Tony1

Just a thought on the bilge blower/fan cooling idea: I was looking at fans that might do this, but I was concerned that the power they would use in blowing air over the alternator would have to be offset against how much extra current they would allow the alternator to give out. After trying this out (on a freezing january day and thus using very cold air) I found that with my cheapo alternators, a cooling fan only allows them to safely give out maybe an additional 10 amps, at most. And the fan itself would probably draw 5 amps, so the benefit from such fans might not be as much as you would hope. A fan could be a help if your B2B is drawing say 5 amps too much for the alternator to stay cool, but if the alternator internals are putting out that kind of heat, maybe your fan is only cooling the outer parts of it, and perhaps some innards are still too hot? And there is the question around what temp actually constitutes overheating that might damage an alternator. I've seen some people suggest 150 degrees is ok, but given that my alternators normally run at about 50-55 degrees, I decided I didnt want them to go over 100 degrees, so that's how I personally decided on the 'safe' current limits, and that's how I selected the right B2Bs to match them. To be honest, having used these kind of setups for a few years, I think the simpler approach is to select B2Bs of the right size so the alternator never gets too hot. Too hot in my case is over 100 degrees, but that's an individual think. Nick says he uses 90 degrees, which is probably wiser. They behave very predictably in practice. In other words, if I switch on both my 30 amp and 18 amp B2Bs and the engine is only idling, the alternator will always go above 100 degrees within 10 minutes or less. So in my case I could just leave both B2Bs permanently in the active state (so they both come on when the snegine starts), but as soon as I got to a lock say, and went into tickover, the alternator will get too hot within minutes, and so I'd be resetting that fuse several times a day. I do know those B2Bs have a small wire input that does allow them to be remotely switched on and off, and I used that function to switch off the B2Bs when the SoC got to 85%, using the relay function on a BMV712. The BMV712 also monitors temp, so in theory I think you could put a victron temp probe on the alternator, attach it to a BMV712, and then you can configure it to send a 12v signal that will switch off one or both of the B2Bs when the alternator gets too hot. But a BMV costs around £150, so if budget is an issue that's not ideal.... I would ask whether automation is really needed, or you could just manage the B2B manually, but maybe stick a temp probe on the alternator as fall back warning?

Mine are both victron and can be switched on and off by bluetooth, which is handy. I leave the lower power 18 amp B2B permanently 'active', so it comes on as soon as the engine starts and the input voltage goes above the B2Bs trigger value (I think I use 13.3v). The 30 amp unit is left switched off after every charge, so what I do with that is just switch it on via bluetooth after a 10 minute warm up for the engine, and I up the revs a bit. If I'm cruising the boat and therefore I cant cant guarantee being able to keep the revs up at 1300 rpm, I will only use the 30 amp unit, and I'll switch the 18 amp unit off. Thats the setup for the domestic alternator. I also use a further 30 amp victron B2B connected my starter alternator, so there is the option to get a bit more charge - again once the engine has warmed up a bit. So at full chat, I can get 30+30+18 amps, which means I can usually charge in a hour or so, if I get a bit of solar added in. When I was using the sterling units I could draw up to 90 amps when doing a static 1300rpm charge, but I realised it wasn't a great idea to push both the alternators (and their V belts) that hard, so I backed off a bit and settled on 75 amps.

I'm sure its not essential but what I do is to start off with a lower draw (say 25-30amps) when the engine is cold, and keep it at tickover for say 10 mins. So I'm not drawing a big current when the revs are still low. Then when its all warmed up I switch on the other B2B and draw the full power, and at the same time I rev it up to 1300rpm to help keep the alternator cool. I'd be a tad uneasy about drawing the full 60 amps from my canaline 38 when the engine is at tickover revs, but then I also dont want to rev it up to 1300rpm as soon I switch it on, so I use this stepped approach. Its only a V belt, not a poly V, so I dont think high current at low revs (and with a cold engine) would be very good for it.

What I did was to buy an additional 18 amp victron B2B and run it in parallel. That would get your friend up to 30 + 18, so maybe 48 amps? And tbh even that might be too much current anyway, if its a cheapo alternator. My 30 amp Sterling added to the existing Victron might be a good solution. You could add in 15 amps by running it at half power, or if you can keep the revs up at say 1300, you might be able to run it at the full 28/29 amps. If I had to guess, I'd say 60 amps continuous might be just a bit too much unless its a good quality alternator. Plenty of options- but I think its worth doing a wire test anyway to establish how much the alternator can safely put out, before committing any money to buying B2Bs that might pull too much current. Its the alternator capacity that will probably decide what is the best B2B in this setup- and you probably dont want to exceed the safe max by much- as I say, in my case it overheated if I even drew 5 amps over the safe limit.

I might have just the thing. I switched to using two victron B2Bs a while back, so I have both a 30 amp and a 60amp Sterling B2B sitting idle and available for a very reasonable price. These units can be switched to half power, so the 30 amp unit can put out either 15 amps or 26 amps, and the larger unit can put out either 29 amps or 49-50 amps. Using two of them in combination gave me a lot of flexibility in terms of setting the right current level to keep the alternator cool. I could even switch up the current when I was doing a static charge, because if I revved up to say 1300rpm, the alternator would put out more current and stay cool. If the alternator is a cheap automotive type like on my canaline, I would guess its good for about 45 amps continuous, and if you're static and rev it up and bit, maybe 55 amps at most. So in theory the 60 amp Sterling would be ok, as it puts out (in theory) 48-50 amps. BUT the 60 amp sterling unit throttles itself back to half power mode every 10 minutes or so (I think they get a bit too hot), so I found it was more consistent if I ran it full time at half power (about 29 amps), and added in the 30 amp unit. The problem I had was that if exceeded the optimum safe current for my alternator by even 5 amps or so, the alternator would get really hot really quickly, so I erred on the lower side.

I gave it a go but that was well over two years ago so I can't remember the details reliably. I recall trying out wire that was `16mm sq, and finding that even 8 metres length of it allowed more than 60 amps through. I think the one that I found suitable was 10mm sq wire, and I ended up with at least 5-6 metres of it. I think I got it set up to allow about 60 amps through, but the wire felt a teeny bit too warm for my liking, and I didn't feel entirely comfortable using it as a routine thing, or having 6+ metres of very warm wire in loops hanging around in the engine bay. The problem you have with finding the right length for your setup is that you have to start from a small current and work upwards, because the way you alter the current (when you're testing it out) is by cutting off a length of the wire- and cutting a length off will increase the current flow. But then if you buy 15 metres of 10mm sq cable to start off with a low current, you risk wasting 5 metres of that because it might turn out that you only need 10m, or even less. Maybe you could secure it to a board or around a cylinder somehow, in a way that allowed to add on one metre at a time. Do give it a good run though, and maybe allow a margin for the alternator getting a bit hotter in summer, if you are doing your testing in freezing weather as I did. But I would keep a close eye on the alternator temp though- I was surprised how quickly mine started overheating if it was putting out too much current. The other (potential) future snag is BSS regs. I recall someone saying that if it happens that future BSS regs come out about lithiums, one of the rules will be that you cant directly connect lead acid and lithiums in parallel setups. It might be that inserting a B2B charger will make it compliant, but that said I dont think there's any certainty about any of this BSS stuff, so its only a possible concern, certainly not a real issue.

If you're going to spend most days doing long cruises then yes, a set of lead acids would perform well enough. All you need is enough charge to run your fridge overnight, plus some TV/laptop running, etc. Then next morning you're off and cruising (and charging) again. If you were going to be spending 4 or 5 days per week not moving, then lithiums and a strong charging system would have some advantages. I did find that my lead acids didnt run the kettle or microwave very well at all, but to be fair the batteries were a bit shot at the time, so it wasnt a fair test of them.

In all honesty Alan, I would get some help with that job. 55kg is a big weight to be hauling around. You're obviously familiar with this job, but in many cases the problem is that when getting very heavy batteries into place, you sometimes have to twist, or lift them in an unexpected way, or extend your arms a bit further than expected- and the temptation is to go for it, put that extra effort in, and just get the job done. I would probably risk it with one big battery to move, but I would be worried that it only takes a fraction of undue strain or force to cause a back injury. Having seen the results of a back injury at close quarters, and the suffering that this poor guy went through, it has made me pause many times, and give thought to back safety.

I've moved over to using charge voltage to manage my daily charging, rather than SoC- so I'm seeing my MPPT100/50s go into float a lot. In my case, float means that the MPPTs will put a tiny charge into the batteries (I think its 0.1 amps), but that's not enough to make any material difference to the battery's activities or processes. The bulk charge voltage is set at 13.8v (or a bit less), because that means the MPPTs will go into float mode when the battery is about 80-85% full. So the bulk charge voltage, at least routinely, is not something I can really change much. (If I do set the bulk charge voltage a bit higher, the batteries will get to a higher SoC before the MPPTs go into float, as you would expect.) But during the float phase, if a big load is applied (by me using the kettle, say), the MPPTs will stay in float mode, and will not switch to putting more current into the batteries. And if they go into float at say noon, they seem to stay that way for the rest of the day, as far as I can tell, and the batteries will just carry on discharging, and their voltage will gradually drop. So the float mode is not keeping the voltage 'propped up' in any way, which was my initial query. If I do want to get the MPPTs charging again (e.g. because I've heated a tank of water with the immersion), then I have to switch them off for about 10-15 mins. Then when I switch them back on, they will go into bulk charge- unless the battery is already very full and the voltage is still 'highish', in which case they go straight into float.

If I was buying a battery bank for a boat at the moment, I'd be looking at their 460Ah model: https://www.fogstar.co.uk/collections/lithium-leisure-battery/products/fogstar-drift-460ah-leisure-battery User n-baj on this forum has been using one for a month or two, and had no problems with it. The built in heating is a nice feature, and that seems like a lot of Ah plus a decent BMS for under £1200. At 38kg its going to be a bugger to shift around, so you'd want to be careful with your back.

I counsel caution, good sir. If you spend too much time perusing this forum you may develop an inexplicable fear of blue signs- for which medical science has a name (oldcodgeropathy), but currently has no cure. Luckily for you, my services as a source of all boating knowledge are available, and at very low cost. No issue is too obscure- I have an opinion on every subject, from ducks to diesel engines. Delay not, sir. Let us have at it.

That sentence should strike terror into the hearts of Thames boaters. I have heard several examples of when a campervan driver entered a car park, but left within a few minutes as they were unable to find a suitable/spacious spot. The camera had recorded their entry, however, and they were then sent a demand for payment of the 'minimum stay' parking fee (a few pounds), plus a penalty fee. The fee was disputed, but eventually the driver folded and paid up, worried that if they had persisted it could have risen to several hundred (with court costs etc), and involved bailiffs attending their house. So it seems that simply driving into some car parks can require a payment, even if you don't park there. If these sorts of scumbags ever move into mooring enforcement, everyone should worry.

I eat tinned stuff at least twice a week, and I've tried numerous brands- and I think Princes is really poor stuff, in general. I still keep one of their chicken curry pies as an emergency option, but they contain very little actual meat. The meatballs I tried were dreadful- both the sauce and the 'meat'. After trying 3 or 4 of their products over the last few years I've mostly abandoned the brand as being basically inedible garbage, but being sold at similar prices to far better products. I've learned the hard way about some awful brands that lurk on the shelves of supermarkets. Bramwells is one that has consistently disappointed, although arguably Princes is even worse. I personally believe these sorts of manufacturers use the lowest quality animal parts that can still be legally labelled as meat (and the other ingredients are not much better)- and it appears that they don't even bother to try and hide the awful taste with a half-decent sauce. These have become (mostly) the foods of poverty, ignorance and desperation, and should not be trifled with by those who are still fortunate enough to have an alternative.

It was not my intention to accurately quote anybody's 'razor', but rather to convey the gist of an idea. I was fully aware that 'stupidity' was within one of the original versions of this sentiment, but I felt that 'stupidity' was too strong a word to apply to a clerical error made by a person that I don't know, and who clearly hasn't made very many of these errors (or so it would appear). Sadly I don't have the sightings tab available, but whilst it was working I took the precaution of taking screenshots of all of my sightings, just in case CRT decided that it was no longer 'helpful' to display this information.

They can get into surprisingly small gaps- I left a bag of rubbish in the cratch overnight instead of taking it up to the bins, and it was gnawed through and spilled by the rats- and there was a single loose button fastener on the cratch cover. I saw them swim away and jump into a GRP boat moored behind me one night when I scared them off the bank, and there were many nights I saw them hanging about the place or running along the roofs of nearby boats. I have a feeling they dont want to set up home the way mice do, so they probably wont stay around (although I think they had made a home in that GRP boat). But my plan was just not to let them in at all. I covered all potential entry holes, but I wouldn't be surprised if they can even get in through mushroom vents. On the plus side, you never hear people talking about having rats aboard, so it seems they just visit and then bugger off.

Just a heads up in case you've not been there, but as an example- Chester basin is infested with rats, so don't leave doors ajar at night if you stop there. I'm sure the same is true for mooring in most towns.

Never ascribe to malice that which can be explained by error... It'll be a mistake by the checker. It's the one sighting on my list that I know wasn't me. If it really was a boat using a false license plate, there would be lots more of it on my sightings page.

If I know we're getting a bad heatwave and it'll be glaring sun all day long, I will always head for shade. I've been in a few places where there are just a few 'straggly' trees, or the shaded mooring spots are taken. So you might have to travel a bit- or do a few locks- to reach proper shade, but it's worth it. Ideally I'll look for a place where the trees overhang on both sides, and failing that I'll aim for a spot where the boat is at least shaded for the afternoon, when the heat really starts to build. But ultimately, even a few hours of shade is better than nothing. I'm happy to abandon most of the solar power for a few days to stay a bit more comfortable. I tried cutting up a white bed sheet into window-sized pieces, and I hang them over the windows using button magnets. Looks awful but it seems to work ok. Mine are hopper windows, so I can also take them out to allow more air movement, if there is any to be had. Also fans- at least one powerful fan, and maybe two, will be a real help. I tried rechargeable fans originally, but they aren't really that powerful, so I ended up with a 240v model.

That brings back memories- I went through March about a week after I got my boat in 2020. I remember thinking it was a really nice little town, but didn't stay long as I was on a long trip up to the Northwest. I'm not looking for a mooring, but just out of interest, do you know roughly how much they are asking for that mooring spot in March?

Yep, I found out the hard way that coal bags on the roof will damage the paint, if you don't have some sort of thick protective sheet in place.

I had a look at my sightings yesterday, and was amused to learn that my boat was spotted near Nantwich and also halfway along the L+L, on the same day last year. Even the Haggises can't do that sort of speed.

I have several pairs on order anyway, they will be mandatory for lithium battery owners next year.

Ah. Oh I seeeee..... Even though I'm straight, I'd say that a gay male wife would be preferable to female tea drinking wife, if my back was to the wall. Which it would be for a lot of the time.

To be honest, I can't stand tea. I can only drink coffee. So I don't think a spouse attracted by this method would be in any way compatible. It's not that I don't trust tea drinkers, obviously. I'm not tea-ist. I just wish they'd do it in private. I wouldn't rule out a relationship with a tea drinker who converted to coffee, but I feel it would be a rocky road....

Alas, I am in such a poor state that the teapot would have to be filled with military-grade hallucinogenic drugs for this idea to work. There are also some H+S concerns, i.e. as soon as the drug wore off I would be beaten to a pulp by the female boater. In an ideal world I would prefer to survive the encounter.