Shore power in Cherbourg

[WayneS]

Hi Folks

Preparing for my first little trippie to France.

Do I need any special adapter to connect up to shore power in Cherbourg?

No it's not so that I can watch TV, it's so that I can charge batteries.

Cheers

Wayne

Wayne




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[Aardee]

When are you off (& where from)?. We're doing Portsmouth - Cherbourg on Sunday...

<hr width=100% size=1>"I am a bear of very little brain and long words bother me" - A A Milne.

 

[steve_cronin]

I always keep one anyway. well two actually. One is a 16amp blue site socket connected to a European two pin plus earth. These are available from most caravan accessory shops far cheaper than at chand£eries. Also I carry a polarity reverser as in some continental marinas with three pin 16amp site sockets, the polarity can be reversed. I made this up myself from a socket and plug but with the live and neutral reversed on one of them. This is very well marked however as a "Polarity Reverser". Our "Source Selector" made by Blue Sea Systems (used to switch between shore & inverter) has a "Wrong Polarity" indicator on it's front panel. However it is very easy indeed to fit an RevPol LED between the neutral and earth on the inlet side of a standard distribution panel or Shorepower unit.

Steve Cronin



<hr width=100% size=1>The above is, like any other post here, only a personal opinion

 

[WayneS]

Only around 15 August. As it's my first, I'm trying to plan well ahead.

W

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[bedouin]

The plugs in the marina in Cherbourg are the standard 16 amp ones that are most common (but not universal) in UK marinas too.

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[WayneS]

Thanks everyone. Another box ticked.

Wayne

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[Aardee]

We'll be back by then. I'll let you know we discover any surprises.

Graham.


<hr width=100% size=1>"I am a bear of very little brain and long words bother me" - A A Milne.

 

[SpottedBlue]

Take a long power lead - there are nowhere near enough sockets and often you need to run a long lead to an adjecent berth. Alternatively make up a doubler so you can piggy back on someone elses connection, though the trips at cherbourg kick in quite low so you won't be able to run an immersion heater and electric kettle

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[Oldhand]

Why should someone else's shorepower connection be jeapordised by a later arrival inserting a doubler? Most French outlets trip at 6 Amps and thus the original user can easily loose his supply. Carry long extension leads to get to an empty socket, SpottedBlue can keep his doubler in the bilges as far as I am concerned.

I recently loaned an extension lead to a British visitor in a French port rather than let him put a doubler on my connection.

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[BigLes]

We are also planing to make our first trip over to Cherbourg on August 15th. Where are you going from?

Les

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[philwebb]

Hi Mystique-we are going to Cherbourg Monday,weather permitting. Boat
name Rampino.Have sent you a PM

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[WayneS]

Hi Les

We will be heading out of Portsmouth and going down the west of the IOW, using Bembridge Ledge as a marker.

Our current passage plan is to leave P'mouth at 3am which should get us into Cherbourg before 18:00, based on a 5kn passage.

It this fits with your plan and you want to go in tandem, I'm happy.

Your Bio suggests that this is your first trip too. Are you as worried as I am?

Cheers

W

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[BigLes]

I've been over a couple of times on other people's boats (in fact I went over on the Forum's Cherbourg run last October) so I'm not too worried. It's my partner, Jean, who is worried. She would rather go in company with other boats, otherwise she would prefer to go to the West Country. As I've been to Cherbourg before I know the drill, but having never been further west than Poole the West Country would all be new (and a little daunting) for me!

We're Chichester based so will be taking the same route as you - east of IoW.

I'll keep in touch. Have PM'd you with contact details.

Les

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[Rick]

>I made this up myself from a socket and plug but with the live and neutral reversed on one of them.

This is the bit that scares the hell out of me - you've made this "polarity reverse", but when you're conected, your neighbour, or anyone on that marina arm has the opposite polarity tied back to earth. IF, and its a big IF, a fault occurs, every earthing point on your boat, or any other boat in that same marina arm suddenly goes hot - do you really trust that any old RCD will save you from the shock should you be in contact with an earth at that point?

In this country (Australia), it is illegal to manufacture a lead as you propose, unless you are a licenced electrical contractor - others are limited to changing lightbulbs - what's the situation in the UK?

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[Harveydog27]

Hi, would you need a convertor if I was to use a US boat in a British port?

 

[sailorman]

take a hose pipe + hoseloc connectors 1/2 inch & 3/4 inch bsp as the French dont supply oses /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Col]

UK uses 240V Not 115V