shoot it, ya know? Thinking it must be a fuse or wiring or switch but figured I’d throw it out there to you guys and get your input before getting too deep in this. Thoughts? Thanks in advance.
Nav lights- troubleshooting.
- Thread starter StoryTime
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SkunkBoat
GreatGrady Captain
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If its a single Red/Green fixture then it could be the bulb socket loose/corroded.
Then check the push-on connections at switch.
To test switch you could swap the Nav & Anchor wires at the switch and see if problem moves...
Then check the push-on connections at switch.
To test switch you could swap the Nav & Anchor wires at the switch and see if problem moves...
I had the same problem. I replaced my fixture with a new led one and replaced the connections at the switch. LED has less corrosion issues and is much brighter. I was tired of changing corroded bulbs.
The question asked was whether there are two fixtures or a combo red/green. I assume by the response there are two fixtures ( actually three counting the mast light)
So if all three fixtures were dark, the 12 volt feed is probably dead and the common place if from the switch.
If tha mast light was on, the 12v feed to the two nav lights or the ground is bad. It is possible that the fuse or breaker is acting up. Your first challenge is to get the problem to occur again at the dock and then trouble shoot with a test lamp AFTER noting is all three lights are out or on
So if all three fixtures were dark, the 12 volt feed is probably dead and the common place if from the switch.
If tha mast light was on, the 12v feed to the two nav lights or the ground is bad. It is possible that the fuse or breaker is acting up. Your first challenge is to get the problem to occur again at the dock and then trouble shoot with a test lamp AFTER noting is all three lights are out or on
Seasick, not to steal StoryTime's thread, but my mast light has never worked since I owned my 228. There are 3 prongs in the socket it goes into.The question asked was whether there are two fixtures or a combo red/green. I assume by the response there are two fixtures ( actually three counting the mast light)
So if all three fixtures were dark, the 12 volt feed is probably dead and the common place if from the switch.
If tha mast light was on, the 12v feed to the two nav lights or the ground is bad. It is possible that the fuse or breaker is acting up. Your first challenge is to get the problem to occur again at the dock and then trouble shoot with a test lamp AFTER noting is all three lights are out or on
Is there any way to test the light or the wiring at the socket the mast light goes in to? I'm not very good at figuring out wiring
Dead mast lights are not uncommon. The three prong connection usually means that your mast light has two bulbs, When on nav lights, only the forward section lights up ( mast light looks dark when seen from aft. If the switch is placed in Anchor mode, both bulbs light up in the mast light creating the All Around light. So one of the three leads is ground and the other two are for NAV switch position and ANCHOR position.
You can test for voltage at the three position switch at the helm. If you have juice there, you can then test at the mast light female connector (on the winshield perhaps)
Since the mast light hasn't worked, it doesn't help determining what is going on with the nav lights. Most likely you have a bad connection, so start at the switch . It is possible also that the wires for one of the nav lights is routed from the other nav light area and that light then has a cable to the helm. If so, there are splices somewhere usually close to the fixture. Removing the fixture and tugging the cable lightly to pull it out may expose a splice
Sorry if this sounds complicated. It is in a way since getting to all the possible failure points can be a challenge.
You can test for voltage at the three position switch at the helm. If you have juice there, you can then test at the mast light female connector (on the winshield perhaps)
Since the mast light hasn't worked, it doesn't help determining what is going on with the nav lights. Most likely you have a bad connection, so start at the switch . It is possible also that the wires for one of the nav lights is routed from the other nav light area and that light then has a cable to the helm. If so, there are splices somewhere usually close to the fixture. Removing the fixture and tugging the cable lightly to pull it out may expose a splice
Sorry if this sounds complicated. It is in a way since getting to all the possible failure points can be a challenge.
Wouldn’t it be the rear section light up when in nav mode and both for anchor mode? A white nav light should be Seen 180 deg from the rear while running.
Two bulb mastlights are sometimes used in conjunction with a white stern light (attached directly to the transom), although this would be for a stern drive engine. There must be a white light able to be seen from 360* when the boat is running or just floating around. However, that 360* can be split up. So in this case (stern drive), when the boat is moving and the "nav" switch is activated, the forward bulb in the masthead light and the transom light will light up... giving 360*. When just the "anchor" switch is activated, both bulbs in the masthead light will turn on, but NOT the stern light.
Obviously, with an outboard a transom light doesn't work because the OB blocks it. My guess is that Grady simply uses the same masthead light for both an IO and OB and just re-wires the switches. I did the same thing as my boat was originally a sterndrive - I re-wired the switches to eliminate the transom light from the circuit and, even though there are two bulbs in the masthead light (on top of the hardtop), I am essentially treating them as one light as far as the wiring goes.
The goal/requirement is simple for small powerboats - a red and green at the bow, able to be seen aft to a little past 90* and a white light visible 360* (but can be split between a forward facing and aft facing light). It does not HAVE to be split - a single, white, 360* light is just as good. You simply need a white light that can be seen by anyone else, regardless of their relative position. BUT... they should NOT be able to see two white lights at the same time.
StoryTime... sounds like you just have a bad connection (loose/dirty/corroded wire under the sheathing) somewhere.
Obviously, with an outboard a transom light doesn't work because the OB blocks it. My guess is that Grady simply uses the same masthead light for both an IO and OB and just re-wires the switches. I did the same thing as my boat was originally a sterndrive - I re-wired the switches to eliminate the transom light from the circuit and, even though there are two bulbs in the masthead light (on top of the hardtop), I am essentially treating them as one light as far as the wiring goes.
