Boat is seriously under-charged

Go with the 90 amp Iota with external regulator. You can bypass the regulator and charge at the full 90 amp rate to whatever percent you decide. The internal regulator will not allow you to do this.

Moniker was CAPN CHUCK

He dropped off the forum a couple years ago as he got too busy, not a huff I hope. He was very knowledgeable and an active member.
His blog is The Trawler Beach House

David; thanks for the explanation and example of what the power factor is. Several of the chargers specs had this and now I know.

When I asked the admiral for her advise after giving her a rundown in simplistic terms of my options she said buy the most expensive one you can so we won't have any trouble with it.
John; you an my wife think alike. I keep trying to get the job done cheaply and so many times that solution bites me in the butt. I've also talked to Charles directly and as John said they are knowledgeable and helpful.

We have not missed having an inverter, so a charger/inverter isn't necessary. We do however have a need for AC power at times and in the past we've waited to use AC power until we needed to charge the batteries. This works for us but does require enough reserve power to operate the micro and TV, so maxing out the genny with a battery charger does not fit into this scenario.

Thanks guys for all your help, I've learned a lot from this thread.

John, did you get your ice maker running? I owe you an e-mail and will reply soon. Got some things to iron out at work.

timjet said:

John, did you get your ice maker running? I owe you an e-mail and will reply soon. Got some things to iron out at work.

Click to expand...

No worries!!! Take your time. And yes, my main mechanic guy is pretty damn handy. A/C and refrigeration is his specialty. He rebuilt the ice maker and had it up and running for under $200 and it has been keeping drinks cold ever since.

AGM's to 80% before going to an absorbtion phase and AGM's will accept 80% of their capacity during a bulk charge

Perhaps true BUT even the AGM may not accept a charge RATE of 80% .

Sure AGM do better that wet lead , but I think the charge Rate you are looking for 150A in 1 1/2 hours would require a very large batt bank to get the rate down to where the batts can accept the charge.

FF said:

Sure AGM do better that wet lead , but I think the charge Rate you are looking for 150A in 1 1/2 hours would require a very large batt bank to get the rate down to where the batts can accept the charge.

Click to expand...

I know those figures are published figures with probably new batteries and a charger with no line loss or other in-efficiencies.

I will probably get a quality 100 amp charger and depending on how long we stay anchored in one place, I will have to closely monitor my power usage. Next up is a SOC meter.

My 2 100 amp alternators have been used to top off the batteries, but using the engines is not efficient. Getting rid of my current refrig, a new charger, and closely monitoring power usage during extended anchoring is my solution.

Thanks FF for bringing that to my attention.

Just be sure to include the batt temp sensing V reg for the engine and something similar for any charger.

Boil the water out of AGM can be a very expensive charge.

Approaching your dilemma from an entirely different point of view---I completely agree with Ski in NC (who posted previously). SIMPLIFY YOUR LIFE! When you're on the hook for extended periods...shut down that Norcold and use old fashioned ice in a high quality cooler (Yeti or similar) for only those items that absolutely need refrigeration. Several reasons: (1) It's easy, (2) It's cheap, (3) It's foolproof. (4) Beer always tastes colder when you dig it out of an ice chest. And think of all the money you spend running the generator to keep junk cool, a lot of which doesn't have to be refrigerated at all (eggs, butter, cheese, vegies, etc.). You'd spend far less money on ice than paying the fuel tab to keep your bologna in a power-hungry fridge!

My boat is a liveaboard....not a campsite...I prefer luxury at home but do enjoy camping for short periods.

Transferring food back and forth and leaving stuff out isn't in the equation for many people.

I think a boat that can run all 12V with the occasional 110V use via inverter is great...but I'm not going to cover my boat in solar panels and wind where I travel isn't reliable enough...so I live the tween world of batteries, conserving and gensets. I've been boating since long before fridges on most boats and have no wish to return.

If I were to design from scratch of buy again and had the opportunity for a design I could easily alter...so be it.

Bottom line is still whatever way you set you boat up has to work. If you are going the 12V route and like the luxuries...you better have one large and complex system (auto or manual) to keep it healthy ....from batts to chargers to controllers to SOC monitors to sources....and all the wire and ends , etc healthy too.

Just like Gensetters who have to change oil and replace zincs and exchangers, etc..etc...no free lunch in either case I see...but definitely careful supervision of the systems.

psneeld said:

Transferring food back and forth and leaving stuff out isn't in the equation for many people.

