34LRC battery location?

[Fighterpilot]

Is the standard location for the big D batteries on the outboard side of the 3208 cat--where*they are *really difficult to get to? Could they be relocated to forward of each engine as an example. What is the battery hook up for the boat. One as starter battery and the other as house battery?

Which tank does the generator pull its fuel?

Were trim tabs standard or an option. Do you need tabs with the heavier 3208 cats?

Forgive me for the questions but looked at my first 34lrc today. Thanks

 

[Capn Craig]

Batteries: *Mine are located to the front of the engines. *They are in very sturdy fiberglass boxes. *They are sturdy enough to crawl on if you need to get to the engine backsides. *Mine have a battery for the engines and genny and a 8d for the house. *This I am planning on changing since one 8d is hardly enough to do what I expect of the house bank.

Tanks: *Mine is setup to draw fuel for either engine or genny from either tank. *Fuel can be returned from anywhere to anywhere too. *I doubt that it was built that way. *Word of caution: *the prop shaft stuffing boxes can throw water up against the front bottom of the tanks. *Salt water can cause all sorts of corrosion and leak potential there. *I don't know how the tanks can be removed. *By memory, I think mine might come out between the engines, but I havent measured and I have inline 6's not V8's.

I believe trim tabs were not standard. *They are of no value at slow speed, but faster, they help hold down the bow. *They are also very useful leveling the boat as people move around, and in cross winds. * You should look in the Californian forum page 2, for the boat test and option pricelist that is posted. *I found it very informative when I was buying mine. *A big thank you to Mr. *Flywright for that.

 

[Capn Craig]

Fighterpilot wrote:
Is the standard location for the big D batteries on the outboard side of the 3208 cat--where*they are *really difficult to get to? Could they be relocated to forward of each engine as an example. What is the battery hook up for the boat. One as starter battery and the other as house battery?

Which tank does the generator pull its fuel?

Were trim tabs standard or an option. Do you need tabs with the heavier 3208 cats?

Forgive me for the questions but looked at my first 34lrc today. Thanks

*Is the boat you looked at today the boat on Ebay?

*

 

[Fighterpilot]

Captn Craig--yes, I looked at the boat on ebay. It hasn't been used much in the last few years and it showed it. We took it out for a short run but only had the throttles up for a few seconds. Engines smoked with throttles up, partiicularly the port engine. Felt some vibration. Don't really think we got up on any kind of plane. Only saw 2700 on one tach. Other tach not working. One engine water temp gage not working. Amp meters didn't seem to indicate any current. One fuel tank unhooked-thought it was leaking. One "diaper" below it showed some red diesel fuel. Holding tank pump not working. Rusted badly. Generator runs. A/C not working. Starters heavily rusted. Extra set of props were* 21X24. Is that standard with the 3208s. All exterior wood work needs attention. Hasn't been hauled in 4 years, but is on a fresh water slew. Survey 8 years ago revealed 5 or 6 blisters. Bilges filled will misc. stuff, such as empty oil jugs etc.

Too much of a project boat for me to even bid on it without insulting* the owner. I'll pass.

 

[Capn Craig]

It always amazes me how much worse a boat can look in person than in pictures. * Doesn't sound like anything I'd want either. *I don't think 21x24 is the original props. *I think mine are 22 x 21. * I doubt the boat has a 24 pitch prop on it and pulls 2700 rpm. *Unless it has something higher than a 1.5:1 reduction. *Good luck in your search.

 

[FlyWright]

Don't know about the original location, but my batteries are on centerline in boxes just fwd of the holding tank and immediately aft of the fwd ER door. There's room for 3 8Ds. I had 1 8D for start and 2 8Ds for house. Just replaced the house with 6 golf carts.* Below is a schematic of how FlyWright is wired.* (no genset)

My tanks were replaced by the previous owner for the reasons cited by Craig. He told me he had to remove some of the aft salon flooring and associated structure to get the tanks out. Dripless shaft logs were added to eliminate the problem.




