Posted by Administrator on 5/31/2015 to
Electrical Standards
NOTES
- This table is for boat cable with an insulation rating of 105 deg C. If you have different cable then you need a different table. If your wire has a higher insulation rating it can carry more current, if the rating is lower it can carry less current.
- The current carrying capacity of a wire is reduced if it is in the engine room (because it is assumed that the ambient temperature will be higher) and it is also reduced if the wire is part of a large bundle of wires (because it is affected by the heat from adjacent wires)
- The concept behind all this is we want to stop the insulation from melting or going on fire, so the ambient temperature matters as does the rating of the insulation.
- In DC circuits voltage drop becomes an issue and will normally determine the size of wire used. Consult the Voltage Drop Tables for more details
- Check out our Boat Cable at PKYS using the link below, all the Boat Cable we sell has a 105 deg C insulation rating:
1 Comments
Mike Velys
Date
8/26/2023
I recently had the main breakers on my 50' Cantius Cruisers Yachts burn up. Several wires burned including 10 gauge wires feeding the buss bars. I question if 10 gauge wire is sufficient in this case when protected by a 50 amp breaker.
Peter Kennedy
Date
8/28/2023
The Ampacity tables that tell you how much current a wire can carry. There is another issue you might want to investigate: Loose connections. Having a loose connection introduces resistance which generates heat and can cause a meltdown