I think a boat that can run all 12V with the occasional 110V use via inverter is great...but I'm not going to cover my boat in solar panels and wind where I travel isn't reliable enough...so I live the tween world of batteries, conserving and gensets. I've been boating since long before fridges on most boats and have no wish to return.

Click to expand...

Pretty much my outlook. I'm too old and lazy to rough it and the admiral would probably leave.

No need for an inverter, but a big charger, good generator, SOC and careful monitoring with a power hook up or 5 hour engine run every couple of days should do it.

We did the Bahamas for 25 days about 2/3 the time at anchor with a 30 amp charger, no inverter, no SOC and ran the engines as necessary. The refrig was never turned off.

If you'll forgive a philosophical digression for this thread, on many occasions I have asked myself why I abandon the safety and relative comfort of life ashore to go knocking about in boats. Usually this happens around sunset with a cold adult beverage at hand. What I've come up with, in a word, is freedom. And I've found that the more stuff I bring aboard, the less freedom I have; the more dependent I am on money to buy more stuff, and to pay guys who can fix stuff I can't. But that's just me. I can afford such an outlandish attitude because I am married to a Six Million Dollar woman who had a proper upbringing. Before we got this floating palace, we spent many years cruising aboard a Spartan little 32' timber sloop with a bucket for a head and a small ice chest to keep the beer chilled. Life is bloody good nowadays! Good luck in solving your power issues brother!

Captain K said:

And think of all the money you spend running the generator to keep junk cool, a lot of which doesn't have to be refrigerated at all (eggs, butter, cheese, vegies, etc.)...

Click to expand...

It may depend on your ambient temp, but leaving those examples outside the fridge would seriously(with variations) shorten shelf life here in OZ. Even eggs.

Hi Bruce. A million years ago, back in 1966 I think it was, I was an exchange student in Canada. Upon arrival at my host family's home, I noticed something most Americans had forgotten generations earlier. Butter was left sitting on the table covered by a simple cloth. Eggs were kept on the kitchen counter in a wire basket. Fresh baked bread and potatoes and onions and tomatoes and rounds of cheese were likewise kept outside of the fridge for quite some time, as were urns of dill pickles, olives and kraut with no apparent ill effects. It reminded me of my grandma Bader on the family ranch in west Texas. As a kid I used to cowboy on the OI ranch during summer break back in the 50's and early 60's. We ate stuff like the items mentioned above without getting sick, and they were never refrigerated. Even meat from freshly killed goat, beeves, rabbit, deer and other wild game would first be salted, then smoked, then kept unrefrigerated hanging in the kitchen until grandma would stew them up for supper. Delicious! Nobody ever died as I can remember. And nobody wondered how many batteries, or chargers would be required to survive, or how many admirals would bail out on account of unspeakable hardships. How far we've come??? Forgive the philosophical musings please. I long for the simpler times when independence was a value much to be cherished. With apologies...must be a sign of advancing age?

Great stuff, Capt K! I used to be a lot tougher in my youth, but I'll be the first to admit that I've grown soft.

When we bought our boat, it was strictly 12V and propane. It met the basic needs, but the microwave was only usable with shore power and making coffee without shore power became a camping-like event. We don't like feeling like we're camping on the boat. Moving up from this level was a bit like the book, If You Give A Mouse A Cookie.

So, I thought, why not add a larger battery bank and a small inverter to allow limited MW and coffee maker use on the hook?

With a larger house bank, now I need a SOC meter to keep track of all those AH's. ....oh and also a larger alternator for charging.

Since we have a larger 660AH house bank and inverter, we might as well take advantage of this capability with a small 110V refrigerator that's no longer needed by the college daughters.

Now the house bank is getting drawn down after a couple of days. We could run the mains, but then, who wants to run the main engine(s) long hours for charging at anchor? Better get one of those Honda generators to allow charging at anchor. Besides, we could also use it to power the microwave and coffee maker to relieve the load on the house bank.

BTW, isn't that 30A charger looking a bit undersized for the job of charging the 660AH house bank? Maybe it's time to upgrade the house charger to something like 75-100A.

It's a never-ending saga of upgrades and mods. Not that it is not without its own pleasures, but it's been a long road of incremental improvements. Any regrets? Heck no, but I think my next boat will have all the comforts built-in before purchase.

Capt K,
More likely signs of a good memory than advancing years. Or do I just think that because I`ve about as many years on the clock.
Pickles and smoked foods are good unrefrigerated, but as a kid I remember butter melting in a dish in the cupboard.
Refrigeration on boats is a pain, but well worth it for a cold beer.

I also recommend the iota chargers with the smart regulator. The largest one is a 90amp I believe so 2 together would be 180amp if you feel you need that much .