Battery warning on Volvo displays?

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kcrane

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On the way back from Yarmouth to Swanwick I pootled for an hour or so, rare treat for it to be calm enough.

Ran the generator to boil the kettle and left it running as VolvoPaul told me off for not using it then expecting to work first time.

PS-if you marina hop in the UK you can go for months without using the gennie.

As we switched between shorepower and the gennie I left the usual suspects turned on - sockets, battery charger, fridge etc.

Halfway back I got bored of 6knts as usual and powered back up to a steady cruise. Within a couple of minutes I was alarmed (clever pun) to notice baleful orange lights staring at me from the dash and the LCD displays were saying "Battery Warning".

A glance at the charging showed 25V on both gauges but engines both running fine.

B**er, never seen a warning before. Should I power down?

Dawned on me the only thing that was different was I had the gennie running while underway, so asked SWMBO to kill it.

Within seconds the gauges swung back over to 28-29V and after another minute or so the warning lights went out and the messages were replaced by engine hours again. All back to normal.

Don't know why it happened though. Are you now thinking "Goodness, the idiot had the 240V battery charger and engine alternators running at the same time, no wonder it he got a warning" ?
 
You should be able to have all three of 230v batt charger+ engine alternators trying to charge the batteries at the same time without any problem.

It's possible however that Princess chose to wire things differently (though I doubt it), or it's possible the split charge device is busted in a way that it isn't allowing either alternators or 230v charge to connect to the batteries when the 230v charger side of the device is seeing 28.8v.

It fells like the latter, but others on here probably know better

I think therefore I'd want to see if there is 28.8v on both the alternator and 230v charger side of the split charge device, and battery voltage (say about 24v) on the battery side, which would tell me the device is busted and needs replacing (simple job and mebbe £500 part or something like that)
 
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The alternators will sense there is already a charge going to the batteries therefore the alarm will sound. Sometimes due to over voltage rather than no charge .
 
mjf said:
Odd! Whats the difference you can run the engines on the berth and have shore 240v plugged in and in use. Being underway should make no difference.
Click to expand...

I'm drifting my own thread - but I wandered around to your boat at the weekend to see if you were there, but all covers on so guessed no one at home. All being well weather-wise I'll be there weekend after next. SWMBO spotted we shouldn't have wifi problems in C31, there is a mast next to C29 !
 
Oddly - I drove down with a mate on sat afternoon, me just back from a trip away and he just landed from Calif. Had a nice supper at the Jolly and hit the swinging lamp O/B until 0300hrs! Up to the Boat House for a full english (£14 for two and no drink! which is taking the p... but that topic is on another thread I see) and away by 1030.

Sorry to have missed you.

Be interesting to sort this hot spot stuff out once and of all.
 
mjf said:
Can Volvopaul expand please on what else comes up if triggered?
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Depends what gen of EVC you have, and whether you have paid the £800 or so to volvo to have the fuel burn data activated. Just keep pressing the button (or two buttons, iirc) to cycle thru the info
 
jfm said:
Depends what gen of EVC you have, and whether you have paid the £800 or so to volvo to have the fuel burn data activated. Just keep pressing the button (or two buttons, iirc) to cycle thru the info
Click to expand...

Am I fortunate or unfortunate *not* to have the fuel burn info?

I'd quite like it actually, but £800? Phew.

I'd be interested in tips on how to brim the tanks without risking spraying diesel into the marina. The gauges are hopeless.

My records show I get between 0.75 mpg and 0.90 mpg. I suspect the difference is as much down to how full the tanks are rather than different usage patterns.
 
kcrane said:
I'd be interested in tips on how to brim the tanks without risking spraying diesel into the marina. The gauges are hopeless.
Click to expand...

Can't you hear when the tanks are almost full? When the gauges show about 7/8 full I go and sit by the filler and wait for the noise of the displaced air to get more high pitched as the fuel starts to fill up the feed pipe, and stop the pump then. The change of pitch is quite noticeable on mine, though I guess it varies from boat to boat.
 
Nick_H said:
Can't you hear when the tanks are almost full? When the gauges show about 7/8 full I go and sit by the filler and wait for the noise of the displaced air to get more high pitched as the fuel starts to fill up the feed pipe, and stop the pump then. The change of pitch is quite noticeable on mine, though I guess it varies from boat to boat.
Click to expand...

From about 7/8 it starts to gurgle as though it's nearly full but then takes 10's more litres. The once I kept going it splashed out of the vent so I haven't done it again.
 
My gauges are very accurate which was a huge surprise frankly.

But my boat is awful too to refill - both sides 'cos breather too small but I like NickH park myself at the nozzle and listen , loads of paper towel around the hole etc.
Only once managed a non overflow fill up in my entire ownership!
 
mjf said:
My gauges are very accurate which was a huge surprise frankly.

But my boat is awful too to refill - both sides 'cos breather too small but I like NickH park myself at the nozzle and listen , loads of paper towel around the hole etc.
Only once managed a non overflow fill up in my entire ownership!
Click to expand...

The breather on the V48 was designed by a prankster as it is at crotch height directly where you stand when refilling, ugh...
 
When filling one side, open the filler cap on t'other side, which creates an extra 2 inch breather pipe (assuming you have the left-right tank link pipe open)
 
jfm said:
When filling one side, open the filler cap on t'other side, which creates an extra 2 inch breather pipe (assuming you have the left-right tank link pipe open)
Click to expand...

Ah, now you are off into another topic I meant to ask about - I may not be a mine of answers but I can come up with questions :)

It looks as though the connecting pipe between the tanks is closed, I wondered what is considered best practice?
 
Open balance pipe ONLY when filling and balancing tanks at the end of a run.

Closed during passage - if not, a failure of one tank (drain valve, balance pipe itself, etc..) can have you losing all of your fuel into the bilge / overboard. If the pipe is closed, you will only lose one tanks worth.
 
kcrane said:
It looks as though the connecting pipe between the tanks is closed, I wondered what is considered best practice?
Click to expand...

I don't think there is a best practice. You have to weigh up the risks that rosssavage mentions, which should be incredibly small in a well-founded boat, with the convenience aspect of leaving it open. The size of the convenience aspect varies, but for me it is quite large (due to the way my boat is refueled in my absence), so i leave the balance pipe open most of the time. There again, I also don't wear a lifejacket :-)
 
jfm - what a good idea I've never thought of that.

However for no particular reason I have always left tanks isolated ie both cross overs remain closed. But if I were to have bug issues it would be in both tanks anyway I guess, so no point at all not allowing free flow :-)
 
Nick_H said:
Can't you hear when the tanks are almost full? When the gauges show about 7/8 full I go and sit by the filler and wait for the noise of the displaced air to get more high pitched as the fuel starts to fill up the feed pipe, and stop the pump then. The change of pitch is quite noticeable on mine, though I guess it varies from boat to boat.
Click to expand...

+1
 
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