Ravi
Well-Known Member
Hi.
I am planning to have a few electrical projects on my 30' Gibsea this winter and I am hoping for some advice and suggestions. I will rely on someone suitably competent to manage and check the work but I have been trying to read up on the subject. Although I now understand that electricity is not made by angry spirits, I am still struggling to get my head around how the many possible electrical boat systems work together. But, having lived on the boat this year, at least, I think I know what I am trying to achieve.
My boat has the basic setup. 1 x Leisure + 1 x Starter battery and an (A/B/Both/Off) battery switch.
Project #1 is to fit a battery meter that will allow me to see if I am abusing the batteries, before I do them any serious damage. Fitting a 2 way battery meter is, hopefully, not beyond me. (I am used to the old analog meters but they all seem to be digital, now.)
Project #2 is to fit a small (50W or 80W) solar panel + regulator to keep the batteries topped up over the winter and save me from having to run the engine for charging. (Although my battery needs are modest, I find myself running the engine to charge the leisure battery when I am holed up for a week or two.) Although the leisure battery is the main issue, I think it makes sense to have a regulator with dual outputs so that it can keep the starter battery healthy over the winter. Does that make sense?
It occurs to me that a solar regulator must have a voltmeter, built in, and so there might be a regulator unit out there which will do for both these jobs. (Although it occurs to me that the Regulator would normally be tucked away in the battery compartment and that the meter display needs to be easily visible. Perhaps, there is a regulator with a remote display?)
So, I think that I am looking for a regulator with two inputs (in case I find room on Eris for another solar panel) + two battery outputs + a battery meter display.
If you have experience of any devices that you can recommend (or not recommend!) that does both, or either, of these jobs, that would be very helpful.
My tinkering with electrics, this winter, is likely to stop there but I wonder if this might be the time to put in a solution which also has a couple of other electrical 'nice to have' things. The 'nice to have' things include - Project #3 - A 'wired in' shore powered battery charger to use in the marina.
The thinking behind this is that the fast /constant charging from shore power would mean that I could spend my marina stays dancing to the CD player, drinking ice cold beer from the fridge under the glare of all the cabin lights. Something the limited solar charging won't allow.
Would it be possible to simultaneously charge the leisure battery from shore power and use the 12V system in this way, without damaging the battery?
I am sure that I could survive without this extra nicety, but it would make staying in the marina a bit more comfortable.
I am wary of making my "sailing" boat look like an electricity substation but if there is a gizmo that did all these things, then it would seem sensible to go the whole electronic hog - as long as it isn't disproportionately more expensive.
Is there any such thing as a device which, in addition to the two solar inputs and two battery charging outputs, also has a 240V shorepower input? Oh, and a battery meter display, as well.
Thanks in advance for any advice and tips.
Rav.
I am planning to have a few electrical projects on my 30' Gibsea this winter and I am hoping for some advice and suggestions. I will rely on someone suitably competent to manage and check the work but I have been trying to read up on the subject. Although I now understand that electricity is not made by angry spirits, I am still struggling to get my head around how the many possible electrical boat systems work together. But, having lived on the boat this year, at least, I think I know what I am trying to achieve.
My boat has the basic setup. 1 x Leisure + 1 x Starter battery and an (A/B/Both/Off) battery switch.
Project #1 is to fit a battery meter that will allow me to see if I am abusing the batteries, before I do them any serious damage. Fitting a 2 way battery meter is, hopefully, not beyond me. (I am used to the old analog meters but they all seem to be digital, now.)
Project #2 is to fit a small (50W or 80W) solar panel + regulator to keep the batteries topped up over the winter and save me from having to run the engine for charging. (Although my battery needs are modest, I find myself running the engine to charge the leisure battery when I am holed up for a week or two.) Although the leisure battery is the main issue, I think it makes sense to have a regulator with dual outputs so that it can keep the starter battery healthy over the winter. Does that make sense?
It occurs to me that a solar regulator must have a voltmeter, built in, and so there might be a regulator unit out there which will do for both these jobs. (Although it occurs to me that the Regulator would normally be tucked away in the battery compartment and that the meter display needs to be easily visible. Perhaps, there is a regulator with a remote display?)
So, I think that I am looking for a regulator with two inputs (in case I find room on Eris for another solar panel) + two battery outputs + a battery meter display.
If you have experience of any devices that you can recommend (or not recommend!) that does both, or either, of these jobs, that would be very helpful.
My tinkering with electrics, this winter, is likely to stop there but I wonder if this might be the time to put in a solution which also has a couple of other electrical 'nice to have' things. The 'nice to have' things include - Project #3 - A 'wired in' shore powered battery charger to use in the marina.
The thinking behind this is that the fast /constant charging from shore power would mean that I could spend my marina stays dancing to the CD player, drinking ice cold beer from the fridge under the glare of all the cabin lights. Something the limited solar charging won't allow.
Would it be possible to simultaneously charge the leisure battery from shore power and use the 12V system in this way, without damaging the battery?
I am sure that I could survive without this extra nicety, but it would make staying in the marina a bit more comfortable.
I am wary of making my "sailing" boat look like an electricity substation but if there is a gizmo that did all these things, then it would seem sensible to go the whole electronic hog - as long as it isn't disproportionately more expensive.
Is there any such thing as a device which, in addition to the two solar inputs and two battery charging outputs, also has a 240V shorepower input? Oh, and a battery meter display, as well.
Thanks in advance for any advice and tips.
Rav.
