I GOT MY FIRST BOAT, NOW HOW DO I POWER IT ?,

[Murflynn]

A table top snooker table can be made from an old tea tray, preferably a wooden one by sawing out the six pocket holes in the sides and by using either large appropriately painted marbles, gob stoppers or aniseed balls as the balls with chop sticks for cues.

............. and then curse every time the smallest boat goes past

[Peter X]

ahha i can see the boat community is going to love me and my friends (: x

The boat community is a very broad church, with room for everyone and a lot of love to give. Unless you run a generator (or an engine while moored) outside hours.

 

It would be very boring if everyone was the same; some boats are very posh, others are very tatty. Some rarely or never move, others cover thousands of miles a year. Some use hardly any electricity, and some have a 32" TV running for hours on end. Most people on here are very helpful, and a lot are very knowledgeable about the various technical aspects of running a boat and will help you work out a viable solution. Please answer the various questions they'll need to ask to help them work out what that solution might be.

 

Here are some questions which I think the experts may need answers to:

How much will you have the use of a shoreline? If you're plugged into one of those in the evenings you can zap aliens or whatever to your heart's content.

Do you have an outboard or inboard engine? Petrol or diesel? How is your boat heated?

How much do you think you'll be cruising about? If one of your friends is more into boating than gaming they can be steering you down the canal with the engine+inverter generating power for the rest of you to enjoy a gaming cruise.

If you won't have a shoreline, what hours will you have available to charge the batteries up? Can you moor up somewhere remote to run your generator without it annoying neighbouring boaters too much? Maybe somewhere so ugly and noisy that no-one else wants to moor near there? Under a motorway bridge? If you're concentrating on a video game with headphones on you won't care about the scenery.

[RLWP]

i'm getting the impression that due to my lack of knowledge on this subject i should'nt be here ?

 

Naah, you're fine. How do you find stuff out without asking questions? You seem to be absorbing information pretty quickly

 

Richard

[W+T]

Hi DCGeezer, first of i just LOL at this, no offence mate but i no at first had these Dandys are one of the worst boats about, i have had three and the first i lived on for 3 months in the Autumn time, I would be happier in a tent if i had to do it again. Toilet compartment so small you cant even wipe your a**e unless your a bendy person, ( cant spell contorionist )

I see you are a newbie to this, any details/pics of the bat setup. Without the home cinema 32" TV that is lol ,

 

Pics please, love pics

[Tony Brooks]

some of these posts are really helpful guys but.. i'm getting the impression that due to my lack of knowledge on this subject i should'nt be here ? i just want to learn and the people helping me do that i thank you muchly (: x

 

As others have said that is just plain wrong. At least you are staying with us, answering questions and seem to be grasping at least some of the things you needs to. That's a lot more than many do.

 

What you might not appreciate at the moment just how often this sort of question comes up. It also gets posed as I charge my batteries every day bit they are always flat and I have to buy more. When questioned, if they even reply, we find they run their engine for just an hour a day and are using an electric fridge/microwave/toaster/coffee maker etc. Sometimes people get weary answering the same basic question and reply in a light hearted way. Its nothing personal.

[zenataomm]

i think you need to take a step back and look at this new life what is going to heat the boat up this winter whilst you are playing games

 

Well I guess that'll be the TV, Playstation and any other electronic gizmos packed into the cabin.

[magictime]

Welcome to the forum. No one thinks you shouldn't be here, I promise! Don't be put off by the odd post that seems a bit brusque.

 

I don't know much more about this power generation business than you, but from what I understand and what others are saying, it does sound as if you might be struggling to power your TV and console 5 hours a day on top of the electricity that's already needed for lights, pumps and whatnot. I don't think it's the number of batteries that's your issue, but your ability to charge them back up after using 1000Wh+ of power every evening.

 

Obviously you're not seeing this as so much of a lifestyle change that you want to give up your gaming (which is fair enough), but I wonder if switching to a handheld console might be a compromise you could live with - even if it's just during the winter months when solar power's not available? You could even be charging it up during the day at work or wherever.

 

During the summer you might have much less of an issue - a 250W solar panel might well give you the 1000Wh a day or so you need for gaming, for instance.

[Arthur Brown]

Summarised from lots of other posts on solar and power.

 

200w of solar cells will give you free power for an electrofrugal life for about six months a year -high summer! For the rest of the time you will need mains or fuel generated electricity.

 

1000w of solar cells will produce plenty of electricity for boat life -maybe for a full on gaming habit(!) for the summer but may need support in the less sunny months.

