Alternator wiring to Sterling A to B charger .. help please

[Albert Ross]

This is the Hitachi 70 Amp alternator on my Jeanneau 36i

I want to wire a Sterling Alternator to Battery (AB1280) charger to it

I have to take a wire from B+ and "remove the battery voltage sense wire" if it has one .. what would that look like?

Can you tell me what all the parts marked 1 - 7 are and especially where is B+ ?

Thanks.

 

[pvb]

Looks like item 7 is your B+ terminal.

Item 6 is a connector with two spade terminals at right angles. If you view these so they look like a capital T, the horizontal top stroke of the T is the voltage sensing connection.

 

[pampas]

with this bit of kit, I think it says in the manual to sense the voltage from the battery (terminal) that you consider essential, in my case the house battery.

 

[VicS]

Looks like item 7 is your B+ terminal.

Item 6 is a connector with two spade terminals at right angles. If you view these so they look like a capital T, the horizontal top stroke of the T is the voltage sensing connection.

Isn't 2 The B+ connection. Heaviest cable carrying the full alternator output and well insulated with a "boot"

 

[Albert Ross]

Thanks.
Item 6 (on looking at a higher magnification photo) has orange, blue and magenta wires to it .. all quite small diameter.
What are these ?
Thanks.

I thought 2 was the B+ but, if so, why is it black not red?

 

[VicS]

Thanks.
Item 6 (on looking at a higher magnification photo) has orange, blue and magenta wires to it .. all quite small diameter.
What are these ?
Thanks.

I thought 2 was the B+ but, if so, why is it black not red?

Perhps 2 is the negative then if so look for a similarly heavy red wire.


Dunno about the sensing.

Essential IMO to refer to the engine wiring diagram

 

[VicS]

with this bit of kit, I think it says in the manual to sense the voltage from the battery (terminal) that you consider essential, in my case the house battery.

The manual says

Important: If your alternator has got its own battery voltage sense wire, then this has
to be removed from the battery terminal and should be connected to the alternator’s
own B+ output instead. This will prevent contradictory regulation between the
alternator and the alternator-to-battery charger.

 

[d4raffy]

Does this help ? http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/f14/alternator-hitachi-to-prestolite-swap-out-130609.html

I would say .....
B+ is 2 check voltage with multimeter tho
1 3 5 is tachometer and its clamp
7 neg - check continuity to ground with multimeter
4 looks like a sense wire
T plug is excite and lamp as per my diag
good luck

 

[pvb]

Isn't 2 The B+ connection. Heaviest cable carrying the full alternator output and well insulated with a "boot"

No, 7 is the B+, also insulated with a boot.

 

[William_H]

I find this thread and question very confusing. As I understand it the AtoB charger is simply a battery charger that runs on 12v. As such it would be connected to the 12v engine battery after the isolation switch. The charger operates like any other load on the engine battery and hence alternator. The entire domestic services electrical system positive is then isolated from the engine battery and associated sytems. The domestic system is connected to the domestic battery to which the charger is connected. So battery sensing for the charger should go to the domestic battery terminal.
In other words there should be no need or reason to do anything to the alternator or its wiring. This is the big selling point of the AtoB charger. Or am I missing something? olewill

 

[VicS]

I find this thread and question very confusing. As I understand it the AtoB charger is simply a battery charger that runs on 12v. As such it would be connected to the 12v engine battery after the isolation switch. The charger operates like any other load on the engine battery and hence alternator. The entire domestic services electrical system positive is then isolated from the engine battery and associated sytems. The domestic system is connected to the domestic battery to which the charger is connected. So battery sensing for the charger should go to the domestic battery terminal.
In other words there should be no need or reason to do anything to the alternator or its wiring. This is the big selling point of the AtoB charger. Or am I missing something? olewill

Sorry William you need to read the installation and instruction manual.

But in brief the input to the AtoB chrger connects to the alternator output. And the outputs from it connect to the two batteries.

It fully loads the alternator and provides multistage charging of the domestic battery and standard charging of the engine battery. Although it does so by switching between them.

 

[charles_reed]

Sorry William you need to read the installation and instruction manual.

But in brief the input to the AtoB chrger connects to the alternator output. And the outputs from it connect to the two batteries.

It fully loads the alternator and provides multistage charging of the domestic battery and standard charging of the engine battery. Although it does so by switching between them.

