Battery problem Ionian South

[Garold]

We are in Argostoli and our house batteries have started playing up (for the last couple of weeks) - The low power warning light on the inverter flashes if we try to use any ac power, the battery monitor seems to show charging but then the % changes abruptly, and the fridge went off last night. The battery monitor is still currently showing 85% so I think that we shouldn’t be having any of these problems.

I’m not at all technical, but I suspect that after nearly three years of semi live aboard our house batteries may be shot. They were new when we started.

I think that I need someone to check them, then perhaps to change them.

There don’t seem to be many boat service facilities here other than a few ‘connected’ individuals who I can’t be sure of. I’m thinking that if we move up to Lefkas, I’m most likely to find the services that we need. Or Preveza if no joy in Lefkas.

Any advice please regarding the best place to head towards?

Thanks

Garold

 

[duncan99210]

Nidri/Vliho and Ionian Boat Assistance (here http://www.ibagreece.com/) is a good starting place. If they have capacity available they’ll be able to look at the problem and supply whatever’s needed to sort it. Also cheaper on the hook/IBA pontoon than in Lefkas Marina.

 

[sailaboutvic]

As Duncan said IBA , you may find you just have one battery that shorting out, but if you not got a meter to test then maybe best to let someone's take a look .
If you have a meter and in no rush , it be worst remove all except one to keep you going for a while and check voltage make a note and re check in 24 hour and see if any have drop .

 

[Garold]

Thank you for the quick response.

Looks like Nidri May be our next destination after some hunting to check for loose cables etc.

Garold

 

[Garold]

Any thoughts on battery life?

Is three years normal battery life if using boat for about 7-8 months a year? Or does this indicate that we have another problem?

Garold

 

[vyv_cox]

Any thoughts on battery life?

Is three years normal battery life if using boat for about 7-8 months a year? Or does this indicate that we have another problem?

Garold

My experience is that's about normal. People will tell you they get 10 years, but not with a fridge running 24/7 taking the overnight voltage down to 12.3 or so. My current Winner Solar deep cycle batteries claim 600 cycles, which is not far off 3 years at your usage.

 

[sailaboutvic]

I only buy sealed acid batteries, nothing too expensive, as you may or may not know , we asr full time live aboard ,
I have batteries last ad long as five years , and I have the odd one die within two .
In the pass if one dies I just remove it or replace it with another one if all the other battery's are ok .
I think the trick is , not to let them run down too much , mine never get any lower the need 75% .

 

[Garold]

Thanks again for the quick responses and the info. Maybe they are at the end of their lives.

I have emailed IBA and will see if they can take a look this week.

After much digging in the aft cabin, I have uncovered the batteries, and the cabling and fastenings all looks undisturbed - just like new in fact.

It’s much easier when broken things actually look broken.

Garold.

 

[ZigZaging]

Hi, we had a sudden failure of our 3yr old house battery in Argostoli a couple of weeks ago (might be something in the water) anyway found a replacement 235amp hr sealed lead acid at a very reasonable price from MODILE BATTERY +302671300590 it's short walk from the town quay and delivered it onto the boat. Might be of help should you need a replacement..

 

[hoped4]

Paul Brook of YES based in Nidri is very experienced in electrical and mechanical too . He responded very quickly to our problem. Much quicker than others. Very efficient at diagnosing problems. That’s what we found as a satisfied customer. I understand the electrical shop on the main drag is able to supply batteries etc but also try Nidri Marine. YES number is - 0030 6946098600. Www.yeslefkada.com

 

[Garold]

Thanks again for the continuing replies.

We have managed to arrange for IBA to take a look at our battery bank next Tuesday.

As always, just after I confirmed the appt our neighbour has just told me that they had particularly poor service from IBS and recommended that we shouldn’t use them. So now I’m in a dilemma because if I use them and it goes wrong I know that I was forewarned.

I need my batteries checking before I shell out for new ones. And no one ever gets 100% positive reviews.

So i suppose that I shall just be on my guard.

Garold

 

[sailaboutvic]

You could say the same for joe at CYS , expats around them part seen to have a habit for getting a bad name for them self .
If you really want to use someone who know what he doing you would have to go to lefkes and contact metronix it's one guy I not heard one bad word about , it really knows his stuff .
I think you going to find your batteries are shot and could save your self 50 or 60 € on someone just to tell you that and put it toward a new set of batteries
If you can find a spot on the quay at lefkas there a few shops where you can buy batteries, putting them on isn't rocket science, and if you not done it , it's about you did .
Shame I not around I would had taken a look for you .

 

[Garold]

Thanks for the reassurance Vic.

I will keep all the suggested extra contact details in reserve in case we need them. Since we are new to this area local info is much appreciated.

We’ve used many service people elsewhere in the past - some good and some bad. However, sometimes when we’ve passed the details of the best ones on to our friends they’ve then had a poor experience. So sometimes I’ve found that you just have to try people for a small job first in order to make your own opinion. Even the good service people have bad days.

I think we will give the IBA guys a go at least for testing the batteries and checking for any other problems. That should give me some idea of what we need to do next.

As I speak to more people it seems more likely that the problems we are noticing are just our house batteries dying slowly. I think because the years have passed by so quickly, I feel that they are still new.

This may be a wake up call for us that boat systems have a much shorter lifespan when you are aboard 6 or 7 months a year.

Garold

 

[nickf]

Paul Brook of YES based in Nidri is very experienced in electrical and mechanical too . He responded very quickly to our problem. Much quicker than others. Very efficient at diagnosing problems. That’s what we found as a satisfied customer. I understand the electrical shop on the main drag is able to supply batteries etc but also try Nidri Marine. YES number is - 0030 6946098600. Www.yeslefkada.com

+1

 

[Hardmy]

So how did you solved your problem in the end, Garold?

