Re: T&T: House Bank
I just have to put in my 2 cents. I'm with Clyde on this although I got there from a different route. When we were boat looking, a good mentor dragged me through his engine room and pointed out all the "good stuff". This included a complete Ample Power system of external alternator regulator and battery monitoring system. I took his advice 15 years ago, it's still running, my batteries love it and we are seeing 8+- years on our house bank. Now, don't get your shorts in a stew but a number of years ago (5, I think) on the suggestion of another listee, I changed from the traditional house/start bank to one big house bank. The good ole John Deere never fails to start even when we have pulled the bank down to 50% of "useable" capacity. Presently, and most likely, until we sell the boat it will be one bank of 12 golf cart batteries (1360 amphrs), one generator battery ands a set of jumper cables. We also use the nano pulsers on all batteries. Do they work, damned if I know but battery life on this boat is not an issue (see above).
Like Clyde, I don't for the life of me understand why almost everybody wants to make the most convoluted, complex, ungodly battery system. Must be for bragging rights.
Tom
Aventura KK42
Message: 3
Date: Sat, 20 Oct 2012 13:21:57 -0700
From: clyde fernortner garbage7@wavecable.com
i find it amazing that people want to reinvent the wheel, when it comes to batt charging! i have a system i have changed 3 times over the first 10/12 yrs, of the 20 weve had our boat...internally regulated alternators are dinosaurs! [i checked the spelling] as ive said before, i lean toward the ample power charging systems [they just keep on working]...company is in seattle, but they sell everywhere...i have 6, 260 amp 6 volt batts...we call them 'sweepers'...the normal golf cart 6v is 225 amps...my alternator is a 130 amp leece nevell heavy duty, ambulance/fire truck type. i use the ample power V3 automatic 3 step regulator...just set 3 dip switches, as to batt type, and leave it alone [check the connections once in a while] have a unit called a 'nano-pulser' that is wired to the house batts, and shocks the batts every few seconds to keep the plates clean, and extends their life...have a unit called an 'eliminator' by ample power, that has its own built in regulator, to charge my 2 group 31s in paralell, connected to them via a #10 wire from the house bank thru the eliminator to the start batts...i just add water! have one so called battery switch...it`s purpose is to put the house/start batts together if ever needed! [has never happened] i use 2/0 cable for all inter-connections...never use different size cables! like water pipes, smaller pipes/wire restrict flow! use good cable, and connectors, then a good crimper that makes the connector part of the cable! go to amplepower.com, and do some reading...c
I am not sure what some of you consider "complex battery systems," but
coming from a military background where redundancy after damage is
considered next to godliness, I am not going to place my faith in any system
for my twin-engined boat which does not provide independent starting
batteries for both mains and the generator.
The house bank, added late in this 40-year old boat's life, got a lot of
thought from Arild and me, and it got its very own main engine and larger
alternator to keep it charged when it was installed.
My system was somewhat vindicated recently when a jammed starter button
burned out a main's starter and ruined at least one starting battery (maybe
two since they auto-parallel when a started is pressed).
The remaining generator battery was switched into the main start system, and
everybody started happily as before in order via two more stops on the way
home.
The house bank stood by as the ultimate start source.
A major cable failure or blown up battery in these single-bank systems for
the whole boat would make me continually nervous, but then, that's just me.
Rich Gano
Calypso (GB42 Hull # 295)
Panama City area, FL
I am with Clyde in the direction of simple. No switches. Nothing to
remember. Because the weakest link in the chain is me.
Richard
Rich,
Your post reminds me of reason #2 why I dislike the somewhat common (at
least on Hatteras and Grand Banks) feature of a relay that automatically
cross-connects the two starting batteries whenever starting either engine.
The first reason is that no warning is provided when either engine or start
battery starts to develop a slow-cranking problem. Much better is a manual
cross-connect relay. Start either engine from its battery alone. If the
cranking is slow and engine won't start, hit the manual cross-connect relay
button for a boost. Now you've been forwarned that some attention is due on
the batteries, cables, switches, or starter motor.
Mark Richter, Ortona, FL on the Okeechobee Waterway
Mark's Mobile Marine
General boat repairs at my dock or yours.
Electrical system design, installation and repair.
----- Original Message ----- >
My system was somewhat vindicated recently when a jammed starter button
burned out a main's starter and ruined at least one starting battery
(maybe
two since they auto-parallel when a started is pressed).
What you say has some merit, Mark; however, there are some positives to the
auto-parallel function and some ways to avoid a pair if dead batteries.
If I stay on top of my batteries via hydrometer and voltage checks, I can
pretty well tell by age and these checks when one is ready for replacement.
The other simple check is to stop charging the batteries for 24 hours and
then use the cutoff switch in the engine room to disconnect the number 2
starting battery (the one to which the port engine's alternator is NOT
connected via the cutoff switch). Now I can start the port engine with a
single battery. After shutdown of the port, I disconnect the number 1
battery at its cutoff switch and start the stbd engine on its own battery.
Since its output goes to the house bank, I have no worries about frying its
diodes like could happen if I were not paying attention when aligning for
the port engine start check.
So there is indeed an easy method to check the main engine start batteries
on this auto-parallel system via the single-battery start method, and it
takes about 2 minutes and two switch flips. I do it every so often in
addition to the other regular battery checks. 26 years and counting, and I
have never had a start failure on this boat due to a dead battery. have I
found weakened batteries? Sure but because of the auto-parallel feature my
engines have always started, and there have been some situations in which a
failure to start would have made things dicey to say the least.
It would be a simple matter to install a switch at the helm which would
normally cut off the power to the paralleling bars, but I have not seen the
need for that extra complication.
And it turns out from checking brother Jim's GB42, that all GBs do not have
the auto-parallel feature on start.
Rich Gano
-----Original Message-----
Rich,
Your post reminds me of reason #2 why I dislike the somewhat common (at
least on Hatteras and Grand Banks) feature of a relay that automatically
cross-connects the two starting batteries .........
Mark Richter