Below are photos of the way the parallel switch was set up. I need a recommendation on the amperage to replace the old unit. Nothing I can find indicates single/double pole or amperage. The way this is set up there is a three way switch that allows me to push right or left to engage battery bank 1 or 2 to start the opposite motor. Any help on how much amperage the solenoid needs would be appreciated.
Mine was set up that way also. We left it in place after the repower. I think I have a Cole Herse solanoid in my garage. I will look tomorrow and see if it is marked.
As an FYI, I have 4 start batteries. Two group 31's to turn over the Cummins and one Group 31 House. With the both engine switches to on and the house switch on All when I flip the parrallel switch I can bring all batteries on line to start either engine. Never needed it in the 9 years but going to pretty hard to never crank over an engine.
Thanks for that. One of the things I wasn’t sure of was the required amp capacity on the solenoid. I have four group 31 agm batteries divided into two battery banks. Each battery has 800 cold cranking amps/1000 marine cranking amps. Multiply that by two since there are two batteries per bank and each bank is 1600/2000 amps. I wasn’t sure what the math looks like on the actual amps the solenoid has to handle when I hit the parallel switch given that I’m looking at Cold Cranking Amps/Marine Cranking Amps calculations, not the true amps the solenoid absorbs when the parallel switch is engaged.
I have wired my boat so that one bank is port engine only and the other is starboard/house. I have been on the hook over night with the bait pump, fridge, and intermittent other items on that dropped the starboard/house bank voltage enough that I hit the parallel switch to tie in the port bank to the starboard to be safe when starting.
I definitely like the parallel switch. I just cannot see anything that identifies the current solenoid capacity.
65 Amp. Continous 12 volt DC
Intermitten Raiting 750 Amp 100 Amp Break
10 second on 30 min off.
The intermitten is what you need to meet. That would be when you engage the switch. So what I have is this one except mine the rubberized casing over it.
I would think the amp rating should at least match as close as possible to your battery switch. So if the battery switch is 750 or less intermittent you are fine. Remember just because you have all those amps in the battery you are not hopefully drawing them all when you kick the solenoid in. If you are you have a bigger problem.
Excuse me, you’re intelligent people...stick a solar panel over the bridge and FORGET about solenoids, capacities etc.
For heavens’ sake, in 10 years you will not be able to circulate by car into major cities if it’s not electric.
Excuse me, you’re intelligent people...stick a solar panel over the bridge and FORGET about solenoids, capacities etc.
For heavens’ sake, in 10 years you will not be able to circulate by car into major cities if it’s not electric.
Don't even consider going off shore with that attitude.....
mike ohlstein wrote:
Don't even consider going off shore with that attitude.....
There's no walking home.
I've been waiting years to see the Mean Team live up to its name...
Me, I set up my battery switches to permit a combination and run it that way.
Cheers-
Stephan
The issue is, when a battery is dead, a solar charger alone may not be able to charge it and i have not seen a solar charger that will fit on a boat and turn over an engine on its own.
I learned, unfortunately quite late in my life, that it does not matter at all what you're saying, it only matters what the others have understood...
In this case, my message probably did not get through and I'm to blame.
I meant to say that I too was puzzled by the switches and the parallel battery banks, and the one port battery which is only a starting battery etc etc, and what loads can be supported and when, and the cranking amperes...all that. Nothing more and nothing less than what everyone here is contemplating.
It is an ADDITIONAL safety measure, and therefore a good attitude, to have the sun help you out in your electricity needs. So that without any additional effort you can have your batteries fill up for free and continuously, especially at latitudes where the sun is quasi permanently present.
If you add up the peace of mind when all your bilge pumps can operate at dock without a shore power cable and the hassle of an eventual power shortage, then this attitude doubles as a yet better safety measure. That's all I meant and I hope things are a bit straightened out.
For those of us who do not have a genset, it is nice to know that if (probably by mistake or miscalculation) all your batteries run dry, you can still expect that by the next day at noon you WILL be able to start your engines as if nothing had happened...you may just have to stay at anchor a bit longer until your energy needs are replenished as if by magic!
