Boat Safety Scheme Battery Isolators
Are battery isolators fitted and are they as close as practicable to the battery?
- Battery isolators must be fitted to each battery or bank of batteries.
- Battery isolators must be located as close as practicable to the batteries.NOTE ‐ If there are separate circuits connected to separate batteries, each of them must have a battery isolation switch. A combined‐switch can be used, for example, in two battery system, where one battery is used for starting the boat’s engine and the other used for domestic services.
Do all electrical circuits pass through a battery isolator, or are those requiring a continuous supply otherwise protected?
- Any electrical circuits bypassing the battery isolator must supply the following equipment: automatic bilge pumps, security alarms (including marine radios), fire pumps, electronic navigation equipment with memories, battery charger outputs, inverters or combination inverter/chargers, solar panels and wind turbines and any other equipment where the manufacturer’s instructions indicate or specifically require direct connection to a battery, such as diesel‐fired central heating boilers.
- All D.C. electrical circuits must pass through a battery isolator, except those which feed equipment requiring a continuous supply which must be protected by a suitable fuse or circuit‐breaker.Are battery isolators, or the means to operate them, in readily accessible positions?
- Battery isolators, or their means of operation, must be installed in readily accessible positions.Are battery isolators and connections complete and in good condition?
- Battery isolators and connections must be: free of missing fixings and free from signs of damage or deterioration.Is the location of all battery isolators, or the means to operate them, in open view, or their location clearly marked?
- Battery isolators, or the means to operate them, must: be in open view with all removable lids, deck boards, doors, etc in place or have their location clearly marked in open view.
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