The goal/requirement is simple for small powerboats - a red and green at the bow, able to be seen aft to a little past 90* and a white light visible 360* (but can be split between a forward facing and aft facing light). It does not HAVE to be split - a single, white, 360* light is just as good. You simply need a white light that can be seen by anyone else, regardless of their relative position. BUT... they should NOT be able to see two white lights at the same time.
StoryTime... sounds like you just have a bad connection (loose/dirty/corroded wire under the sheathing) somewhere.
I think the all around light is required when anchored. Depending on the hull length, the running mast light should project a 120 degree arc forward. For smaller hulls a single mode all around mast light is OK.
Point is that if you see a red, green or both lights and a mast light, the vessel is not anchored. If all you see is a white mast light, you assume the boat is anchored. Granted on a smaller hull with only an all around mast light, if you see it and no others, the boat could be anchored or in motion heading away from you. Regardless, steer clear.
Point is that if you see a red, green or both lights and a mast light, the vessel is not anchored. If all you see is a white mast light, you assume the boat is anchored. Granted on a smaller hull with only an all around mast light, if you see it and no others, the boat could be anchored or in motion heading away from you. Regardless, steer clear.
The size powerboat I meant when I said "small" is under 40'. Anything under that length needs a white light seen from 360*. It can be a single light, or two lights where the masthead light covers about 2/3 of the 360* while the transom light would cover the other 1/3. Never should two white lights be seen at the same time.
For some reason, I think the requirement is mostly the same for larger powerboats - but I think the lights, themselves, have to be rated to be seen from a great distance - or something like that. I'm not too worried about the req's for that size boat... maybe some day
But, yes, correct on the 360* at anchor and about seeing only a white light means boat is anchored/drifting or you are behind it.
I got a good chuckle out of your reply. I'm apparently not living the 'boating' life. Small to you is under 40 feet. To me 40 feet is the approximate length of garden hose I need to get from the pedestal water spigot to my motor flush ports
I got a good chuckle out of your reply. I'm apparently not living the 'boating' life. Small to you is under 40 feet. To me 40 feet is the approximate length of garden hose I need to get from the pedestal water spigot to my motor flush ports
Bad bulb contact is a common problem but in this case I got the impression that both nav lights were out and then both were on. That smacks of a power issue (or ground circuit).
Yes the mast light is on in either position but depending on whether you have a double mode mast lamp fixture, it will be lit all around when in anchor mode and only lit 'forward' when in nav mode.
The funny thing is that my 208 has a dual mode mast light (original equipment) but my 25 foot My Other Boat has a single mode all around mast light.
So the Mast light works fine. Just the two nav lights at the front of the 228. Seasick is correct- either both are on or both are off. For now both are off as they aren't working. I'm going to start with the fuse and will work from there....that said I'm not sure if the same fuse works both the navs and the mast light but I'll figure it out. Thanks all for the insight and I'll let you guys know what I find out. I won't be back at the boat until after the 4th but will update once I troubleshoot it.
If the mast light works, the fuse is fine. Check for voltage out of the three position switch but I suspect it will be there.
You probably have a bad connection where the port and starboard light feeds are spliced. I would take off ( not wires, just fixture) the starboard light and try to pull out the wires a bit to see if that is where the splices are. They are going to be there or on the other side buy most likely closest to the helm. Note that there is probably a splice for the positive and ground wires.
It is also possible that the voltage to the lamps is fine but the ground is bad. That connection if at the helm will be harder to find but should be bundled at some point with the 12 volt feed wire)
You probably have a bad connection where the port and starboard light feeds are spliced. I would take off ( not wires, just fixture) the starboard light and try to pull out the wires a bit to see if that is where the splices are. They are going to be there or on the other side buy most likely closest to the helm. Note that there is probably a splice for the positive and ground wires.
It is also possible that the voltage to the lamps is fine but the ground is bad. That connection if at the helm will be harder to find but should be bundled at some point with the 12 volt feed wire)
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I use Obscurso Boat Navigation Light. The lights work fine until I run the outboard motor, then the flicker/strobe, is there a way to wire this so there is no interference with the motor?
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You probably have a wiring issue that is causing low voltage at the lights. I assume these are the LED models.
If possible, ga et access to the hot and ground feeds at the fixture and measure voltage with the lamp off, then on and motor off. Those two measurements should be pretty close to each other.
Now repeat the measurements with the motor running. I would now expect based on your flickering that the voltage with the motor running will be lower than the first test. That extra voltage drop can cause flickering. Now the challenge is to work backwards and test other points. The next logical place would be the nav light switch. Measure the voltage going in and out with the lights on and motor running. If the voltage is again lower, the issues is farther back, perhaps at the fuse panel . It just takes a logical approach and measurements.
Note that if you have separate port and starboard lights, it is helpful to know if both flicker. In addition, does the mast light flicker too? If that is not LED, you may not see a flicker.
If possible, ga et access to the hot and ground feeds at the fixture and measure voltage with the lamp off, then on and motor off. Those two measurements should be pretty close to each other.
Now repeat the measurements with the motor running. I would now expect based on your flickering that the voltage with the motor running will be lower than the first test. That extra voltage drop can cause flickering. Now the challenge is to work backwards and test other points. The next logical place would be the nav light switch. Measure the voltage going in and out with the lights on and motor running. If the voltage is again lower, the issues is farther back, perhaps at the fuse panel . It just takes a logical approach and measurements.
Note that if you have separate port and starboard lights, it is helpful to know if both flicker. In addition, does the mast light flicker too? If that is not LED, you may not see a flicker.