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Dual Battery Switch & wiring


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Alright guys, I’ve been redoing all the wiring in my 1999 Malibu sunsetter vlx. Why? Well it was messy and I’m OCD. I went ahead and installed a dual battery switch and some bussbars to feed the electronics up front. However I’m not sure that I have it all correct yet, I thought I did but I’m seeing 12v on the buss even with the switch off... here is how I wired it:

positive battery 1 -> post 1 on switch

positive battery 2 -> post 2 on switch

starter -> common on switch

Negative on battery 1 & 2 -> common ground

So this is how the switch is wired, now for the bussbars. I have a positive buss and negative buss. 
 

positive buss -> post 2 on switch

negative buss -> common ground

now the only things on the buss currently are my amplifiers. I have 3 of them. My amps have remote turn on wires so they only turn on when I flip the switch, but I ONLY want them to drain the battery that I select on the switch. So when I’m parked and want music I can choose battery 2 and it will only drain that one. Should I connect the positive buss to the common switch post for this or am I right to keep it on post 2? (Keep in mind the buss only has amps wired to it so essentially when I say buss wired to switch I mean amps, the buss just helped clean up the wiring). 
 

the reason I ask is because right now when I take an voltmeter to the bussbars I get 12v even when the switch is on the off position, however the boat only starts in the 1,2, or both position. 
 

Sorry for the long post, can someone with more knowledge shed some light on this for me??

 

thanks!!

Edited by sbays09
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If you are using an OFF-1-2-ALL switch, then all of your positive loads need to be on the common post of the switch.

Think about it... right now you have a hot wire between battery two and post 2.  If you put a bus bar on post 2 it's going to be hot too.  There's nothing to turn it off.

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2 hours ago, shawndoggy said:

If you are using an OFF-1-2-ALL switch, then all of your positive loads need to be on the common post of the switch.

Think about it... right now you have a hot wire between battery two and post 2.  If you put a bus bar on post 2 it's going to be hot too.  There's nothing to turn it off.

That makes sense... thanks for the knowledge!!

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