 

Whatever solar you can install on a dawncraft will probably not satisfy your electricity for your gaming screen and habit regardless of the season.

 

Your optimum solution may well include solar, a fuel powered generator + charger, AND access to a mains supply (shoreline) at least occasionally.

 

There is no point in installing batteries unless you have the capability to charge them from empty to full in a reasonable time -usually an eight hour cruising day

 

Added; The best figures quoted here for winter solar power by the month were that January usually yields about 8% of July's sunny weather power.

Edited February 1, 2016 by Arthur Brown

[Phil Ambrose]

You might like to consider gaming on a tablet using WiFi unit both of which can be charged at work. That way you can get your online gaming fix without killing your batteries.

Phil

Edited February 2, 2016 by Phil Ambrose

[nicknorman]

So taking richard's figures for the TV and PlayStation it comes to say 200W or 20A from the batteries if we include a bit of LED lighting etc. 5 hours of that = 100AH. The general rule of thumb is to discharge one's batteries no more than 50% otherwise they don't last long. So you need at least 200AH of battery, and I'd suggest 300 is more realistic. Leisure batteries are often 110AH so that's 2 absolute minimum, preferably 3.

 

If you use second hand car batteries you will struggle with capacity. Even new starter batteries are not designed to be deeply discharged regularly, and won't last long. Really, the best way is to use semi-traction batteries (eg golf cart batteries) but I am wary of recommending them because, like any battery, they will die quickly if not charged properly. They are only advantageous if you know how to look after them.

 

However you have to replace what you take out (and a bit more) and due to the vagaries of battery chemistry they take quite a long time to recharge fully. If you don't recharge fully at least every few days, there is an effect called sulphation whereby the batteries lose capacity fairly quickly. Quite a long time is perhaps 6 hours presuming an adequate charger.

 

Of course you can run your generator whilst playing up 'til 8pm which will help reduce discharge, but please be considerate and get a quiet generator and don't run it excessively near other boats or houses.

 

As to solar, great in summer but pretty useless in the dead of winter, which of course is when you want more lighting etc.

 

I think the others are trying to tell you that you seem to want to take a land-based lifestyle and plonk it on a small cruiser. That probably is going to be disappointing for you, on the other hand I suppose if you don't try you won't know. With our electrical system I could do what you want to do but we have a big heavy narrowboat with 450AH of semi-traction batteries (that are heavy) and a lot of (quiet) generating capability. I think you will be struggling to get that into a Dandy.

[DHutch]

Power consumption of a PS4: drew approximately 80 W when operational in menu mode, rising to around 110–120 W in gameplay,

 

and a telly is up to 70 W: http://energyusecalculator.com/electricity_lcdleddisplay.htm [hence around 180-200 W combined]

 

Lets take the figures Richard dug out for us.

 

AS the TV and PlayStation run from the mains divide their wattage by 10 to get the amps AND allow for inverter inefficiency so the TV and PlayStation will demand a bit under 2 amps. Run them for 5 hours and that is 10 Ah. (ignoring lights and any water pump).

 

You should only assume your battery will run between 50% and 80% of fully charged so that 10 Ah is about 1/3 of the battery capacity so you need at LEAST a 30Ah battery. A sub £100 110Ah leisure battery would do the job well.

 

Tony, have you not dropped an order of magnitude there? 200W / 10V = 20A not 2A

 

 

Daniel

[Tony Brooks]

 

Tony, have you not dropped an order of magnitude there? 200W / 10V = 20A not 2A

 

 

Daniel

 

 

Absolutely correct, no idea why apart from old age. Everything should be twice what I calculated so that makes the situation even more hopeless as far as winter solar goes.

[Phil Ambrose]

Well DCgeezer is any of this making sense? The change of lifestyle you have chosen does have a massive and steep learning curve attached to it. However if you stick with it and us I can assure you that we'll do our best to help you on the right track.

Oh and don't ever think a question is stupid because the only stupid question is the one you don't ask.

Phil

[X Alan W]

I think if I had to live on a "Dandy" at this time of the year I would be more concerned about keeping warm & condensation free before Gaming etc. if you have that covered Ill put up & shut up.

I'm sorry if I came across as rude, but would hate for you to spend on Solar, Genny etc,& then find you were frozen to death & wet through with condensation I fear the Dandy was not designed for full time occupation not this time of the year anyway I fear you'd be hard pressed with a longish wet spell even in the summer + learning as you go along can work out OK or be a Very expensive leaning curve Good luck with whatever you choose to do.

[BMC problems]

Hi, ive purchased a dawncraft dandy to live on for a while (i know its small)

 

it currently runs the electric off of two car batteries and a solar panel, i want to put my 32inch tv and playstation onboard and have no power issues.

