Chewbacka

The thermostat is adjustable, so maybe it is simply set at a lower temperature. I don't think they are highly accurate so there maybe a few degrees temperature difference even if set to the same number.

I got mine from Bimble, though the moels have all changed since then. http://www.bimblesolar.com/offgrid/mppt If money is tight I would look at the 30A unit (a bit over budget).

If you look at the data sheet it shows that the 45W unit will only output 5W of power at a stove surface temperature of 250C, below 250C I doubt if there is much output. It also need a good supply of cold air so if it is in a corner it's output will be even lower. So on my boat to get any useful amount of power out of it would mean having all the doors open.......... Not for me.

Hi - is that 300w total or for each panel? Is your boat 12v or 24v? Assuming it is 12V then 300W is about 25A 450W is about 38A 600W is about 50A The other variable is 'open circuit voltage' from the panel which will be on the spec or label on the reverse of the panel. So again assuming it to be about 35 volts you would want a controller with a max input voltage of about 100V for 2 panels and say 125~150v for 3 panels.

Exciting times for you, but be flexible as I found that a shell builders completion date is more a concept than a commitment. But then fitting out in January is not the best month so a bit of delay gives some more time to save for the fit-out. Enjoy lots of happy boating.

Essbee - I am not sure which MPPT solar charger you have, but some (most?) will have a button and you can scroll through various pages in the display. So if you have something tha looks like a panel and a voltage, that will be the output voltage of the panels, you don't want this page. You probably will have a picture of a battery and a voltage. That is the page you are looking at and tells you the battery voltage. So if you do have a page like this you can measure the battery volts. Probably this is the 13.7 you mentioned, in which case I think your batteries are ok. In bright sun I would expect something like 14.4v as they are now charging. If it is very dull sky/dark that is then the resting battery voltage. What does it say? Note - If you want to connect your charger as a fixed installation then using crocodile clips will fail your next safety inspection. But it is fine to connect it and use it from time to time. I also have about 400W of solar, and they keep the batteries fully charged when I don't use the boat over the winter months. The engine start battery should be ok for a couple of months, any longer and a couple of hours charge should keep it in good order.

If you get a few rads to warm your boat running 24/7 I can't see you having free power for long

Is this a simple car battery charger? Is it connected by crocodile clips? If yes to either of those questions then I would not leave it connected when you are not there. Probably the solar has kept the domestic batteries charged but the engine start battery may not be connected to the solar system and this will self discharge over a few months in which case a couple of hours charge would not go amiss. Usually the solar charger will have a voltmeter or a few lights that show the charge state again without knowing how it is wired up it is hard to say if this is just the domestic batteries or the engine start battery as well. A bit more information would help.

All good now?

I got my DAB/FM radio & mag mount aerial from these people. Informative site. http://www.dabonwheels.co.uk/ Bluetooth in the radio was too expensive a few years back and as all I wanted was to play my mp3 player through the radio - no hands free phones etc - I bought a bluetooth audio dongle on ebay which is powered from the DAB radio 12v output which is on whenever the radio is on. My model is no longer available but just look for bluetooth audio receiver which plugs into the aux input jack.

A couple of thoughts. If the lamp fails because of poor connection due to corrosion then it is probably damp getting in. If the filament is burning out then it is probably not damp but could either be bad luck or slightly high voltage. Excessive vibration will reduce lamp life but I can not believe it was that. So I would check the voltage on the lamp and see if there are any large voltage spikes during cranking etc. Failing that just change the bulb every couple of years or if all it does is 'show power is applied' add a resistor to drop the voltage a bit or use an LED.

It has all the grace of a WW2 landing craft...... Just add a ramp at the front.

Sorry to hear you have a leak. Doing a smoke test would help to find leaks before you light the fire. http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p46046 If you are not sure how to do a 'stove smoke test' do a google or get a HETAS flue person to have a look. Stove leaks as you know leak CO into the boat. Did your CO alarm go off?

Was this comment because they are not an authorised seller or because they are a truck only supplier? They do sell units they claim are suitable for narrowboats etc http://sales.butlertechnik.com/webasto/webasto-installation-complete-heater-install-kit/webasto-thermo-top-c-narrowboat-kit-41k5037c?___SID=U

I agree that the fuse should be well above the normal peak currents to avoid nuisance failure but I would not think it a good idea to have a 300A fuse on a 16mm2 cable, especially if someone were to later connect a big inverter. Whilst you know what you are doing, not everybody that reads these posts does and so may use a fuse that does not even protect the cable in a fault situation.

I fully agree that a fuse is essential, but for a cable from the battery to DC distribution panel to have a 300A fuse I would expect to see at least a 95mm2 cable based on normal currents being a lower and the fuse being there to protect against massive fault currents but not suffering nuisance failure. Note that the BS tables spec a 120mm2 cable for 300A continuous. So I would size the fuse to match the cable it is protecting.

I have a colecraft shell that was painted by them and 4 years on the only rust is where I have damaged the paint

I can only tell you what it says in the Notice issued by HMRC and that is that "You are not responsible for ascertaining whether the fuel you sell to an individual is for the propulsion of a private pleasure craft; it is the purchaser’s responsibility to do so and to make a declaration to that effect." and "If a customer refuses to make a declaration (even a verbal statement that they are commercial), we would expect you to exercise your RDCO duty of care and refuse to supply the fuel until they indicate their status as commercial or private. If they say they are commercial, supply as above. If they insist they are private but unwilling to make a written declaration you should refuse to supply the fuel unless they do so. You are not responsible if a purchaser makes a false declaration." So you can supply if they claim they are commercial even if they do not appear to be and you can supply if they say they are private and make a declaration even if it is for 100% propulsion even if you think they are lying. But as a supplier you are also free to refuse to sell to anyone you do not wish to. I am not saying you were wrong to refuse to supply, but so long as you follow the rules I don't see how you would be at risk of prosecution even if you 'know' they are cheating the tax man. Also the rules allow for a residential boater that moves only a short distance for fuel to declare 100% domestic and again the supplier is not responsible for checking the boaters status. I will not bore you with the details but section 4.7 in the notice is quite clear. So as a supplier so long as you follow the rules I don't see that you have anything to worry about.

As my bottle of Marine 16 is empty I have been reading this thread with interest. The GrotaMar71 stuff sounds interesting so as I do, I did a bit of a google and found that GrotaMar71 has now been replaced by new and improved GrotaMar82. I also like to see some independent testing which this seems to have had and seems like good stuff. Then I found that Millers oils also sell "Eclipse Powercide Plus" which also sounds good and is quite low cost. So I think I shall buy some treatment, but which one............

In case any customers turn nasty/aggressive when challenged on the split they wish to declare, it is worth being aware of the regulations - According to HMRC information you are not responsible if a customer wishes to declare 100% domestic so you can supply without penalty from HMRC, so long as you note this in your records. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/excise-notice-554-fuel-used-in-private-pleasure-craft-and-for-private-pleasure-flying/excise-notice-554-fuel-used-in-private-pleasure-craft-and-for-private-pleasure-flying Section 3.8 "......If a private user claims such status and claims that 100% of their fuel is for purposes other than propulsion, then you may supply the fuel without charging any additional duty and without a declaration, but you should note your records accordingly. See paragraph 4.7 for more information. If you have any reason to doubt the validity of the status being claimed then you should note your records to that effect." and also section 3.6 "You are not responsible if a purchaser makes a false declaration."

If you would like to see what is inside the housing have a read of this Amazon review. Scroll down to read the first 2 star review and click on the picture. http://www.amazon.co.uk/ANT-536-Digital-Magnetic-Mount-Antenna/product-reviews/B008MIBCCC/ref=cm_cr_pr_hist_2?pageNumber=1&filterByStar=two_star I have a log periodic and I won't be swapping it for one of these.

Good suggestion and I have one as well, but in this case she is changing the hose upstream of where a bubble tester would be fitted (if she has one) and so if her new hose connections were to leak a bubble tester would NOT detect it. Hence use the spray. Another good reason to have a bubble tester for a liveaboard is any BSS inspector can check for leaks, if a manometer is required then only a gas safe person can do the leak check.