← All help pages

Measuring aboard

Wire size depends on how far the current has to travel. Until a run has a length, its gauge shows "pending — needs run length". As soon as you enter one, the gauge and the fuse check are worked out again.

What to measure

• Measure the run, not the straight line. Follow the path the wire will actually take: up and over bulkheads, along the cable runs, round corners. Add the slack you need at each end for a drip loop and the terminal.
• One way only. Enter the length of that one wire from end to end. The return wire is its own run with its own length.
• The fuse distance, where it matters. For a fuse at a battery or other power source, also note how far the fuse is from the source terminal. The checks need it for the 7-inch placement rule, and they say "not checked" until they have it.

Entering lengths

• Open Measure from the Vessel menu (on a phone, from the bottom bar). Each run is a row or a card.
• Choose Feet or Metres. The worksheet converts for you, and the design always stores feet.
• Type the length and press Enter. It saves and moves to the next run. On a phone, leaving the field saves it too.
• The line at the top counts what is still to do: "N of M measured · K still need a length". It says every run is measured only when every run has a length.

Measured, estimated and confirmed

A length you enter is recorded as UNVERIFIED until you confirm it. Anything worked out from it is unconfirmed too. When you are sure of a length, confirm it in the design's Issues list on a field basis ("checked on the boat"), and its tier becomes FIELD.

On the drawings a wire shows "22 ft measured", "22 ft est" or "length not measured", so an estimate is never mistaken for a measurement.

Tips

• Use a long tape or a pull-string and measure it afterwards. Rounding up is safer than rounding down.
• Measure runs in the order the worksheet lists them, so Enter carries you through.
• Note anything you find that the design does not show yet, such as an extra load or a different route. Add it to the design, or chat about it with the design assistant.