[C38] Two Electrical Problems

[Mark Lewis]

Julian,

Catching up on old posts, so your electrical issues may be history. I
installed a 3 panel solar kit (Costco $160!) that puts out 55 watts and
comes with a voltage regulator and small inverter (run a TV).  What's cool
is it keeps my refigerator cold and my batteries topped off for starting,
regardless of how long I'm off the grid, and without ever starting the
engine.  I can sit at the mooring in Catalina for three nights and never
start the engine ( of course we are blessed with endless sunshine).  Other
cool thing is the panels fit my hatch cover perfectly - so as long as I
don't stand on them putting the sailcover on/off, I'm good.

Mark

On Thu, Jun 26, 2014 at 1:08 PM, Julian Adams <julian at umich.edu> wrote:

> I have two electrical problems that have been resistant to my tinkering.
>
> 1. Low voltage at the helm.  I mounted a Garmin GPS unit (4308, I think
> the number is) ate the helm.   Every so often (typically when I need it
> the most) the screen goes blank.  I sent it back to Garmin for service at
> a cost of $500 only to receive a reply that there was nothing wrong.  A
> Garmin rep. told me that it was likely low voltage at the unit and sure
> enough when II measured the voltage it was 8-9 volts.   He suggested that
> it may be a bad ground. I replaced the cord and resoldered connections to
> no effect.   So if it is a bad ground where do I start looking?  I thought
> everything was grounded though the keel.   OK, maybe I am just showing my
> ignorance here?
>
> 2. This problem is unconnected to the first.   At the dock I can charge
> the batteries to the usual 13-14 volts (through shore power), but when we
> are cruising, and on the hook for several days the battery voltage
> steadily goes down to 10 to 10.5 volts (over say 3 -4 days) irrespective
> of how long I run the engine to top off the batteries.  I have removed the
> alternator and had it serviced.   I also have a unit called an alternator
> controller, made by a company named called "Spa Creek".   I have no manual
> for it; the company no longer exists so I can find nothing on the web
> about the unit.  It has a switch and a dial but no idea what the switch
> and the dial do.
>
> I would greatly appreciate some tips from on how to solve them
>
> Julian
> ************************************************
> Julian Adams
> Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
> University of Michigan
>  830 N. University, Ann Arbor MI 48109-1048
> Tel. (734)-763-3431; Fax (734)-647-0884; Cell (734)-239-3627
> E-mail julian at umich.edu
> ************************************************
>
>
>
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