-- Edited by FlyWright on Thursday 21st of April 2011 10:40:07 PM

 

[Fighterpilot]

Wow, that is a great drawing on batteries. Appreciate the information of tank removal. I figured some structure would have to be removed and that confirms by thoughts. Thank. Going to look at a 35 Convertible this morning. A week ago was in Galveston, TX, Monday in Foley Alabama, yesterday in St. Augustine, but this one is only 50 miles away so easy drive.

 

[Per]

FW, nice schematics..
what is the Yandina combiner?

i have 4 x 8Ds in mine, two are outboard of the engines in the bilge and two are in an enclosure forward of the port engine whereas my genset is located on the SB forward of the SB engine.

dripless shaft logs sound nice, what did that cost you?

 

[Fighterpilot]

Having the generator forward of an engine keeps it dryer. Sounds like a good location, wish there were room on a 34LRC for that, but those I have seen it doesn't seem possible.

 

[FlyWright]

Per - Here's a link to the combiner. http://www.yandina.com/c100InfoR3.htm "The Combiner 100 is a voltage-sensing relay (13.3 volts) which connects two batteries together when either is receiving a charge. When the charging ceases, the relay opens so that each battery operates independently. Supplemental battery banks can be added by using an additional combiner for each bank. You never have to worry about switching to "BOTH" when your engine is running and forgetting to switch back to save your starting battery from discharge when you stop."

I didn't add the dripless shaft logs, the previous owner did. Not sure what it costs, but the boat has to be hauled and the shafts disconnected to change over to dripless.

Fighterpilot - They're talking about the 34 LRC. It seems like it'd be tight on my boat, too, but maybe if my strainers and holding tank plumbing were relocated, it'd work. As my boat sits, I'll never add a diesel generator. It works fine with 12V/Inverter/propane/Honda 2K gen, but I could see myself adding solar down the road when it becomes more efficient and lower cost.

 

[Fighterpilot]

FlyWright, the honda 2k is a great generator. Where do you put it when it is running? I used one on a previous boat and had it located up in the tower and ran the cord down to the boat's external power plug.

 

[FlyWright]

I tried this tub last week and it worked well. Will be looking for a white one to replace the funky blue. At low RPM, I hardly even notice it running on the swimstep when I'm in the cabin. I only run it when awake...never all night.

 

[Fighterpilot]

Pretty clever. I like the hook up. Did you consider drilling some holes in the container along the sides to make sure you got enough cooling for the generator. Maybe you don't have to--but might get kind of warm in that container without good air flow. You could put a thermal gun on the generator in and out of the box to see if there is much difference.

 

[FlyWright]

It has holes on the other sides and the bottom...you just can't see them from that angle. It does not heat up in the box.

 

[Per]

the combiner is similar to the the blue sea ACR i have installed..

be careful not to drop that tub in the sea, that could cause issues..
and be aware of the CO2 issues with using gasoline powered generators, it can be deadly, all it takes is one good inhalation of CO2 and its done..

 

[FlyWright]

If you look closely at the pic above, you see 2 red straps that pass through the swimstep, through the tub, and around the H2K and through the handle. It doesn't budge with these straps. In addition, there's a cable lock that is partially covered by the blue towel that blew aft over the transom. It is attached to the rail and the H2K handle. I can reach over the rail to start, stop and refuel the H2K. It rode high and dry all week on the water. The tub does a good job of protecting the genset with any waves over the swimstep.

 

[FlyWright]

superdiver wrote:
The problem with the tub here is that we live in a rainforest here and rain is counted on, anything else is a blessing...

*The tub has a lid for periods on non-use in the rain and holes on the bottom for water drainage.* We're talking full-featured high technology here.

 

[chc]

Great idea on the tub. On my Californian 34 LRC, we keep the Honda 2K unit under cover in the cockpit until we need it, then it goes on the swim platform. I strap it down thru the platform slots. Can't move. Our boat has 4 8D batteries on board; 2 outboard of each engine. Stbd side is for engine start & anchor winch; port side is house bank & inverter. the way the wiring is set up, I can start w/the house batteries if needed, or run all 4 as house bank. Batteries are AGM, so other than checking connections, there isn't much service work required. That's a plus, 'cause my old joints just don't bend as well as they used to, & getting the Detroit 8.2's that this boat has can be trying at times.