Expensive mistake, a lesson to learn.

[Becky]

Apropos my thread about when batteries are charged, HWMBO and I went to those very learned peeps at Barden, who happen to be quite close to where I live, and presented them with our little conundrum. The rather concerning reason we have been having some problemsis that the batteries HWMBO had bought in Plymouth were for engine starting. And we had been using them for the domestic supply. So when someone left the engine-room light on for a couple of days, no wonder the batteries went so low!
So the answer for us was to just buy 4 proper deep cycle AGM batteries giving us now just over 400 amp-hours of storage. But what a cost! The others will have to go back to Barden to be hopefully restored to full usage. After all, they are 6 months old!
The moral of the story is not just to know what you want, but to be certain that the person selling to you knows as well.
Now I wonder if I get any stars? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Evadne]

Nul Pointe

Never mind, I find that people never know what they want until just after you've given them the wrong thing. Doesn't bode well for Saturday....

The lesson, surely, is not to leave the light on? Could you fit one of those timers they use in bathroom fans? Or perhaps a door-operated switch (a bit Star Trek, though).

 

[Becky]

Re: Nul Pointe

I have the answer. I will change the engine room into a fridge. The light always goes off when you close a fridge door. And the engine will stay nice and cool too.
Course you are assuming it was me who left the light on.







Which it might have been/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[Evadne]

Re: Nul Pointe

I thought that was one of life's conundrums: how do you know the light has gone off when you close the door?

 

[Anonymous]

Re: Nul Pointe

[ QUOTE ]
Course you are assuming it was me who left the light on.
Which it might have been

[/ QUOTE ]I keep leaving my engine room light on as well though it hasn't mattered so far as I've only done it while on shore power. However, I have a battery monitor (BEP from Merlin) and when we are on batteries I can see exactly what we are drawing so any extra current would be immediately obvious.

I thoroughly recommend these battery monitors and just weeks after I fitted it mine saved me from the consequences of a large 220Ahr Sonnenschein gel battery that suddenly developed a short circuit cell - could have been very nasty, lots of heat and fumes.... Definately a good investment for a cruising yacht.

 

[kds]

Engine room light ?
Engine room ?
I don't even have room for a sail locker.
What a relief !
Saves me a fortune in batteries - perhaps ?
Ken /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[ShipsWoofy]

[ QUOTE ]
Engine room light ?
Engine room ?
I don't even have room for a sail locker.
What a relief !
Saves me a fortune in batteries - perhaps ?
Ken /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]

I have two