Balmar MC-614 regulator no charging at idle 700 rpm

[skippeer]

I have a Balmar regulator on a VP D2-55 with an alternator installed by previous owner (100 Amp).
The pattern is that on idle 700 RPM no charging at all, at 800-900 RPM the alternator starts to charge the AGM batteries and at 1 500 - 2 000 RPM it is charging as expected.

Maybe it is by design, not to load the engine at idle mode.
I remember on my previous boat did I have a Sterling Power Alternator to Battery, and I could hear when the alternator kicked in, the engine RPM were suddenly lower due to the alternator load.

I have tried to figure out what to customize on the Balmar regulator but I failed to find the key parameter setup.

What is preventing the charge at idle 700 RPM?
Is it the Balmar regulator or the alternator?

Any ideas?


Rgds
Stefan

 

[Yngmar]

There's a diagnostic LED display on the maxcharge controller, which (with the manual in hand) tells you pretty much everything that is going on with the unit, including which stage it's in or if there is an error preventing charging (such as alternator over temperature).

There's also a bunch of settings, including a initial delay (default 45 seconds) and then a ramp-up time (default 60 seconds), at least on our MC-612, which is probably very similar in use. There's no direct rpm related setting.

So note down all a full cycle of the LED display codes and then look them up in the manual to see what's going on, and also check the settings. That should get you an idea of what is going on.

 

[pvb]

This is a bit surprising, as the D2-55 engine was fitted as standard with a decent 115A alternator. Wonder why the previous owner decided to fit a smaller alternator? All you can do is download the MC-614 manual (if you don't already have a paper copy) and go through the settings.

 

[earlybird]

An alternator will not charge below a certain speed, and 700rpm is a low idling speed. If the alternator is not the original, it's also possible that the pulley ratio is not optimum. An advantage of an alternator is that it can be safely driven at high rpm, allowing high ratios, esp. on diesel engines.

 

[skippeer]

Have read the manual several times and also recorded the display info on the regulator for 2 minutes.
On my vacation I can read it again and check the video I recorded on my phone.

I can only guess why the previous owner swapped alternator:
* alternator failure
* or more likely that the new alternator was easier to integrate with the Balmar regulator (both devices was replaced the same year according to the contract specification).

The pattern is the same after 15 minutes or after running the engine/loading for 2 hours at 1500-200 RPM, no charging at idle before I shutdown the engine.

 

[VicS]

An alternator will not charge below a certain speed, and 700rpm is a low idling speed. If the alternator is not the original, it's also possible that the pulley ratio is not optimum. An advantage of an alternator is that it can be safely driven at high rpm, allowing high ratios, esp. on diesel engines.

Good point. According to the owners manual it should be 850 ± 25.

Good point also about the pulley size

 

[pvb]

The pattern is the same after 15 minutes or after running the engine/loading for 2 hours at 1500-200 RPM, no charging at idle before I shutdown the engine.

Is it a Balmar alternator? The specs for the 100A Balmar alternator suggest it needs up to 1500rpm (alternator rpm) to start charging. If it charges OK at normal cruising revs, I wouldn't worry too much.

 

[skippeer]

Guys, thanks for your valued input.
The alternator is a "no name", not a Balmar alternator.

I will leave the engine idle RPM setting because when I engage the gear it is a sound that might increase if the idle RPM is higher (even though recommended by VP). The sound might be normal due to the design of it.
(My previous boat did have a Yanmar 3YM30 with almost no sound when engaging the gear.)

I like the Balmar regulator options, for the moment everything is working fine at cruising speed so I won't change the setup.
Last year when going back from Orkney there were no wind during a long period of time so the engine was running for 2 days, arrived to Norway with batteries in good shape.

So again, thanks for your help.


Rgds,
Stefan

Sailing vacation starts on Monday, will sail from Gothenburg (Swedish westcoast) down to the Baltic Sea and visit small harbours in Denmark and Germany.