Dodged a bullet

[Portofino]

Switch the charger off and you risk running out of charge to drive the bilge pumps if the boat starts to take on water

Yes and I think modern chargers with a bat condition function connected to a none wet ,ie water filled cells with tops etc should not get into a overheating state .

I can see an old fashioned basic 10 or 25 year charger connected to cheapo lead acid set up in a hard to reach area ,basically neglected ,ie never topped up ,then sure there’s a risk of overheating especially 8f poorly ventilated .

I leave my cars that are not in use for months on bat conditioners ,in fact the Bentley came with one it’s in the rear arm rest and there is a special plug in the boot .A bit like a boat it’s got a engine starter and a domestic , There’s also a x over “ parallel “ function on the ignition, to nick juice off the Dom’s if the engine on is flat .

Not worried these days leaving a charger on .Or is it better to call them a battery conditioner ? — Cars or boat L

 

[volvopaul]

Switch the charger off and you risk running out of charge to drive the bilge pumps if the boat starts to take on water.

Incidentally, unless the cut out switches are wired to a relay, I assume there's 240 volts going through the little switches?

Everyone has there own view on chargers left on I've got mine.
Yes the switch in 240v

 

[petem]

Mcanderson, I know RTFM is an anathema to us men but did the boat come with the original manuals / wiring diagrams? Surely there would be a breaker for the grill and the wiring diagram would give more info?

 

[Mexican]

Visited some friends in Lefkas Marina last week and there was a Fairline Squadron 50-something that had been written off due to a griddle induced fire. Apparently the boat was being purchased and the surveyor switched power on as part of his checks - but didn't check/realise griddle was on and it heated up caught on canopies/material and woomph! Sorry no pictures of damage, but not pretty.

 

[Firefly625]

I am in the camp that feel a boat in regular use with healthy and maintained batteries don't need to be plugged into a charger 365 days of the year.

I always leave my batteries off and battery charger off.

 

[Nick_H]

BBQ unit on my princess has proximity switch breaker moulded into grp, and i guess must have a strip of metal moulded into the lid to actuate it. Mcandersen, I'm struggling to believe any builder would not fit a safety cut-out to the lid, so maybe you also have a moulded in proximity switch which has been disconnected? I'm also surprised the cover maker agreed to pay for something that is either a design fault with the boat, or where a safety cut out has been bypassed.

 

[benchmark]

I am in the camp that feel a boat in regular use with healthy and maintained batteries don't need to be plugged into a charger 365 days of the year.

I always leave my batteries off and battery charger off.

+1

 

[mcanderson]

PeteM - I have been over every cct breaker and switch and there just isn’t one for my boat. A Bavaria 37 from 2008. The electric top in the valley has a safety switch activated by the top being closed.

Nick-H - With the repair work I will have a switch fitted. I’m really happy with my Bavaria so I don’t want to start mud slinging about manufacturers short cuts. The grill cover sits a couple of cm above the surface and has a heat sink stainless panel in it which has worked a treat. The grill was off until the guy delivering the new sunbed cushions washed his hands and somehow turned the grill on. I’m not sure how they could walk away. They are very well known in our port and when I told one of French friends they weren’t surprised that the company is fixing the damage with no quibbles.

Like my original post said, I feel I dodged a bullet and have learnt something in the process. I’m just happy that I still have my boat. Hopefully someone else will read this and wonder about their grill and find that it too doesn’t have a cut off.

Anyway it’s 20 degrees here in Beaulieu and I’m on my boat so things could be a lot worse!

Pretty soon it will be happy hour I feel.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

I am in the camp that feel a boat in regular use with healthy and maintained batteries don't need to be plugged into a charger 365 days of the year.

I always leave my batteries off and battery charger off.

The problem is that boats in the Med get left for months unused. Its a toss up between leaving the shorepower/battery charger on and risking a fire due to a duff battery or leaving the shorepower/battery charger off and risking a sinking because the bilge pumps drain the battery. I have been in some marinas where they frown on leaving shorepower connected for long periods because of the fire risk when the boat is unattended and go around disconnecting shorepower from boats that they see have not been used in a while. I suppose from the marina's point of view, a sinking is less of a problem than a fire because the fire could take out other boats too. Personally I leave me shorepower/battery charger connected when I'm away from the boat unless I know somebody local who can switch it on regularly to keep the batteries topped up

 

[mparrish]

S
Ours has a safety cutout switch built into the back of the folding lid (so when closed it cuts out). It appears to be an original installation, but whether that is original to Bavaria or the dealer I'm not sure. Should be an option as a retrofit though.
M

 

[Mexican]

Twas a Squadron 58 on sale at Williams and Smithells @ around £500k

 

[mcanderson]

Here are pictures of what we found on Tuesday night.

First two are under the drop down lid.





These two are the top of the lid.

 

[MrB]

Here are pictures of what we found on Tuesday night.

First two are under the drop down lid.





These two are the top of the lid.

At a guess the cable in the first pic on the left built on the lid is the "kill switch" I guess it may be faulty as suggested previously as i cannot believe a builder would not do this.

 

[[2068]]

That “cable” looks more like a spring to hold the lid up.
Scary pictures, good job you went down to the boat when you did.

 

[MrB]

That “cable” looks more like a spring to hold the lid up.
Scary pictures, good job you went down to the boat when you did.

That doesn't look like a spring that would hold a GRP lid up. A simple cheap gas strut would have been better.

 

[[2068]]

That doesn't look like a spring that would hold a GRP lid up. A simple cheap gas strut would have been better.

My S28 had a spring exactly like that to hold up the lid above the sink (no griddle).
It would hold up the lid in calm water, with the spring straight.
Any waves or wash, and the lid would close very quickly :ambivalence:

 

[petem]

Pictures look nasty but at least nobody got hurt and it's all repairable with some skill.

Had a QUICK search on the web and it looks like other grills are different to yours...

I wonder if your was a conversion from Gas? Perhaps that would explain the lack of a breaker?

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Is the safety cut out button missing from the hole on the right hand side of the grill?

 

[mcanderson]

Pete - it’s the original. There has never been gas on the boat.

Mike - the dark circle you can see is a light which comes on with the power. The red lighting you can see is to warn you that the grill is hot.

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Mike - the dark circle you can see is a light which comes on with the power. The red lighting you can see is to warn you that the grill is hot.

No I mean the little stainless steel ring on the right hand side of the grill frame. Should there be a button which protrudes from there and which cuts off the grill when the lid is closed?