sockets

[illia]

Hi there, 

this is Illia and I am thinking to buy a boat.

Today I visited a boat on sale but I noticed that there were just USB connections and no sockets at all in the boat.

Is it possible to have sockets as well? What do I need?

Thank you in adavance for your help,

have a nice evening!

[Thames Bhaji]

Hi there. If you mean there were no mains sockets, it could be that the boat doesn’t have a mains supply - in the cabin. To have this it would need a shore supply, an inverter powered by the battery, or both. The usb sockets can work just from the battery. So it’s certainly possible to have mains sockets, and not uncommon, but to have them fitted if they don’t already exist on a boat could be expensive. 

[illia]

Hi Lyra , 

thank you for your help.

I dont't have a shore supply as the boat isn't moored.

Is it possible to create the sockets from the mains supply in the cabin?

I have solar  panels on the roof of the boat....is the energy supplied also from them?

I am not able for the moment to have the mooring for my boat so I would love to find a differnt oprtion to supply energy for the sockets...

let me know, 

a huge thank you...

[Maffi]

Solar panels charge your batteries. Not the same as a land line.
I think what you need is one of these 

Attached by some of this

To one of these

 

 

 

Which in turn connects to one of these which is fitted to your boat

 

 

 

This is the source of your mains power from the stantion on the bank.

 

Or you could just buy one of these ready made

 

 

 

 

[Tony Brooks]

7 hours ago, illia said:

Hi Lyra , 

thank you for your help.

I dont't have a shore supply as the boat isn't moored.

Is it possible to create the sockets from the mains supply in the cabin?

I have solar  panels on the roof of the boat....is the energy supplied also from them?

I am not able for the moment to have the mooring for my boat so I would love to find a differnt oprtion to supply energy for the sockets...

let me know, 

a huge thank you...

 

Unless you have a shoreline or an inverter that runs off, and for new boaters often destroys, batteries you cant get sockets that provide mains power in the boat. You say that you have no shore line and you indicated that you only have USB sockets but in this supply you talk of "creating sockets from the mains supply in the cabin". Either you have a shore line supply or an inverter or you do not and you first post indicated that you do not.

 

If you want to charge telephones then the USB sockets will do it. if you want to run a computer the a 12V car adaptor and a suitable 12v "socket" will do it. So what are you trying to achieve. Remember all the electricity you take out of the batteries s likely to need 30% more put back in by charging.

[Bee]

Electricity on a boat is a perennial problem. It is hard to make enough of it to supply your needs. Basically virtually all boats are making and using 12 volts, the batteries will store and use 12 volts, the engine will produce 12 volts only.  the solar panels will be charging the 12 volt batteries. It is possible to get a limited supply of 'mains' - 240 volt from an inverter, a sort of transformer but that is hard on batteries.  If you have a mooring with mains electricity then you can get 240 volt sockets and wiring installed and plug the boat into the moorings mains electric, to do this properly is the start of quite an expensive job. What we do, and some on here will think this is amateurish, is have a 12 volt boat without any sophisticated equipment at all. Everything is 12 volt EXCEPT a dead cheap inverter that makes a very limited amount of 240 volt for the telly and charging cordless tools and phones etc.  When we are travelling and we tie up at a place with mains electric we plug a lead line into the 240 volt and then use a car battery charger to charge the batteries, we then continue to use the boats own 12 volt system but the batteries are being charged without the engine running. With all things boaty, try to keep it simple.     

Just edited to add......... If you look for threads on here about electricity, chargers, inverters etc. you will quickly realise that you can spend a lot of money but most of these things still don't actually make electricity, you still have to have, and look after, some old fashioned big car batteries, on them, everything else depends.

Edited November 13, 2021 by Bee

[blackrose]

10 hours ago, illia said:

Hi there, 

this is Illia and I am thinking to buy a boat.

Today I visited a boat on sale but I noticed that there were just USB connections and no sockets at all in the boat.

Is it possible to have sockets as well? What do I need?

Thank you in adavance for your help,

have a nice evening!

 

Do LOTS of research before you think about buying a boat. There is a lot to learn. Visit boats for sale by all means, but don't rush into paying a deposit for any boat yet.

[David Mack]

10 hours ago, illia said:

Hi there, 

this is Illia and I am thinking to buy a boat.

Today I visited a boat on sale but I noticed that there were just USB connections and no sockets at all in the boat.

Is it possible to have sockets as well? What do I need?

Thank you in adavance for your help,

have a nice evening!

Why do you think you want/need mains sockets on a boat? What mains appliances do you think you will be using?

There's lots of detailed techy stuff on the forum about all aspects of electricity. But what follows is in simple terms for a newbie.

If you are permanently moored in a marina with shore power available you can carry on using mains appliances as if you were on land, although marina bollards have a lower capacity than the typical domestic supply meaning you can't run everything at the same time. And marina power supplies are less reliable than the domestic mains.

And if you don't have a permanent shore connection all the electricity you use has to be generated by you - usually some combination of the boat's main engine, a separate generator and solar panels. That electricity has to be stored in batteries, and you typically need to put 30% more into the batteries than you get out because of the inefficiencies in the system. Engine and generator charging can only be done between 8.00 am and 8.00 pm, and solar is good in summer but all but useless in winter. So if you are out at work all day, charging in winter can be a problem!  And batteries can very quickly be wrecked if you don't charge them properly. 

The upshot is that you have to minimise your use of electricity to what you can generate. So high powered mains appliances are out. 12V equipment is generally used in boats, with USB increasingly popular for things like charging phones.

The one exception is the fridge. 12V fridges are available but expensive and limited choice of models, so boaters often have mains fridges powered by an inverter (a device to convert 12V dc from the battery to 230V ac, like the mains). But fridges are hungry consumers of power either way. And if you are buying a second hand boat that choice will have been made by the previous owner anyway, so not something to worry too much about now.

[MtB]

1 hour ago, David Mack said:

The upshot is that you have to minimise your use of electricity to what you can generate. So high powered mains appliances are out.

 

And just to clarify this bit, "high power" appliances are anything producing heat, e.g. kettles, cookers, deep fat fryers, washing machines, hair dryers, fan heaters, electric radiators.