Hard wiring generator to boat

boatman37

Can't answer that for a boat but that is what I used for my enclosed racing trailer when I wired it up. I just ran an extension cord from my generator to that plug and I had power in my trailer for lights and outlets

LaRea

pistole said:

sorry if this is completely wrong : but what are the issues surrounding feeding current from a power source (in this case , a genset) into the shorepower feed for the boat to run her AC electrics ?

@pistole - you are correct.  You could use an adapter cable (male 15A to female 30A) to connect your generator to the boat's shore power inlet.  That way, it's physically impossible to connect the generator while the boat is connected to shore power.

@04FV270riverrat - does your main power panel have breakers like the picture below?  The little sliding panel marked "DO NOT REMOVE" automatically disconnects shore power when you switch over to the generator.  

04FV270riverrat

@LaRea yes mine has that and my plan is to use that. It's 1 or the other. I can never have power being back fed and making the other input live. I'm going to run the 10/3 boat cable (same as my shore power power line) from the generator side of the panel to a 30 amp power plug back on the transom.

I decided this would be better than the standard 110v outlet as I can plug shore power into this while the boat is on the trailer to charge the batteries.

This line will only have live power through it when the generator is plugged in and that will only happen when I'm away and disconnected from shore power. The plug will be identical to the one on the side and waterproof as well. I'll document and take pictures once I get going, hopefully this weekend! My portable generator is 2200/1800 watts running, so the 30 amp plug will be great, plus it doesn't have enough power to run multiple big draw items at once, i.e. microwave, stove, a/c. 

GMSLITHO

wouldn't it be easier to just plug the shore power cord into the generator or just relocate the shore power outlet to the transom ,the generator will be on the swim platform right? 

04FV270riverrat

GMSLITHO said:

wouldn't it be easier to just plug the shore power cord into the generator or just relocate the shore power outlet to the transom ,the generator will be on the swim platform right? 

Moving the plug from the side to the transom would be the easiest option....although easy isn't always the route I take lol. I like it on the side for when we are in dock, because its out of the way and I can attach the power cord to the side cleat with a velcro strap to hold it out of the water and have no tension or weight on the actual plug itself.