Thursday, August 20, 2009

The smoking belts

So the whole reason for the smoking belts, was the fact that I have a 135Amp alternator, on a 44 horsepower Yanmar, trying to charge a 400 amp hr bank. The alternator full fields, trying to charge at over 100 amps, and can't spin as fast as the diesel wants it to. This causes the belt to slip, and smoke, and dry out, and eventually break. As long as I kept my batteries reasonably charged, the alternator had no problem keeping up, but we let them get too low. After consulting with a technician, I was told to ditch the 135 amp alternator, and get an 85A Hitachi, which will ramp up to full fielding over a 5 minute period. I was told the alternator is just too big for the engine. Also, I should find an alternate method of charging. I agree. Deb has been a bit disappointed in the systems on the boat, and I guess I have been too, but I thought we could squeak by for this cruise. The boat can not live off the grid for more than a couple of days, and even then you have to run the engine to keep up with consumption. Dock to dock, she is fine, but anchoring out is going to require some changes. Number one change: Kill the Crosby! Running an AC fridge off an inverter is just stupid if you're going to spend time away from the yellow power cord. DC refrigeration run completely of batteries, charged by solar, independent of the house batteries is the way to go. I'm thinking three solar panels mounted on davits off the stern. Oh yea. All I need now is cash.
Davits for a Morgan 44
Solar Panels
Possible "Crosby" replacement

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