mchancox

Whether the battery is recoverable, completely life expired or in tip top health. It's then down to the edumacated operator to determine what they need to do next.

Agreed

It works and it's simple

That'll mean less money to spend on quality batteries.

It'll measure things like battery internal resistance, ability to accept a charge, etc to see that in the first place it is healthy. I guess we have all seen a battery declared as faulty but showing 12v+ on it but under lid it drops off to say 7v or less. So although a battery using a Volt meter may show a reasonable reading it may not be in good health. After telling it what type of battery and what the battery SAE, CCA, Ah is it'll then give you a percentage score at the end. Plus a print out so the customer can easily see what the gadget is reporting back. Sealey do a cheaper version.

Specific gravity reading of electrolyte is also useful if this can be obtained. If all else fails, buy a battery analyser. I use one like this with a printer but there are slightly cheaper ones. Basic print out shows state of health and state of charge.

There are a wide range of enhanced charging systems available. Have a look at sterling power products A to B charger. Did you replace the whole bank or just the ones that were dropping off? Have a look through this too. It’s useful to understand alternators. Just because you have 175A you might not necessarily be getting a decent charge current. Depends on rotation speed.

:)) There are a wide range of enhanced charging systems available. Have a look at sterling power products A to B charger. Did you replace the whole bank or just the ones that were dropping off?

It’s your decision which way you go, either way keep it simple to install and simple to maintain. There are ways of keeping the vibration down. I have fitted to a wooden base and even straight to the steelwork with anti vibration mounts. The bigger noise generator to be honest is the click click click of the fuel pump. This should have come with a rubber coated p clip. This can also be fitted with an anti vibration mounting.

Hi. What kind of charging system do you have on your boat and what is the output of the alternator?

Don’t go pressure. Keep it separate. You need to be able to charge the system with antifreeze. By having the header tank you can easily do this. If for any reason the anti freeze that you may have in a pressure system somehow bleak back into your fresh water, glycol alcohol is highly toxic, you would become seriously ill if not worse. Keep the two separate.

Yes you can. It can go in a cupboard, wardrobe so it's concealed. Some have had it on the wall so they can see the levels. Purely up to you where you put it as long as it's higher than the rads.

Smart chargers will regulate the charge voltage depending on the battery type. Off shore there are all types of alternator enhancing products that will increase voltages and currents. Being kind to your batteries is key and getting the right battery bank installed for the purpose also. Semi traction came quite a demand from some of my customers with several years of problem free off shore power. Design it right from the start. Happy boating.

I have fitted all of the above and my personal preference both as an installer and a user would be the Victron unit. Make sure you have the right charger for your batteries and it is set up correct. Different battery types can and should be charged at slightly different rates. The previous notes about charging at 15 volts quite rightly should only be done as an equalization charge but for standard lead acid batteries you should be in the 13.5 to 14.2 volts. As you start to get towards 14.4v onwards for prolonged charging, the battery will start to gas and you will smell sulphuric gas (Eggy farty smell). excessive charging will kill the battery prematurely so a balanced Battery/Charger % is preferred to smoothly charge the battery and not aggressively charge/boil them. Hope this helps?

Hi, I Install and maintain Victron Invertor chargers. What model have you got and which red LED is lit? Firstly confirm that you have 230v coming into the vessel. The Inv/Charger should automatically go into charge ode when hooked up to the mains and depending on what model you have you may even have an ammeter that shows how much current is being taken to charge up the battery. Knowing which one you have and also which lights are illuminated would help further to offer you some sort of diagnosis. Some of the more complex models can be accessed by the laptop and settings, charge rates, etc. can be adjusted. Current limits can be adjusted and allsorts. Cheers.

Hi, I Fitted/serviced/repaired Webasto heaters on-board boats as part of my Marine Business. Most if not all installations were with Hep2o or speed fit, never had problems with leaks or poor fitting. Always made the ends off properly with the reinforcing insert (Which some used to leave out) inserted in the pipe end. The main run was 22mm pipe and the t off for each rad was with a 22mm to 15mm t-piece. Some customers specified copper with compression fittings. I also had a few that wanted chromed copper! No joints were ever solder due to the risk of fracture on both the water side and the fuel side too. All systems were fitted with a header tank, none of them were pressurised. They don't need to be pressurised as the water pump on the boiler is adequate enough to pump the water/antifreeze mix around the system. Setting up should be done properly to ensure that the correct burn rate is achieved. This was done with a gas analyser up the exhaust and adjusting the Combustion fan speed on the laptop to get the correct burn rate %. If anyone has a laptop with the Webasto diagnostics this is easily done. Every service I would download the info from the ECU and retain it to build a picture of how the boilers were performing over the years. Kerosene has been used in the boilers and it was shown to have detrimental effects on the burner tube gauze. The boilers were designed to run on Diesel and not heating fuel (Which sometimes get used in the marine world).

Just a rant really. I was expecting to see this amazing 12v timer switch!!

Websato. There is a Petrol variant of the Thermo Top. and the airtop.

Yes, Potential is there. There s another debate on whether to have a mains charger connected to a starter battery.

Tis true. My Bro in Law is Gas safe for boats, I do the Petrol & Diesel Heaters. I just love the smell of diesel.

Go Diesel...Gas too Risky

Above is correct. you need a Ships Portable radio License for the Vessel and the Operator must have a Short range Certificate to Legally demonstrate he is competent to use it. that is my understanding, I hold a SR Certificate for operating VHF Radio on Board, My Job and Volunteer Search & Rescue require it.

You could explore the DC to DC convertor route! Its a device that stabilizes the 12v and regulates it at 12v irrespective of the main boat 12v being up to 14.5v. All you need to do is to get the right size plug for the lap top (Which you could obtain from an old expired charger). This route would save you having to have the invertor on when you are out and about just to power a laptop. Hope this helps?? Cheers, Mike.

I would go with Diesel or Petrol Heating and stay away from Gas. I fit diesel & Petrol Heaters and my Brother in Law deals with gas (Suitably endorsed Gas Safe for Boats). I don't like gas on-board boats, it is the worst possible place for it. I also hear horror stories of 'Boat Engineers' fitting Gas heating without being certified Gas Safe so the risk here trebles.

Hello all, it is a question I get asked all the time. I have not encountered problems with both running and with it being DC there is no risk of being out of Phase (AC only). Modern Alternators and Smart charging systems monitor the outputs and regulate the charge accordingly so the theory being that they would share the load rather than overcharge or fight each other. Whilst I have not encountered or heard of problems with both running, I always ask to turn the mains charger off when I need to run an engine because normally I want to see what the alternator is doing and don't need the input from a mains charger. The story of the Sterling charger and Domestic alternator burning out may well be a little difficult to comment on but I think the bill of £1500 is way over priced!!