Vetus thruster electrical problem

[flyboyjack]

Hi Folks,

well after being AWOL from boating for a LOT of reasons, (a lying surveyor and engine guy for one),... we finally got back out on the water. (Just as an aside,...after sitting for about 14 months w/o any attention or starting,... I charged the batteries, looked everything over, cranked the ol' Cummins for less than 30 seconds and it ran and sounded better than ever!!!). But on to my dilemma,.. on our third outing all was well,... used the Vetus out of the dock and into and out of the fuel pits. Then on return to home,... the Vetus initially would not turn on. After a few cycles, the power light glowed very faintly, then would glow bright and then back to just a faint indication. I've checked fuses. Nothing amiss. No clicking of the solenoid, etc., from the motor. Ideas?? Does anyone know if the control head is bad, will the new control units swap in or are the pins on the back different?

Thanks,

[Ben423]

If the boat hasn't been used or properly maintained for a while, the first step would be to check the wiring and connections from the batteries to the thruster. Check voltage at the thruster. The most likely culprit is a poor connection.

[dgetswet]

I have the Vetus 55 in my boat. When I bout it a couple of years ago the old owner turned it on once or twice to show it worked. About 2-3 months later did not work. After a lot of testing found out the brushes were no good. A couple of the wires rotted off. Call the people at Vetus Ian is really helpful and will answer any questions you have. I believe they are based in Florida.

[flyboyjack]

I have the Vetus 55 in my boat. When I bout it a couple of years ago the old owner turned it on once or twice to show it worked. About 2-3 months later did not work. After a lot of testing found out the brushes were no good. A couple of the wires rotted off. Call the people at Vetus Ian is really helpful and will answer any questions you have. I believe they are based in Florida.

Thank you very much. I just did an extensive rewire just before putting her to "bed" a while ago. I will recheck the wiring. Stay safe.

Jack

[Chuckatuck Ray]

I have an issue with my unit that sounds very similar to yours. I have a 1998 Albin 28 TE with a side-power bow thruster. The light on my switch will be bright and then sometimes turn off completely and come back on, by it's self, a little later. Sometimes the unit will shut-off while I'm using it. That's not a good thing when docking. I think I have a bad switch but cannot rule out the motor completely because the power to the switch comes from the motor wiring system. . Unfortunately, the 3-wire side power switch I have is no longer made so I just purchased a momentary switch and an on-off switch that I will be installing soon. This should tell me if the problem was with the motor or the switch.
Best regards,
Ray

[Bob Noodat]

I have an issue with my unit that sounds very similar to yours. I have a 1998 Albin 28 TE with a side-power bow thruster. The light on my switch will be bright and then sometimes turn off completely and come back on, by it's self, a little later. Sometimes the unit will shut-off while I'm using it. That's not a good thing when docking. I think I have a bad switch but cannot rule out the motor completely because the power to the switch comes from the motor wiring system. . Unfortunately, the 3-wire side power switch I have is no longer made so I just purchased a momentary switch and an on-off switch that I will be installing soon. This should tell me if the problem was with the motor or the switch.
Best regards,
Ray

Sounds very much like a poor ground. If possible take a jumper cable straight to the battery negative terminal and check functioning again. WillieC will be along soon and solve it, once he has replaced his sunken 28TE.

[Maye Marie]

I would just clean all your connections at the motor. Its sounds like one has a little corrosion. Particularly working then going out. usually the resistance in the bad connection heats and goes completely away.

[flyboyjack]

Well after mucho trouble shooting and talking with Vetus,....They told us to remove the male plug from behind the control head and "jumper" from red to white. If it engages the motor and moves the bow, then jumper the red to blue to see if it again engages and moves the bow. I did and it did. New switch is on order. Found a guy in Ft Lauderdale with the best pricing.

[Bob Noodat]

Well done! Nice when there's a simple solution to something that has seemed a mystery.

[Norseman]

Good news.

New switch is on order. Found a guy in Ft Lauderdale with the best pricing.

Who is that? I live in Fort Lauderdale and need to know..

[Kimotee]

There is a pretty good series of four videos on YouTube for maintaining Vetus bow thrusters. All are excellent and well worth the 15 minutes or so. Excellent troubleshooting series for common issues. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvmwfCAHJ48 Just watched to determine how to change anode on our new to us 2009 Albin 28, after our marine services guy who was here yesterday told me there wasn't an anode on our unit. Hmmm, not using him for anything serious in the future.

[Norseman]

Been thinking about installing a new bow thruster: Looks like the Vetus 6012 is a direct replacement for the 5012 on my boat.
Been surfing the Internet for best price and found quite a spread, from $1,952 with free shipping up to $2,850.

Have anybody else done this swap?

[MadMoney]

Norseman - what are you looking to gain over your current thruster?

Anthony Warren
1999 28' Albin MadMoney

[Norseman]

Norseman - what are you looking to gain over your current thruster?

Anthony Warren
1999 28' Albin MadMoney

Nothing to gain except reliability, and a bit extra power.
Current thruster is 19 years old and has never been serviced, kind of makes me nervous.
(I was told that the oil has never been changed, but it should have been done at every haul out.)
The Vetus people claimed it would be a simple swap from the 5012 to the 6012, and for $1,852 including freight, it seems fairly inexpensive, especially if I sell the old thruster for $500 or whatever I can get for it.
One Vetus dealer however said some holes in the tunnel needs to be addressed and he estimated $3k for labor as they had to send
both an electrician and a fiberglass guy, and I had to pay for travel time among other things.
The same dealer quoted me $3K for the 6012, (That makes it $6k total) the same unit I can get for $1,852.
I call BS on it, hence my question if anybody has done this swap before?

[Bob Noodat]

One Vetus dealer however said some holes in the tunnel needs to be addressed and he estimated $3k for labor as they had to send both an electrician and a fiberglass guy, and I had to pay for travel time among other things.The same dealer quoted me $3K for the 6012, (That makes it $6k total) the same unit I can get for $1,852.
I call BS on it, hence my question if anybody has done this swap before?

Since we moved all our manufacturing to Asia, along with our industrial pollution, we have now entered an era of "added value". In general this means paying for unnecessary accessory services in order to maintain our GDP and not become a nation of food service and hospitality workers.