Mast Wiring Issues

by Bill B
(Florida)

When turning on masthead light the steaming and foredeck light also come on. I believe this to be a short but how do I trace it? There are three switches controlling each of the lights. When checked a week prior all worked fine now each switch will turn on all three lights. I assume there is a short somewhere and would like to know the best way to find it.

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Aug 22, 2026
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Mast Wiring Troubleshooting
by: John Payne

Shorts usually occur on mast circuits in any connection box or plug at mast base, mainly due to water ingress. The best solution is to disconnect each circuit and meter across each to find out and depending on the way it is wired whether the wires in the mast conduit also are somehow twisted together and shorted. This usually only applies to cases where halyards are also run with wires and no internal conduit is used.

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