Boathook
Well-known member
Most impressed with your skills and quality of work. The wood work quality is something I dream of doing ......
Steel boat build - Almarine 1200fa
- Thread starter JOHNPEET
- Start date
roy851
New member
This is just insane. You could teach some french boat builders a thing or two 
Mr Googler
Well-known member
This is just insane. You could teach some french boat builders a thing or two
that’s not a high bar to be fair…..ask @Bouba
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
Aft cabin - en-suite!
so the aft cabin heads has a full sized shower, electric flush WC which discharges to the black water tank only and wash basin. The same standards and styling have been used as elsewhere in the boat. Laminate to the ceilings with oak cabinetry and trim. Searched quite hard to find a suitable reduced height shower screen, which literally wouldn’t have fitted if it had been just a couple of mm higher!
so the aft cabin heads has a full sized shower, electric flush WC which discharges to the black water tank only and wash basin. The same standards and styling have been used as elsewhere in the boat. Laminate to the ceilings with oak cabinetry and trim. Searched quite hard to find a suitable reduced height shower screen, which literally wouldn’t have fitted if it had been just a couple of mm higher!
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
Ok, so that’s all of the spaces covered apart from the saloon area. The saloon area was the last area to be fitted out and apart from the helm and access steps, wasn’t completed until a few months ago. So for the purposes of this thread, I’ll come back to that in future posts.
In terms of the actual build timeline, we’re now up to about May 2020 - two years ago! This was also the point in time that my wife and I both took early retirement from the NHS. We were also heavily into Covid lockdowns etc. So for the last two years, apart from a few days out here and there, I’ve been able to work on the boat most days to some extent.
So after completing the cabinetry and other finishes in the areas that you’ve seen so far - it was time to start putting in the electrical services. I started by building the interior helm station and helm seat. The seat base houses the battery charger and main DC distribution system . To give you some appreciation of what is in the photos, I’ll provide an overview of the electrical system.
I have three battery banks - house battery, engine start (shared between both engines) and windlass. All batteries are AGM. The battery banks are charged from AC via a Victron Centaur 3 way charger which can be fed from the shore power supply or generator. When the main engines are running, the output from their alternators are combined through 2 Victron Argofet battery isolators which then charge the three battery banks. All of the above equipment and the majority of the systems onboard are 24v, but I do have some 12v systems which derive their power from a pair of Victron DC-DC converters. For back up, the engine start power can also be switched to the house battery as can the windlass. Shore power comes onboard via a Victron isolation transformer. The AC distribution is split between two distribution boards - one feeds the 240v sockets and a shaver point, the other feeds the battery charger and immersion heater. Two changeover switches control the AC to the distribution boards so that the 240v sockets can be fed from shore, generator or inverter. The battery charger can only be fed from shore power or generator .
Photos tonight are of the helm and helm seat base.
AC power, which hides under the access steps will be tomorrow
In terms of the actual build timeline, we’re now up to about May 2020 - two years ago! This was also the point in time that my wife and I both took early retirement from the NHS. We were also heavily into Covid lockdowns etc. So for the last two years, apart from a few days out here and there, I’ve been able to work on the boat most days to some extent.
So after completing the cabinetry and other finishes in the areas that you’ve seen so far - it was time to start putting in the electrical services. I started by building the interior helm station and helm seat. The seat base houses the battery charger and main DC distribution system . To give you some appreciation of what is in the photos, I’ll provide an overview of the electrical system.
I have three battery banks - house battery, engine start (shared between both engines) and windlass. All batteries are AGM. The battery banks are charged from AC via a Victron Centaur 3 way charger which can be fed from the shore power supply or generator. When the main engines are running, the output from their alternators are combined through 2 Victron Argofet battery isolators which then charge the three battery banks. All of the above equipment and the majority of the systems onboard are 24v, but I do have some 12v systems which derive their power from a pair of Victron DC-DC converters. For back up, the engine start power can also be switched to the house battery as can the windlass. Shore power comes onboard via a Victron isolation transformer. The AC distribution is split between two distribution boards - one feeds the 240v sockets and a shaver point, the other feeds the battery charger and immersion heater. Two changeover switches control the AC to the distribution boards so that the 240v sockets can be fed from shore, generator or inverter. The battery charger can only be fed from shore power or generator .
Photos tonight are of the helm and helm seat base.
AC power, which hides under the access steps will be tomorrow
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
Bouba
Well-known member
You say you have three batteries but I’m assuming that you also have a separate generator start battery?
Mr Googler
Well-known member
Now that is some nice wiring! Let’s not discuss battery cable costs. Bloody eye watering ??
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
Sorry, yes - there is also a stand alone start battery for the generator which is charged off the generator engine alternator ?
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
It‘s all tinned copper! House battery circuits are 95mm, engine start 70mm and windlass is 50mm - absolutely horrendous cost! ……….then there’s all the final circuits! ??
Mr Googler
Well-known member
That’s scary. 20 metre of 50mm2 made me wince!
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
I should also have mentioned that there is a separate fuse panel that is fed from the live side of the house battery isolator, which feeds the three bilge pumps.
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
It’s the volt drop that gets you - every time!
Mr Googler
Well-known member
Yeah…I went to great lengths to keep things super short runs. I dread to think the lengths you did in 95mm2
JOHNPEET
Well-known member
A quick guess would be a total of about 23 metres - house bank (beneath the double berth in the aft cabin) to distribution panel, then from the distribution panel to the inverter - and back of course!
ICTM
Active member
The quality of each part of this build is simply stunning !!
Greg2
Well-known member
Yep, as I said earlier it is incredible how John does the jobs of several trades to such a high standard - electrics being the latest!
I am scrutinising each post in the hope that I find something that indicates that he is a mere mortal - perhaps a woodwork joint that isn’t quite right or maybe just a bit of cutting in on the paintwork that is slightly untidy but no, he continues to make us all feel totally inadequate! ?
Mr Googler
Well-known member
Hang fire….got to find out if it floats yet ?
DougH
Well-known member
The boat will not float as it will glide over the surface of the water just as John walks on water.?
Bouba
Well-known member
...
Last edited:
