Sterling advanced regulator help

Kokamo39

Kokamo39

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As the Sterling power help line is a waste of time given the arrogant nature of the staff (or owner) and as im NOT an electrician , is there any readers who have been able to interpret (eg turn into English) the instructions that came with the Sterling Power Digital advanced regulator.
Given other posts, it seems that there are the lucky few that the product works first time (with their installation) , and those where it fails (irrespective of the instructions) and then have to suffer the wrath of the Sterling staff.
Personally i would never deal with this company again,as a result of their after sales lack-of service, but its too late ive got their product /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif , though in a non-working state.

FYI to those trying to contact their helpline , there number has changed . Would be good if they changed it on their website !! for them its probably too much to ask.
 
What exacly is the problem I have fitted a number of them and never had any problems, and had reverse experience with the tech support
 
I have always found the instructions easy enough to follow.... As you are in NZ perhaps they are upside down /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Seriously though what don't you understand? If you are not confident about the alternator connections it would be better to take the alternator off and take that plus instructions to an auto electrician to solder the appropriate connection for you. The rest is easy.
 
I've had no problems either, just fitted one to my new boat and it works very well just as the one did on my last boat.
Worth persevering with.
 
Sorry I cannot offer any technical assistance but just so you don't feel alone, now that all the Sterling fans have posted......
I share your view of Sterling, their instructions and their attitude to customers.
Like you I would never buy one of their products again.
 
Aw F...K How many more times

Anyone who can't take Charlie Sterling's ascerbic sense of humour has no place as the commander of a British ship. You can almost smell the irony in his words. You have to remember that the standard of education in Northern Ireland is vastly superior to that of the average English comprehensive.

Fine bits of kit. Get orf if you cant understand a few simple instructions and do a simple bit of elementary soldering. How the hell do you manage to survive offshore where you can't call the AA?


Steve cronin
 
I'm not an electrician either but had no problem fitting one of these a few months ago. Indeed I found the instructions very clear and I feel I now understand more about how the charging system works.
I'll be happy to offer some specific advice if I can but your general winge about Sterling does not not really invite help.
Morgan
 
Thanks for al the replies. It wasnt the installation (persay) that was the problem. Its all installed (as per the instructions) the lights all come on , as per the instructions, but the unit just doesnt regulate the power.
On calling the help line, after being "talked down to" by the arrogant respondent , they indicated that the alternator needed to have its own original regulator to work !! i found this surprising given i bought theirs to do the regulation .
After the rant from the "owner" about the instructions not indicating the removal of the original (they were replaced with a bosch brush unit) , i pointed out that the instructons also didnt indicate to keep existing regulators.
Can someone explain the point of the advanced regulator if the original regulator on the back of the alternator is still required . What really if the "advanced" regulator doing ?
 
[ QUOTE ]
......
Can someone explain the point of the advanced regulator if the original regulator on the back of the alternator is still required . ......

[/ QUOTE ]
Simple really. The Sterling works by 'fooling' the original regulator into continuing to charge beyond its preset automotive voltage, and has internal diagnostics that, in the event of a problem, disable the Sterling and allow the charging to fall back to being regulated by the original regulator. Haven't go my instructions to hand, but as I recall they do explain that.
If I had thought fo one moment that I would need to remove the original regulator in order to fit the Sterling, I would never have bought one.... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif
 
Re the w(h)inge, you need to look at the previous post where little or no help was offered. The nationalistic (jingoistic) comments about UK superiority dont help.
FYI we have over 25000 miles of short handed offshore cruising experience, i wonder how much "Steve Cronin" has re his post
Maybe we just got a bad unit , or its just the alternator setup. I was hoping for some positive comments on what to look at.
FYI2 , yes a auto electrician looked at it, the alternator was fine. The unit ?
 
Thanks Alldownwind, appereciate the explaination.
Looks however that the instrauctions we have may differ from other forum members.
Given the ones on their webpage, are you able to indicate which paragraph this instructuion is on. There are lots about n and p type but given our alternator is none of those mentioned i see nowhere that indicates retaining existing regulators.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Thanks Alldownwind, appereciate the explaination.
Looks however that the instrauctions we have may differ from other forum members.
Given the ones on their webpage, are you able to indicate which paragraph this instructuion is on. There are lots about n and p type but given our alternator is none of those mentioned i see nowhere that indicates retaining existing regulators.

[/ QUOTE ]
Had a quick look.
Under 'Installation' it says remove the regulator and that it comes away with brushes attached. Then it says solder a wire to each brush. Then it says reassemble the alternator. Doesn't say leave the regulator off!
It then says to run up the engine and make sure the alternator is working normally. It wouldn't, if you had removed the regulator.
And under temperature sensing, it mentions that a fault in the standard regulator could cause problems even with the Sterling still attached. Suggesting again, that the standard unit is still there.
I ain't defending Charles Sterling and his bedside manner, (I've spoken to him too, and eventually resorted to my finely-honed influencing skills to get the info I needed!) but with all the stuff that's been on this forum over the years about him and his products, I don't recall anyone doing what you did. Just unfortunate that you perhaps made an incorrect assumption, and then read more into the instructions than was actually there.
 
Charles Sterling is so convinced of his own superiority and the idiocy and ignorance of all his customers that, I fear, he doesn't actually listen half the time.

I recently re-installed an old analogue Sterling advanced controller and took my alternator to the local repair shop to have it serviced (new bearings and brush change) and have the extra wire added. I had the devil of a job trying to get him to leave the original regulator in circuit. I gave him the instructions, gave him the circuit, and explained in detail what had to be done. He protested and argued against me but agreed to do the job. When I went back to pick it up, he had disconnected the regulator "because it could never work like that" /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

Anyway after a lot of gentle persuasion and asking him to humour and pander to the whims of a mad Englishman he finally agreed to re-wire it as I had asked, with the original regulator in circuit.

The old chargers would work without the alternator regulator in place but of course if the Sterling or the considerable external wiring were to fail you would lose all charging.
 
N and P type, n controls the output by switching the negative side of the rotor feed, that is to ground. The p type switch the positive feed to the rotor, to control output. You will have one of them.
All the advaced reg does is to supply a feed, or carry on with a feed to ground, after the inbuilt greulator stops regulating. Thus running the output to higher voltage.
The problem these days is that most alternators regulate at 14.6 volt, thus leaving the smart reg little it can do. That is unless you fit blocking diodes, this generates the low voltage at the battery, and thus the need to boost the output voltage.

Brian
 
[ QUOTE ]
All the advaced reg does is to supply a feed, or carry on with a feed to ground, after the inbuilt greulator stops regulating. Thus running the output to higher voltage

[/ QUOTE ] Yes, but the Sterling also shunts the positive output of the regulator and dissipates that in a heatsink on the unit where the Sterling wants the battery voltage to be less than the fixed level of the alternator's internal regulator.

As you said, one of the problems with modern regulators is that they are set at a high level - this is fine for the weekend sailor who only runs his engine for a few hours but if you are running your engine for 12 hours or more, it causes terrible loss of water on flooded lead acids and ruins gels. I have just installed a Sterling to reduce the charge voltage, not to increase it.
 
Sorry for going off at a slight tangent, but as you guys seem to know your stuff, let me ask a question? I fitted an auto alternator to replace a Dynastart for charging, and now I've improved the wiring (getting rid of about 0.2V voltage drop in the process!!) the battery is seeing 14.15V from the inbuilt regulator. I've been thinking about fitting a Sterling unit, but I wonder if there will be much improvement in charge time? Also is 14.15V risking the batteries on say a 12 hour passage if not dropped to a lower level (though with nav lights, VHF and instruments on I notice this does drop to about 13.95V)? Thanks.
 
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