Hoping you all can shorten my learning curve here. Last year, I purchased a brand new Princecraft 1436 jon boat... sadly, it never hit the water.

I need to wire it up for nav lights and accessory lights and I'm trying to get it done right. All of the information I've found on the internet is for much more complicated wiring projects than I am contemplating and I have zero basic knowledge on this subject so I can't really determine what is required vs what is nice to have.

All will run off a single deep cycle battery.

I want:

1. red/green low profile nav. light at bow and small white "anchor" light at stern - switch operated on a dedicated switch
2. Accessory Lights - 12" light bar and 2 x 4" LED spots - switch operated on a dedicated switch
3. Courtesy light - small LED strip light mounted to horizontal surface of seat to light boat deck - switch operated on a dedicated switch
4. Small bilge pump (internal float switch)

So, I believe I need:

1. 16 AWG marine grade primary wire in 2 colors and spade connectors
2. Switch panel with 3 (or more) rocker switches
3. Inline blade fuse

Do I need:

1. Relay (?)
2. Battery switch (?)

Also, how do I "ground" in an aluminum boat?

I know these may be stupid questions, but I am not too proud to admit ignorance and ask for help and I believe this place is one of the best around if you need information like this.

Thanks in advance,

You can get a distribution box that has the fuses in it. Makes the wire job neater and easier. I would put in a batterie switch yes. The spade connectors are only used on the distribution / fuse panel. After that you use but connectors that will heat shrink to the wire to make the connection waterproof. ( stops corrosion. ) No you don't have to ground the hull of the boat Unless you leave it in the water for the season, then you'll need anodes as well .... On the low amp LED lights you don't need relays ... maybe on the light bar depending on how much it draws. Look at what the switches you got are rated for ...

I am no expert but I’ve wired up a few boats like you describe. If your motor has electric start and is hooked to the battery it is most likely grounded to the boat. If battery isn’t hooked to the motor I personally wouldn’t ground it to the boat. I just run ground wire to a distribution board or right to light with pos +.

Your list looks good to me although heavier gauge wire never hurts. I like to run wires through hose or pex especially where they might rub on boat. Also tape a few extra fuses on the hose near your in line fuses. You can also get a three way push pull switch that would power different sets of lights from one switch depending on how far you pull out the button.

Never mind, do what scuba said^^^ lol

One thing I did when I wired up my jon boat was to use a 'fishtape' to run the wiring up to the bow light. A bit of a PIA to get some twine up through the siderail at the top of the gunwale but it was worth it when I was done. No dangly loose wires , clean installation.

1. Check your state laws on this you may need a 3 way switch so you can run just the bow or both. I wouldn't even bother with a fuse in this line. 16GA wire
2. Just need a fused on/off switch for this. Might be quite a bit of draw 12GA wire
3. Also just a fused on/off switch 12GA wire ( or even 14GA)
4. If it has an automatic float switch you do not need a switch for it, unless you want one. Definitely fuse this line. 12GA wire

Your Negative terminal on the battery is your ground you do not need to ground it to the boat. Run a pos and a neg to the back of your switch panel with 12GA or larger.
Also I would not go with spade connectors for the connections I would use butt connectors that have shrink tubing.

I run a red and black + and - to every light.

all the grounds/- come back to under my console were my steering wheel is they all got soldered and heat shrink tubed tot he run back to the battery

I have a master switch that turns on the power to my power distribution panel turn that off and nothing but the motor runs and doesn't need a battery to run
my distribution panel has a Led volt meter built into it and it is a slow draw but handy to have as I can see the condition of my battery

I run a trolling motor it is a self resetting circuit breaker , at the battery and wires run directly to the plug at the bow

for internal lights I used truck marker lights red led one in the back one in the bow and one under the console

for the required nav lights a red/green at the bow and a white at the stern
we need to be able to run bow and stern while moving and stern only while anchored 3 position switch

as soon a my master switch is on my gps/sonar is also on that was another small load I wanted to be able to shut off

my boat was a complete rebuild job and has very minimal electronics a little aluminum fishing boat I put all new floors in

my dads boat is a 30 foot fiberglass fishing boat for the great lakes , he keeps in a slip , getting all the electronics off for him would have been a much bigger job , he runs a battery switch at the batteries and has a battery charger maintainer he plugs into shore power at his slip

salt air vs fresh water the salt is much crueler to boats , electronics and connections , my dads boat came from FL and we were litterally using damp rags to wipe crystalized salt out of the overhead electronics box where the radios are.

I still hate bad connections so soldered is the way for me , then sealed up with shrink tube and tape

I also have the aerator pump for the live well but wish it was a bilge pump I mostly use my live well as dry storage and have a plug in the overflow to prevent water coming in
it just puts the weight in the wrong place in such a small boat

Thank you everyone, this has been very helpful so far. Just a couple points that weren't made clear above:

1. Motor will be a 15hp honda OB - no electric start, pull cord every time
2. Trolling motor is a transom mount Minn Kota - just clips to the battery with alligator clips.
3. Battery and trolling motor will be disconnected and removed from the boat after use to prevent theft

Not sure if that changes anybody's info above

yes that changes my answer , I would use one of the pre made battery boxes with the power distribution built in and circuit breakers built in or I would build my own

here is a pre made or I would build my own
https://www.amazon.com/Newport-Vessels-Trolling-Battery-Center/dp/B01AE2TG7G?ref_=ast_sto_dp

I would wire your lights to a flat 4 type connector like you use for a trailer lights
that would give you a ground , power for your red/green , power for your white and power for your bilge pump in one simple pug

I would also wire your trolling motor with a standard trolling motor plug and make it easy to disconnect but not have exposed clamps that can fall off or have something land across the terminals

Then as you find more things you want to power like a GPS/sonar you can just add connectors like this and color code them with some paint or electrical tape typically the transom has some wood that you can mount the cables to hang down from so that they won't lay in the wet bottom of the boat and your connectors will all hang down nice and allow you to set your battery box in , plug in the connectors and go quickly and easily
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074VS2DG...a1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

or just have them each be hot all the time on a fused circuit off the battery , then any of your electical devices like fish finder or such can get power

your spot light can plug into the cigarette lighter plug , charge your phone off the battery box

put a battery charger maintainer in the box with the battery and just have the plug stick out so you plug it into an extension cord in your garage when you are at home

https://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-SC1300-Automatic-Battery-Maintainer/dp/B07894CFCR/ref=sr_1_43?crid=2WKH6FIPPXBIX&keywords=battery+charger+maintainer+12v&qid=1679339014&sprefix=battery+charger+main%2Caps%2C134&sr=8-43

Make sure to consult Canada's version of the Coast Guard for their requirements.
I have a bow mount trolling motor and I installed a weather proof receptical to plug it in, also for spot lite and other equipment.

it looks quite comparable to the US over 16 foot requirments
https://tc.canada.ca/en/marine-transportation/marine-safety/mandatory-safety-equipment

my boat is 14.9 and doesn't need all of these things but I operator on the Mississippi so I have a horn wired in also, lights , throwable in the US our throwable doesn't have to have a line attached and coast guard certified seat cushions count

I have a fire extinguisher , it is a good idea and I fished a tournament where it was a requirement at check-in
a tip on the extinguisher mount it horizontally , they compact the dry chem agent over time if they are vertical
the Jeep guys figured out if they mounted them horizontal it didn't compact and make them useless because they rock back and forth enough.

For navigation lights get a rocker switch . Up is both lights (front and back) on, Middle is OFF . Down is back only. That's how my bassboat came from the factory .As mention fuse panel mounted on the underside of something inside the boat .

One of these or similar will make your life easier

click here