Scotty Plug shorted out today but did not blow the fuse.

[Rockfish]

For some reason the most recent type Scotty female plug shorted out today and started to smoke a little and the rigger lost power. It had worked fine for years and we have got our use out of it. Everything electrical eventually wears out or corrodes on a boat, so that does not bother me and we will fix it.

What did concern me however, is that it did not blow the 30 amp fuse and I had to quickly go into the aft electrical compartment and pull the fuse. I am use to having to replace that fuse on rare occasion when a loaded up and very heavy commercial type crab pot breaks the surface and loses water buoyancy and the fuse goes as it should when the wires begins to heat because the pot puller draws very high amps.

I am a little bewildered that when there was an actual short in that plug with the rigger and the plug was beginning to smoke, that the fuse did not blow.

 

[brutus]

For some reason the most recent type Scotty female plug shorted out today and started to smoke a little and the rigger lost power. It had worked fine for years and we have got our use out of it. Everything electrical eventually wears out or corrodes on a boat, so that does not bother me and we will fix it.

What did concern me however, is that it did not blow the 30 amp fuse and I had to quickly go into the aft electrical compartment and pull the fuse. I am use to having to replace that fuse on rare occasion when a loaded up and very heavy commercial type crab pot breaks the surface and loses water buoyancy and the fuse goes as it should when the wires begins to heat because the pot puller draws very high amps.

I am a little bewildered that when there was an actual short in that plug with the rigger and the plug was beginning to smoke, that the fuse did not blow.

Happened to me with old style plug, i jist unpluged it as it was smoking , but the fuse did not blow, mix of corosion and wAter was the cause me thinks. I think 30 amp fuse is too much, but if you put smaller and the rigger works a bit hard they blow all the time

 

[ryanb]

The short might have drawn less than 30 amps if it was an inefficient short.

 

[ILHG]

Same thing happened to me this year. My fuse holder melted & fuse didn't blow. When I checked the other one it had signs of saltwater corrosion & I replaced it.

 

[Sotally Tober]

Maybe not a short but the power is arcing thru a bad connection. The arcing will cause smoke and heat, not tripping a breaker.

I had this happen to me at home with an extension cord and power tool. A bad terminal on the tool plug was arcing/ smoking at the extension cord plug. The electrical panel breaker didn’t trip.