One thing leads to another

All I had to do today was get some battery cables made up to custom
lengths and then wire up the batteries and the battery charger. Now,
if I had stuck to that plan, it still would have ended up being a
pretty decent day's work. However, as usual I got sidetracked. This
seemed like the logical time to install the new battery isolation
switch which is mounted on the breaker panel along with some 8 circuit
breakers and a half dozen toggle switches. Well, every time I open
this panel up it pisses me off. There's barely enough slack in the
wire to work behind the panel and the wiring is a rat's nest. Not as
bad as on some big boats I've seen but plenty bad enough. Besides
wires going every which way, there are wires stacked up on terminals
that were only designed to hold ONE wire. Grrrrrr.....

So, I decided to wire things the way I've always wanted them wired.
Each breaker will have ONE wire going from it to a terminal strip
strategically located in an accessible place. And all the wires on
the terminal strip will be labelled. Bet my former co-workers wish I'd
followed this credo when I was wiring stuff at the treatment plants.
Another reason that this is the only logical approach is that the way
the switches and breakers are set up, it's virtually impossible to
detach wires without taking the whole thing completely apart. I'm
being very meticulous about keeping things neat and contained and, as
a result, the engine room is looking very tidy.

So, by evening I had all the heavy wiring to and from the batteries
done and all the parts I need (I hope) to finish the rest of the job
manana. Wonder what's going to sidetrack me tomorrow.

No 12 volt system again tonight but I may do some wiring of the
breaker panel using my headlamp. That'll cut down on tomorrow's work.

It started out as another beautiful day in Newport. It's still pretty
and blue but the wind has been RIPPING through here since early
afternoon and it's downright cold for July. Well, not for Newport in
July but for most of the northern hemisphere. This has been the
pattern all week. But at least it's not raining.