Have a huge electrical problem...hopefully you can help

[Metal_King]

Yesterday, I took the family up for a very nice ride from Cottonwood Cove to Hoover.
I have a 2000 Roger's 21' Open Bow with a 454 (Berkeley Pump), an MSD system with two batteries.
Anyway, things are great coming back from Hoover and I stop at Willow Beach to get the kids some ice cream.
Get back in the boat and nothing. No crank in either battery (I just bought two marine batteries from Costco). I mean, not even a clicking sound coming from the starter....nothing.
So, I decide to take the battery covers off, and the positive terminal on the #1 battery is smoking. As it is smoking, the positive terminal starts to melt. I immediately go to the battery switch located behind battery #2, but it won't move to the off position. Needless to say, the boat was done for the day and I'm left stranded 28 miles from Cottonwood. We were lucky enough to have another family pick us up and drive us all the way to Cottonwood.
I drove the family back to our place out in Bullhead and then drove out of the 68 up to the 93 north to go pick up my ailing vessel. I didn't get back until 11 pm. :cry:
Now, when it comes to electricity, I know nothing about it. I'm pretty sure there's a short somewhere, but I could not tell you where to start. I did check my lone 20 amp fuse under the dash, and it was fine.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Jason

[sdba069]

I'd look for a problem in the hot cable from the battery switch to the starter solenoid.

[bordsmnj]

i kinda wonder if your alternator fried your bats. theres a voltage regulator in there that when it goes bad lets the baterrycharge at whatever you alternator wants to put out.(22volts at rpm intead of 12-14) it cooks the water right out of them when that happens and smokes the battery

[Metal_King]

i kinda wonder if your alternator fried your bats. theres a voltage regulator in there that when it goes bad lets the baterrycharge at whatever you alternator wants to put out.(22volts at rpm intead of 12-14) it cooks the water right out of them when that happens and smokes the battery
Well, the battery was definitely smoking. I did take the alternator out and will check it at auto zone tomorrow.
Thanks for the responses so far. :thumbs

[Squirtcha?]

Sounds like a failed starter to me. If the starter won't turn that 850 CCA is going to go somewhere. It'll definitely light up a cable. Been there.........done that.

[Wally_Gator]

Did you say the battery switch wouldn't turn to the off position?
If that is the case, maybe there is a secondary problem.
Could be the starter went bad and then the added amps fried the switch..

[Squirtcha?]

I agree. If it toasted the cable, it's possible that it took the switch out (welded it) too.

[Wicked Performance Boats]

Check all the cables, look for a short. Chances are one of those cables may have arced and created a direct short. Budlight

[Captain no fun]

I had a similar hand dealt to me. When my scoop was on pointing forward, I took on a wall of blue water, it hydrauliced my engine. I did not know this at the time floating around on blue lake, I hit the starter, no click, but after a few moments smoke from my cable area. It melted the post off from the battery. ( New Yellow Optima) Long story/short the solenoid had welded internally from excessive amp draw, an uncooperative engine, and as Wally Gator says, no where for the energy to go, it'll smoke. You probably have a welded battery switch, ( Foregone conclusion)but there's more. What caused the huge Amp draw? Put a wrench on the crank, and make sure you don't have a stuck motor. :messedup: :cool: It could be fuel, gas in a liquid state won't compress. Could be something else, but chances are, the starter solenoid is also goofed. Find out why/ what. I broke 4 piston, bent 4 rods, the starter/ battery were incidentals in the end. Hey, good luck. Oh, by the way, if you are hydrauliced, turn the motor over backwards, or pull the plugs! :cool: