micky1010

Thanks Rusty, the houses are 4 sealed lead acid and the engine a standard lead acid, I can put the fridge on and all the lights and tv etc. think It will be ok for about a 5 hour trip without cooking them?

Does anyone know how long I can run the engine without killing the batteries if they are receiving 14.8v, I need to move the boat soon so just wondering if a few minutes will be all I can do or if they will survive a few hours at this rate ?

Thanks all but I'm no wiser as some are saying these volts are all fine and other saying the controller is at fault. I still really need an electrical person who would come out and not just investigate the issue but replace what needs replacing as I cannot use the engine until this is fixed. Does anyone know someone who would cover the Lichfield area they can recommend?

It is an A460 they said, 70A I do not know the make I'm afraid. If it is the controller then what is best to replace it, I have read elsewhere a lot of people saying just go with a straight forward split charge diode but I would prefer something to control the charge to each bank safely, would a sterling pro r split charge be a straight replacement ? The engineer today said they are fine when he tested the voltage with everything disconnected. the house bank is a year and a half old now and the engine bat only half a year old.

Not sure as I did not do this it was the engineer, but I believe it was 14.8 on the batteries when it was connected directly. So it does look like the sterling controller that is at fault?

It is set to sealed lead acid which is correct as this I have 4 of these for the domestic bank and 1 normal lead acid as starter battery.

The controller is a sterling ab12160 and the warning light is the 'high alternator voltage' light, according to the manual when this is on: LED 7 - HIGH ALT VOLTS (red) This LED indicates that the unit has tripped because of high voltage (>15.5V) on the alternator. It usually means that the alternator’s own regulator has failed.Check the voltage and, if necessary, stop your engine as soon as possible and disconnect the alternator input cable, or you will boil and destroy your batteries! The batteries are taking 14.4v from the mains charger/inverter which is correct as per the engineers who have been out but it goes up to 14.7 when charging from the alternator, the voltage on the back of the alternator was at 15.15v. They should be more or less fully charged as I do not use too much 12v being in the marina on shore power, it is only lights that are drawing 12v power.

Hi all, I have been having an issue for the past few months with high voltage from the alternator. The boat has a sterling alternator to battery regulator and this had a warning light on for high alternator volts, so I measured the voltage it was putting out at the batteries and it is 14.75 which I believe is too high. I was advised it would be the voltage regulator on the alternator that had failed and so have had a new alternator fitter by RCR as it is covered by their parts replacement, however after the engineer left the warning light came back on and it was back to overcharging again. RCR came back, fitted another new alternator, still over volts, tested all wiring and connections, all were fine even wired the alternator direct to the batteries cutting out the sterling alternator controller and it was still high voltage and so they said they couldn't help anymore as it would require deeper investigation. They arranged another engineer to come out and investigate further, he has checked the alternator and confirmed it as fine, checked all the batteries and confirmed they are fine, check all connections and they are fine. He believes it must be the sterling alternator controller that is causing the issue but did not attempt to disconnect it or tell me what I would need to buy to replace it which is what I want doing as I just want it fixed. I am not 100% convinced this has failed as the unit has a unit fail warning light that is supposed to come on if it has failed and should shut down if it does fail which has not happened, and the original RCR bloke wired the alternator direct to the battery and it was giving out high volts. I need to find an electrical engineer in the midlands who could come out and strip out the sterling controller and replace it with a new one or a split charge system of some sort, I cannot take the boat to a boat yard as I do not want to run the engine as it will damage the batteries and there is nothing in our marina, does anyone know of someone who will be able to come out and not just check what needs doing bet also replace anything that needs it?

I have the above alternator to battery split charger and a warning light has just come on it which is for high alternator volts, after checking the manual it says to check the output at the back of the alternator which i have and this is 14.6 volts which sounds about right to me. Could there be another fault or is the warning light incorrect and the device possibly on its way out?

My father is a volunteer lock keeper and trains all the volunteers who work his flight, He would be shocked by the actions of the volunteer you had, they would be dismissed immediately if the CRT were told of this, volunteer or employee. All volunteers are instructed to wait until the boats skipper gives them permission to open any paddles and then they have to ask if you want it full open or partially. As an unfit single hander I welcome every volunteer and help I come across,I wish every lock was manned at all times it would greatly increase my ability to travel further afield. The help I have had through the atherstone and fradley locks has been invaluable, it would have taken me whole days to get through them otherwise.

Yes it is the nuts on the front of the stern tube where the propshaft from the gearbox goes in . I will tighten it up and see if this stops the grease leak thanks.

Great thanks, I'll tighten it some more. Should it be tight tight or just tight?

Hello all, I had my driveplate replaced a few months ago and the engineer loosened the stern tube in order to slide the propshaft back to remove the gearbox and then forgot to tighten it again afterwards. I have tightened it myself upto when I met slight resistance, ever since I have a grease emulsion leaking from the front of the stern tube around the propshaft where it now drops into the bilge and gets splattered around the bay as the propshaft spins. Does this mean I have over tightened it or not done it tight enough?

Just curious why shaft mounted rope cutters are not in wide use on canal boats as they are on seagoing yachts such as the below? They are commonplace on yachts due to the likelihood of getting a trailing rope on the prop or from a lobster pot or fishing line and you don't have the option of a weed hatch on a yacht or being able to wade in and clear the prop, they work very well at chopping any ropes or weeds that would get wrapped round otherwise. Apart from the risk to fingers while prodding around through the weedhatch I cannot see any reason why you could not use them and as long as you know it is there you should be able to avoid it while having a grope through the hatch. http://www.yachtingmonthly.com/gear/propeller-rope-cutter-test-30012

Thank you all for your advice, the smartguage seems to be the one for me.

I am looking for a smartgauge to keep an eye on my domestic batteries, the engine already has its own voltmeter, and there are a few around from the likes of victron, NASA and several others. Which does anyone recomend, I would want it to show ah used and projected time remaining as well as voltage ideally?

Edited as double post

Well blow me down with a feather, never expected to see you on this forum Dylan. I've been an avid follower of your videos for years now and love them for you ditch crawling explorations. Glad to see you've found a replacement for Harmony for your west coast adventures, we always thought centaurs were posh as we only had a little 24 footer when we were at sea. Can't help you with your query as I haven't got up onto those canals yet but I do think the draft will be an issue, canals are shallower towards the edges so I think you will have trouble getting close enough to moor up. No tides to lift you off on the canals. I'm sure you'll find a way though and can't wait for the vids.

Well I was out yesterday as I had to get home, no heating on board and a cold night forecast, and it was very tricky sideways going whenever there was room, passing other boats was the worst time as you have to straighten up. Did not see any trees down but had to stop and get the weed hatch open 4 times due to the amount of debris around. Mooring was the hardest part as I have to reverse into my berth and with the bows being blown across by the wind you have a tiny margin of time when it is lined up before the bows goes past, just managed to get onto the pontoon with the stern and centre rope with the bow just going through the wind and pulled it back far enough that it was caught between the pontoon and the next door boat before the bows went too far although it was within microseconds of going past the point of no return and I would have been stranded on the pontoon watching the boat go careering across the marina on its own into other moored boats. Wouldn't want to try it again in that weather, too close for comfort.

Hello everyone, I have a solid fuel stove with back boiler running 1 rad which all needs to come out, there is a leek in the back boiler and from the pipework behind the cabin sides where you cannot see it means its unusable as it just empties the water into the bilges. Can anyone recommend an engineer in N.Birmingham are who can do this and fit a new straight forward solid fuel stove, I am happy to leave the pipe which is behind the cabin side there just blanked off but would like the rest taking out. There is a no work rule in my marina so it couldn't be done on the berth, would have to take it somewhere to have it done so not sure how this would work with a mobile engineer or if it would have to be taken to a proper yard to have this done?

Thanks all for the help, I will try it with all the doors open MTB and see if it stays lit, if it does if there is anything that can be adjusted or replaced so that I don't need to have all the doors open to use the grill? Would be a tad cold through winter.

Hello, I have a Belling built in oven and grill, however the grill after being on for about 5 minutes then goes out, you can here the spark trying to re-light it but it will only re-light if you hold the knob in, which is no good, as soon as you let go it goes out again. Does anyone know what needs replacing to fix this?

I don't understand the purpose of this link that the CRT have managed to be moved away from Woodend lock, it Is a link between the HS2 and the existing mainline railway joining near Handsacre. What is this for? HS2 trains will not be able to travel on the old mainline as the tracks are not designed for the high speed trains and supposedly the line is at capacity already, existing intercity trains will not be able to travel on the HS2 line as they would slow down the entire line so why is this link needed at all, why not just terminate HS2 phase one at Streethay instead of linking it onto the current midland mainlie and then if they go ahead and build phase two it can go down the proposed new line to Manchester which is further north than this link.

Thanks Bottle, I'll give it a go.

Hi, I hope someone can help as a lot of people seem to know about these systems and I haven't a clue, my boat has a back boiler feeding 1 radiator with a run to the stern for an expansion tank. I have used it for the first time today and even thought the stove is nice and hot the radiator remains cold. Is there a way of checking how much water is in the system and how much should there be? If there is water in it is there a fix without having to put in a pump, presumably the system has worked fine in the past as it has never been removed or changed and the previous owners had the fire going most of the time as they were liveaboards?