EEL Shorepower?-gctid374635

[Guest]

Has anyone tried these yet? I was considering upgrading....

http://www.eelshorepower.com/index.php

Attached files [img]/media/kunena/attachments/vb/678065=26828-EEL.jpg[/img]

[Guest]

wfarr wrote:
Has anyone tried these yet? I was considering upgrading....

http://www.eelshorepower.com/index.php

Nice!! Looks very pricey though.

[JimMc]

Honestly I do not see these new EEL cords as an upgrade because they do not address the root issue. The problem with the connector is limited surface area in the connection which can and has resulted in overheating. The overheating has caused boat fires.

The features they added with the EEL cords are nice but don't address the inherent problem.

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I bought the Smart Plug system to convert our boat and did I get a suprise. I went to remove the old power inlet and found the Nuetral connection had signs of the plastic overheating around the connector and the wire on the back side showed signs of overheating. The screw on the wire terminal would not release due to the overheating. I cut back a few inches to get to undamaged wire and proceeded with the install.

My install is not done but I am glad I decided to switch to the Smart Plug system.

Now I could have replaced the damaged power inlet with another of the same style inlet. BUT I also believe it would be necessary to replace the power cord as it to is likely damaged as well.

[Guest]

Jim!! This is why I post here in the first place! The smart plug system looks amazing, and I will be upgrading immediately.

Thanks for the heads up!!!

[Guest]

The boat builders are probably not going to be including SmartPlug's on new boats becasue it's not UL approved. Unfortuanatly, UL says that and new design has to be compatible with existing twistlock inlets that have been the standard for 50 years. If you get the SmartPlug then you have to install their inlet.

I agree that the UL Spec is outdated in terms of the requirement for NEMA twist-lock terminals, but until or unless that changes, boat builders will likely adhere to incorporating UL and ABYC approved designs. One of the scary down sides to the SmartPlug is that the thermal protection automatically resets itself every couple of minutes when it trips. So, its a situation where it gets hot due to electrical loads on the boat and terminal corrosion causing higher resistance; then it trips to open the circuit; then it resets itself and heats back up. That sounds like a band-aid to me. I also found out that the thermal switches are only protecting the electrically hot conductor and not the neutral side. Well, that's an accident waiting to happen. If the dock is wired with reverse polarity, which is all too common, and the SmartPlug thermal switch opens, then the stuff inside the boat goes dead for a few minutes. But in this situation it's only opened the neutral line. Now imagine someone opening a panel on the load center or an appliance to figure out what's wrong. That person will be messing around with something that looks dead, but actually has an energized hot wire. Look out!

The new Marinco EEL is cool looking and a step in the right direction because it solves the age old locking ring issues, but it is still held hostage by the UL spec. Too bad.

-Pat

[Guest]

I also went with the SmartPlug system, and am glad I did. BTW, the shore side of the cable is UL listed, and the boat side is ETL listed.

A bit of info about SmartPlug and certification:

http://www.edsboattips.com/construction-a-technical/185-smart-plug-is-a-safer-choice

"A common misconception among manufacturers in the United States is that their choice for compliance testing is limited to the UL Listed Mark. UL is only one of several Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories (NRTL) which test to North American safety standards set by ANSI/UL, CSS and NFPA. Like UL, Intertek is an OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration) recognized NRTL and is accredited as a Testing Organization and Certification Body by the Standards Council of Canada.

And similar to the UL Mark, the ETL Listed Mark is recognized and accepted by manufacturers, retailers, distributors and local authorities. SmartPlug Systems feels Intertek is the right choice for the testing of its products with its international recognition and global network of laboratories and resources."

[Guest]

What can you tell me about your experience in switching to the Smart Plug? I intend to do this this week, and I will be purchasing the new molded shore power cords instead of modifying my existing twist lock cords. Any thoughts you can share would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Guest]

I'd save the money and use your existing cord. Installing the new end is pretty easy- follow the directions and use lots of dish soap.

The boat end is really easy- remove the old twist lock end, cut back the wires, and install according to directions.

Took me an hour to do 2 cords and 2 inlets.

[JimMc]

I installed the Smart Plug inlet today. It took me a bit of work. The cabling was tight with little slack. I ended up getting up in the side and seperating the two AC inlet cables which Bayliner had bundled together with black electrical tape.

Wiring the inlet was a bit of a challenge because Bayliner wired the 30Amp inlets with #8 stranded Romex. The Smart Plug inlet is designed for #10 cable. Stripping the cable back to fresh clean copper and just squeezing it together with no twisting I was able to get the #8 into the Smart Plug inlet and secure the cable.

Also Bayliner had installed the power inlets with #10 screws. The Smart Plug is designed for #8 screws. I cleaned out the holes in the fiberglass and drilled them straight through. I then made a backing plate out of Starboard and installed Tee nuts. The backing plate is inside the hull. Once I had the Smart Plug wired I then mounted the new inlet using 2" long #8 oval head bolts screwing them into the tee nuts in the backing plate.

I am glad I switched but the install was tougher than expected. This was more a result of previous actions by Bayliner than anything else. To be fair to Bayliner it was nice to see they had upped the cable to #8.

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I too just replaced the end on my existing shore power cable. It was easy, follow the directions. Be careful to squeeze the connector together as you insert the three screws that close the connector. Also avoid the temptation to over tighten the screws.

[Guest]

Jim - it sounds like a challenging install. What are your impressions of the system after the install? Are you happy with it?

Also, thank you for the detailed information.

[JimMc]

wfarr wrote:
Jim - it sounds like a challenging install. What are your impressions of the system after the install? Are you happy with it?

Also, thank you for the detailed information.

Honestly I was working on a ladder and did not even try plugging the cord into the inlet. The hardware looks robust but I have not actually tried it yet.

[Guest]

Hi Go Farr,

I put smart plugs on this winter but in the transom locker of the 3055 along with a "F" connector. Since I always back into my slip it made the most sense and left the existing inlets on the port side with a rotary switch from Blue Sea so I can isolate them. I need to do a "completed projects" thread on it.

Worked great. I use a "Y" adapter cable and changed the heads to the smart plug heads.

Once you push the cable into the inlet it feels very secure and locks in place when you flip the lid down.

I'll take some pictures. Highly recommend it. Left the traditional inlets on the port side but maby next year will swap them out. I wish Smart Plug made a factory "Y" adapter cable instead of me having to modify my other one but it worked.

Steve

[JimMc]

Our 2004 305 has a switch on the panel to parallel the two inlets.

Since we only have a single 30 Amp power source in the marina, I run a single cable to inlet #1.

I then have the #1 & #2 sides of the panel both set to run off #1 using the parallel switch.

In 7~8 years of having this boat I don't think we have ever used inlet #2.

If I had a 50 Amp source in the marina I would use a splitter and feed both inlets. OR If I had two 30Amp sources I would use two power cords.

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I would think Smart Plug will eventually have a splitter. They are slowly growing their product line.

[Stratocaster]

RE Jim's post and slightly off-topic.

Isn't it ridiculous that #8 wire is bigger than #10 wire, but a #8 screw is smaller than a #10 screw?

[Guest]

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