One last point, just to emphasize what I said earlier about the electric cars, I read that Nissan and Toyota will stop importing diesel cars in Europe by 31/12/18. The reason? It has been proven that the longer mileage that diesel cars provided and the associated economy has been beaten by electric cars' efficiency...I'm not able to judge all parameters at this point, but it surely stands out that we are definitely witnessing a serious shift in consumer demand that will revolutionize almost everything...to the point that governments (France, The Netherlands, but perhaps others too) officially announced that internal combustion engines will be banned from cities in 10 years or so. The Dutch even claim that they will be banned from the whole country. How's this for changing consumer habits ?
Also, the french boat builder "Rhea Marine" but also other makers too, are already proposing a hybrid version of some of their models, is this a sneak preview of what will eventually happen in the boat industry too?
if (probably by mistake or miscalculation) all your batteries run dry, you can still expect that by the next day at noon you WILL be able to start your engines as if nothing had happened...you may just have to stay at anchor a bit longer until your energy needs are replenished as if by magic!
All well and good if your at dock or at a safe anchorage...
...but if 20, 30 50 or 100 miles offshore and your starting battery is stone cold dead with a storm approaching...a ship barreling down on you AND you HAVE to Go and GO NOW...waiting a day for a solar panel to juice up your battery is out of the question. Times like those a switch that brings online a backup battery in an instant is worth its weight in gold.
Even if your right outside your harbor and see a boat headed for you...flip a switch to bypass a dead/drained battery.
Not sure about where you are...but for me it seems the days of battery wearing down slowly, giving advance notice of its doom are over...my batteries work perfect, then dead. Never get weak...cranked perfect last night, stone cold dead in morning. Dead to the point it will not take a jump or a charge.
As to cars and trucks going electric...we have 'em too. But no major shift headed in that direction on our horizon. Most here seem to prefer to burn the fossil fuel directly instead of letting the electric companies have all the fun.
Of course. I agree. Same here, if you’re in the path of a container ship you’d better be able to start your engines quick, you know these guys won’t change course...they may not even notice they stumbled on you!
Only, it’s better to know that this first or second battery is being filled CONSTANTLY with sun juice, so its going to be full...that’s all. You dont have to let them run dry and then realize it’s too late.
It is also FAR BETTER to not have to start your engines, or your generator, or connect to shore power and still have plenty of battery juice for your fridge and whatever else you want. Like be at a dock or marina and watch everyone else spreading out their cables because it’s shower time and all the pumps need to run, while you take this oblivious look while sipping on your preferred drink.
Plus, like I said earlier, the peace of mind when the rain is heavy and you dont know if there’s a blackout at your docking area, so your bilge pumps may not operate...
I know that no matter how hard I consume my amperes all day, no matter how much ice I produce and consume, at the end of the day I will still be able to start my engines, furthermore, by next day at noon I will have all my batteries filled to the rim without having done anything. Its soooo sweet.
So sweet and necessary, that if I were coast guard I would make them mandatory, at least one flexible panel per battery bank.!
As a 'safety first' guy, I'm totally in favor of more gear vs less. I have three solar chargers...... but I have no place to set them up other than in the cockpit. So if i was 70 miles out and tied to a lobster pot, and woke up to dead batteries, I would certainly use them to charge the gen set battery to the point where it would start. But switches and proper isolation and some jumper cables are not things to be left at home. I've seen things go from wonderful to oh shit in the blink of an eye, and that's not the time to be waiting for the sun to come out to play. The truth is that if I had room for a permanent solar installation, I would have one. But it would be hooked up to a battery that wasn't connected to anything but the charger.
It is good to know what you can or cannot do with a solar panel.
What it boils down to, is that you can do everything except to supply sufficient electricity for an A/C, electric oven and electric cooktop.
You only need to directly charge your batteries, I have four of them, from which you will get 12v for ALL your needs except for the above. I keep one battery outside the loop so that I can start an engine in case something went wrong. I also can switch back that one battery into the loop, to get it charged.
I have a two gas burner cooktop and a gas water heater for unlimited extra hot water.
For A/C I have a fan....I know, some of you do need an A/C but I’m afraid you cannot have this from a solar panel.
I also have a portable inverter of around 200watts onto which I plug my music, my electric toothbrush, or anything else that cannot work on 12v directly, which I plug on a 12v socket inside the cabin.
I’m not sure I understand what a charger is. Or what you would need a charger for.
