Thrusters not Working

[Dan the Man]

Closing on a 2002 390 with single Yanmar 370 and bow and stern thruster. The stern thruster only works in one direction, just makes a clicking sound in the non working direction, the motor does not spin. Had or heard of that problem?

 

[OldDan1943]

Closing on a 2002 390 with single Yanmar 370 and bow and stern thruster. The stern thruster only works in one direction, just makes a clicking sound in the non working direction, the motor does not spin. Had or heard of that problem?

Dont be shy. Tell the owner, condition of sale, stern thruster must work properly.

 

[Cold Duck]

Usually thruster has 2 solenoids one port one stbd. Ijust bought and replaced a dead solenoid on bow thruster. Minor job. To test, just short out the solenoid. If thruster works that’s your problem. Always good to fix something on boat for under $100 LOL

 

[jllehman86]

Troubleshooting thrusters

I just went through a diagnosis of a thruster problem and determined it was a bad controller at the helm. I was able to replace it myself and it is now working like a charm.

This document is a good starting point to determine what is wrong: https://www.imtra.com/Portals/0/docs/SP_Troubleshooting_Guide_pre-IPC_4-wire.pdf

I also got on the phone with QUICK tech support and they were able to walk me through the analysis of what was wrong.

There are only a few major components for thrusters: Motor, solenoid, sheer pin, controller, battery and fuse.

A few common problems:
Won't run at all could be the battery or fuse
Runs one side but not the other could be the solenoid or the controller
Motor runs but doesn't thrust probably means the shear pin

Good luck!

Jon
2019 Greenline 39 "Gratitude"

 

[O C Diver]

Closing on a 2002 390 with single Yanmar 370 and bow and stern thruster. The stern thruster only works in one direction, just makes a clicking sound in the non working direction, the motor does not spin. Had or heard of that problem?

As mentioned, could be all sorts or electrical issues.

The stern thruster is probably a solenoid of control issue. They are almost always DC motors. If the motor runs in one direction, reversing the power cables makes it run the other way, likely the solenoid for the opposite rotation.

As far as the bow thruster:
Is it on a separate battery from the stern thruster? The owner and broker may not know, so self sleuthing or a professional may be necessary to determine if there is a battery hidden up front. While I would want to solve or resolve the issue before the sale, most of the cost of adding a bow thruster to a boat is the tunnel installation, not the actual thruster.

Ted

 

[Arc]

Although contractors can just go bad in one direction, it is important to carefully inspect the motor. That contactor may have been overheated. That means the winding of the motor may also been overheated. Remove at lease 1 brush and look at the commutator.