I hope you didn't try to seek help on Kefalonia. This spring, at a time I wasn't on the boat, my parents have been totally ripped off in Sami by a guy called Maravegias. He charged €660 (without receipt of course) for removing and reinstalling 3 batteries and wire a temporary battery charger (for which I paid and organised the delivery to Sami). All-in max a day of work (and I'm really generous). They felt pressured by him and they didn't now how to deal with this situation so they paid in the end.

I spoke with him several times over the phone, and tried to appeal to his conscience, that it is not fair to exploit somebody's weakness. But without success. I learnt afterwards that he is a car mechanic, and that Maravegias Marine Service is being run by his son.

On a positive note, I had very good experiences with Pantelis Lolis from Energy Systems Lolis in Preveza and Simon Trippier from Syvota Yacht Services. Both are so skilled, that they are high in demand and it's not easy to get them on your boat. Especially Pantelis, is good with complex electrical problems.

 

[Garold]

We’ve had the batteries tested by IBA and we have two batteries that have failed (out of total of nine - two bowthruster, one start, six house batteries) and three or four more that are reading close to a fail.

The bowthruster batteries were the best and so we aren’t touching them. We’ve decided to replace all the rest since they are all the same brand, type, and age.

After much consideration, we’ve decided to spend the money and get x6 new AGM batteries this time for the house batteries. We will get different type for the start battery because the AGM aren’t suited to that purpose.

The batteries had to fit in the very tight battery boxes that we have, hence having to order them.

I read all the reviews that I could find on YBW and also elsewhere and though the more experienced members on here often advise to just get the cheaper batteries that will do the job (which is what we have already) we thought that the promised better functionality of the AGM was something we wanted to try.

Obviously if we have to replace them in another three years, we will go for the cheaper ones next time. However, we are hoping for better use characteristics, quicker charging, and longer life. We will only know in three years time.

The batteries should arrive later this week and so they should be fitted soon. It’s a bank holiday here today so things are a bit delayed this week.

I will update once completed.

So far, IBA have been very helpful and given us whatever advice we required.

Garold

 

[Davy_S]

So how did you solved your problem in the end, Garold?

I hope you didn't try to seek help on Kefalonia. This spring, at a time I wasn't on the boat, my parents have been totally ripped off in Sami by a guy called Maravegias. He charged €660 (without receipt of course) for removing and reinstalling 3 batteries and wire a temporary battery charger (for which I paid and organised the delivery to Sami). All-in max a day of work (and I'm really generous). They felt pressured by him and they didn't now how to deal with this situation so they paid in the end.

I spoke with him several times over the phone, and tried to appeal to his conscience, that it is not fair to exploit somebody's weakness. But without success. I learnt afterwards that he is a car mechanic, and that Maravegias Marine Service is being run by his son.

On a positive note, I had very good experiences with Pantelis Lolis from Energy Systems Lolis in Preveza and Simon Trippier from Syvota Yacht Services. Both are so skilled, that they are high in demand and it's not easy to get them on your boat. Especially Pantelis, is good with complex electrical problems.

I don't know the person in Sami, could I suggest that you demand a receipt, it is your right, there are notices everywhere saying to get a receipt or you do not have to pay, I know this can be difficult as you were not present, but you could report him.

 

[Hardmy]

I don't know the person in Sami, could I suggest that you demand a receipt, it is your right, there are notices everywhere saying to get a receipt or you do not have to pay, I know this can be difficult as you were not present, but you could report him.

He refused to hand out a receipt, probably because he wasn't allow to work on boats at all. He is "only" a certified car mechanic. What few people know (I didn't know either) is that in order to carry out works on a boat, the relevant Master Craftsman's Certificate is needed e.g. marine engineer or marine electrician. I didn't know either, that they can only invoice the actual time spent on board of the vessel and that the price per hour is fixed by the umbrella organisation of each profession. I think it's around €35 per hour?

I am thinking about to report him at the KEP office next time I am in Greece. This means filing a complaint and as a consequence, the tax authority would probably carry out a special audit of his business. Since it is nearly impossible to comply to all laws in Greece, they will for sure find something. But I am also asking for trouble, since my parents gave him money without a receipt. In some way they are "guilty" as well.

Our experience about Greece in the last 4-5 years have been so pleasant so far. I don't know if I should bother and write it all off as the price for experience. The only reason why I should do it, is to avoid similar experience for fellow sailors in the future.

What would you do in my shoes?

 

[Davy_S]

What would you do in my shoes?

It is easy for me to say now, because I don't live there any more, when I lived there in the first year or two I was a bit careful
and tried to keep my head down, it did not take me long to find out about what goes on, I asked a local estate agent about a property, I required certain info about land, a few days later he asked me for 50E for his work, i said certainly, give me a receipt for my Greek accountant, he shook his head, shrugged and walked off, he never asked again, I spoke to a couple in Sami who had been approached by a Greek who took their lines and asked for 50E, I was sat at the Bar, I took his photo and asked him his tax number, he soon backed down, plus the Taverna owners chased him off, (he was a chancer)
I would report him, you won't get your cash back but he will be asked why he gave no receipt from the tax office, they could go to town on him for non deceleration of earnings, plus he will think twice before he does it again, I can assure you that the majority of Greeks are decent people, it only takes one bad Apple. The KEP centre is one street back from the harbour across from the Post Office. good luck!

 

[sailaboutvic]

You know what,it's not worth the hassle , just write it off and move on .
We been about for quite a lot of years , and now and then one will try it on but there don't get away with it .
There a big problem , many yachties just throw money around like there no to morrow so they think everyone will .
If there tie it on 10 times and only get 5 to hand over cash they laughing .
How many times have a heard yachties say , oh it's only 10 euros, they need the money .