Trojan Boat Forum

My boat came with a non-functioning Powerwinch 603. I removed it and connected it directly to a battery and it works.

I then connected the switch to the battery was able to get it to pull line in and release in the down position. So far, so good....

Here's where I'm a little fuzzy. Two of the switch wires go behind the helm and connect to a "circuit breaker" which match pics of what I see online. In turn, the breaker connects to a larger relay/solenoid which I don't get any power from while the engines are off.

Is a windlass normally wired so that it only operates when the engines are running? This would explain why only the ground side is good. Is this the starter solenoid?

If true, maybe I just have a bad windlass circuit breaker which is a cheap fix.

thanks,
Bob

The relay should be wired to 12v power ie battery not engine side. I'd move the hot side of the reply and go from there. my .02 cents

I should work with the engines off . the starter sol is on the engine Not at the helm.

I have no idea what this thing does? It looks new too although stuff is pretty wel protected behind the helm. I'm going to see if I get 12v w/ the engines running, maybe I can narrow it down.

In the meantime, I'll move the windlass breaker to the 12v side and see if I get power up at the bow.

Have you found your problem yet? My first check would be to see if I had 12 volts to the coil on the relay when I pushed the button for it to work. If you have 12 volts there and the relay does not pick up then you have a bad relay. That will test the control side.
Now the power side, Check to see if you have 12 volts on the incoming side of the relay. If not then your problem is a power problem.
Many times they put a fuse in line to protect the winch from operating. Look for a fuse. I am suspicious of your breaker. Do you have power leaving the breaker? NO, then check for power coming to the breaker?
If no then it is not connected to the power source which should be a main DC buss. Or a battery.
OH, make sure you turn the breaker off and make sure it resets then put it back on. Sometimes a breaker will look like it is on when it is tripped.
If it is wired so the engines have to run , that makes me think he who put it in, has set a safety to keep you from draining the batteries while using the windlass.

over the next few days. I'm getting hauled out today. The mystery to me right now is the "soleniod" behind the helm that's connected to a terminal block with a bunch of stuff connected - one of them the windlass relay.

I don't have 12v coming out, just ground. I'm going to take your advice and move the windlass relay to another 12v source and test the switch that way.

thanks,
Bob

I'm surprised your 603 has a relay. The ones I have seen run the main windlass power through the dash switch. Maybe someone added the relay. A good idea.

The +12 volt power that runs the windlass should be straight from a battery or one of the main power busses in the boat. The older Powerwinch motors aren't as big as other winches because they are geared down, but I believe the all the wiring between the battery and the winch (including the negative side) needs to be a minimum of #6 gauge. Heavier is better. I have #2 gauge on my Lewmar.

The switch side of the relay may be wired from an accessory terminal which is only hot when the ignition is turned on. Some prefer it this way so that the winch will only run when the alternator is charging, and it could be considered a safety feature preventing kids from playing with the windlass when the boat is at anchor or in a slip.

Bottom line is, the heavy red wire connected to the relay should be hot all the time (assuming your battery switches are on) and the thin red wire is not going to be hot unless you are throwing the windlass switch (and, sometimes, the ignition switch needs to be on).

Most windlass ( every one I have seen) Have relays But they are at the windlass . to run the full power thru a switch is asking alot and you would need a large switch .

After looking at the power winch site I find the do not call for a relay . I sure would use one .Even though they (power winch) do not draw a lot of pose avg. 8-12 amps with 25 amp breaker

The power winch may not be the oem windlass and they use the oem wiring where replace it , or did it better the power winch calls for . the Oem windlass may have been a GOOD and the draw more and call for a 40 to 60 amp breaker

There is two systems here when it comes to the windlass. One is the control system that has the up and down buttons, the relay and that is about it. I do know some people have a small fuse inline on the switches to protect the line if the relay coil should short. The fuse would blow and keep the relay from catching fire. The power for the winch goes from the main power source to the relay contacts. When the contacts are pulled in by the coil then the main voltage and current are passed to the windlass and it raises or lowers the windlass. That is a simple scenario of the operation of the system.
The up and down buttons ( control system) only operates the coil of the relay. The purpose of the relay carry a lot of current to the windlass without putting it through the up and down buttons. Who wants to put their hand on a button that is carrying 50 amps. Not me.