Will was, I suspect, soothed by the sales blurb of the A2B unit making it seem so very simple.
I did toy with the idea of fitting one, but gave up as it's more likely to exacerbate the problem of self-baked alternators than cure it. Besides it's quite a premium to pay for an inelegant solution - convert ac to dc (alternator), then ac back to dc (A2B charger). Got to be some losses there.
Mind you I'd probably go for the C-Tek single outlet unit rather than the Sterling twin outlet.

 

[d4raffy]

an inelegant solution - convert ac to dc (alternator), then ac back to dc (A2B charger). Got to be some losses there.

Where are all these conversions taking place ??? It's DC out the alternator then the A2B feeds DC straight to the Start and Service banks as required. ....

It's simple because you can throw on any Alternator without having to crack it open and add extra wiring to the brushes for external control or spend a fortune on some other expensive alternators.
BUT it does make the Hitachi Alt work v.hard and it can get hot quickly .... So you need the temp safety sensors in place.....

 

[Albert Ross]

This is the Hitachi 70 Amp alternator on my Jeanneau 36i

I want to wire a Sterling Alternator to Battery (AB1280) charger to it

I have to take a wire from B+ and "remove the battery voltage sense wire" if it has one .. what would that look like?

Can you tell me what all the parts marked 1 - 7 are and especially where is B+ ?

Thanks.

... to get us back to my original question .. can anyone name all the parts that I have numbered and identify B+ ?

Here is the boat's wiring diagram .. but it doesnt help me a lot .. as it doesnt show the minor intricacies of the alternator ..

 

[VicS]

... to get us back to my original question .. can anyone name all the parts that I have numbered and identify B+ ?

Here is the boat's wiring diagram .. but it doesnt help me a lot .. as it doesnt show the minor intricacies of the alternator ..

I cannot read the labels on the digram

I dont have a key to their meanings.

So no!

But it clearly shows a 2 battery system . Relay or VSR. ???? controlled.

Why, therefore, do you want to fit an AtoB?
It seems totally unnecessary and complicated by the existing system.

Dont do it. Save your money.

 

[VicS]

Where are all these conversions taking place ??? It's DC out the alternator then the A2B feeds DC straight to the Start and Service banks as required. ....
.....

AC to DC by the alternator rectifier

DC to AC and back to DC again in the AtoB

 

[ianj99]

Its probably as easy and a lot cheaper to fit a Digital Alternator regulator (£99)and split charge diodes or VSR than this item.

 

[d4raffy]

DC to AC and back to DC again in the AtoB

Why do you think the A2B does this ? It's DC in DC out.


Flat1 - my suggestions earlier in the thread - a cheap multimeter will tell you (with the engine running) which is the main B+ Lug - to be sure....best I can do

 

[pvb]

... to get us back to my original question .. can anyone name all the parts that I have numbered and identify B+ ?

Here is the boat's wiring diagram .. but it doesnt help me a lot .. as it doesnt show the minor intricacies of the alternator ..

I've already explained in post #2 which are the two connections you need to know. The others aren't really important for you, but item 2 is B-, item 3 is a cable clip, item 4 is a negative feed, and item 5 is the tachometer output.

You need to follow the Sterling instructions very carefully, although they are rather badly written. Once you've wired the A-to-B charger, you must check that the alternator is generating and, if it isn't you'll need to add an ignition feed wire. This goes from terminal 17 on the ignition key switch to the "ignition feed" terminal in the A-to-B charger (shown as 4 on Sterling's diagram). If wiring to the key switch is complicated, you can alternatively wire it to the starter relay (the white wire on the starter relay).

Edit: Looking at your boat wiring diagram, it seems you have a relay to charge the domestic batteries automatically when the engine's running, and disconnect them when the engine's off. This is item 73 on your diagram. You'll need to disconnect this, and connect the domestic output of the A-to-B charger direct to the domestic batteries (using appropriately heavy cable, as specified in Sterling's instructions).

 

[VicS]

Why do you think the A2B does this ? It's DC in DC out.

It may be DC in and DC out but how do you imagine the electronic jiggery-pokery inside manages to do what is described in the Product Information pdf, namely:

"The A2B achieves this performance by pulling down the voltage on the alternator by putting a ‘load’ on it. This low voltage (at high current) is amplified to a 4 stage charging profile at the domestic bank"