 

So i'm thinking more solar panels, more batteries, and a backup low power genny for if i do run out of power on occasion.

 

THE QUESTION IS , how many batteries will i need ? can i just get aload of car batteries and hook them up parallel ??

 

ALSO, how many watts am i going to need off of the solar panels ?

 

 

i currently have a Car 1500W converter power inverter DC 12V to AC 220V 230V 240V invertor USB

and a "30A Solar Regulator Charge Controller 12v and 24v system 30I Battery charger"

 

i dont know the current watt of my solar panels as my friend i purchased the boat off of is a dope lol

 

Essentially.....

 

if you've got the money to sort your power generation problem you've probably got the money to buy a better boat to install it on.

 

or to put it another way...

 

If you can only afford a knackered downdraft you are unlikely to be able to afford the kit for your gaming habit.

 

Get a girlfriend with a house.

[Rob@BSSOffice]

some of these posts are really helpful guys but.. i'm getting the impression that due to my lack of knowledge on this subject i should'nt be here ? i just want to learn and the people helping me do that i thank you muchly (: x

 

 

And it seems, there he was gone, even before I could mention the carbon monoxide, fire and explosion risks from running generator aboard a boat, so make sure it could be run ashore... http://www.boatsafetyscheme.org/about-us/news-and-press-releases/news-releases/nr15-008-bss-use-generators-correctly,-ashore-nov/

 

[Geg]

surely a 12v computer monitor would make more sense? I know life with out the xbox can be hard on all, iv been offline for 12 months now, iv had to read books pick up my guitar again and all manner of strange things!!!

will you be cruising or mooring up at a marina?

[smileypete]

For now a cheap 4 stroke inverter genny and cheap charger should keep things ticking over till springtime and the start of the solar season.

 

A few ideas:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wolf-Portable-4-Stroke-Inverter-Generator/dp/B00LJ17JVC

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12V-20A-Connect-and-Forget-Leisure-Battery-Charger-Caravan-Motorhome-Boat-/121734459481

 

or:

http://thepowersite.co.uk/evopower-evo1000i-1kw-inverter-generator

https://electroquestuk.com/chargers/leisure-battery-chargers-marine-battery-chargers/fully-automatic-5-stage-marine-battery-charger-12v-30a

 

Bear in mind you get what you pay for, more or less!

 

Plus CO alarm (in case genny fumes get into the boat) a basic £5 4 digit voltmeter, some sort of ammeter; if you can learn a bit about battery charging etc it may well save some heartache in the long run!

Edited February 3, 2016 by smileypete

[Phil Ambrose]

Nope, the OP still not been back, probably didn't like the answers to the questions he asked

Phil

[bizzard]

Probably gone anti-gizmo and taken up Tiddly Winks.

[RufusR]

Or has thrown away PS4 and become and off grid spoon whittler

[Peter X]

It's less than 48 hours since his last post, maybe he's taken our advice and is busy earning some money towards paying for a mooring with a shoreline. Or out cruising and charging his batteries. Come back Dawncraft geezer, we can help. You don't have to play tiddly winks.

[blackrose]

so realistically i want a generator...

 

Probably, but this will involve understanding the issues of using and storing a petrol generator onboard (you may already be storing petrol for an outboard engine).

 

At the majority of places where you'll find yourself mooring you can't run a generator after 8pm so this may curtail your gaming and 32" tv watching activities. Why don't you think about a small 12v led tv. Mike draws about 1amp on 12v.

 

Realistically, it sounds like the main thing you need to appreciate is the necessity to compromise and reduce ones power consumption when living off-grid.

 

About 8 years ago I met a bloke fitting out a widebeam. It was a lovely job but too much of a modern deluxe flat for my liking. Turns out he was a builder and electrician and he became a good friend. I was outside doing some job or other when he returned from one of his first trips up the canal for a few days. He returned in total darkness with no lights onboard. I asked what was up with his boat and he replied "I've realised I'm a slave to electricity." Basically his batteries and charging regime just couldn't keep up with all his modern mains appliances and power consumption.

Edited February 3, 2016 by blackrose

[Phil Ambrose]

Sadly there seem to be a growing number of people living aboard who are like that. It always strikes me when ever we lose power on our marina it only takes 1/2 hour before the first engine fires up swiftly followed by more. Of couse the same boaters are the same ones who ate CMer's

Phil

[nicknorman]

Of couse the same boaters are the same ones who ate CMer's

Phil

Is that legal? I must try it some time.