[C320-list] Dual battery wiring and voltage drops

[Rick From Inflate Co]

I bought / pro installed the whole e7 plotter and related gauges , vane, auto pilot , sat weather over a year ago. I HAD SAME PROBLEM AND IT WAS BRUTAL.

A few months back the batts failed on me. I replaced the 2 DFlood batts ( went with pricey gels) and got a new Magnum inverter charger. My boat is 1995. The problem had been the charger all along. Once replaced with new batts, problem went away completely .

2 weeks later I added a group 27 gel as bank 1 and installed that isolator so if either bank drops below 12, it switches to the stronger bank.

I thought it was the e7 being overly sensitive , but in the end it turned out my batts and more importantly my charger were the problem , hence later losing all power out at sea.

You want to fix that as its indicative of a looming larger problem . I put the group 27 (3rd batt) in the port setee compartment . Had to glass a shelf with a strap. IT'S A FANTASTIC FEELING TO HAVE DEPENDABLE ELECTRICAL .

I hope this helps since I had exact same miserable and dangerous problem.

Rick Portanova
NEMO #235
Dana Point


On Aug 26, 2013, at 4:33 AM, <clburti at gmail.com> wrote:

> Numerous owners have installed a separate Group 27 starting battery in the well just forward of the battery compartment. There are several good articles on the project in the archives, it is not expensive and should eliminate your issue.
> 
> 
> 
> Fair Winds
> Chris Burti
> Commitment
> Catalina 320, #867
> 
> 
> 
> From: Graeme Clark
> Sent: ‎Monday‎, ‎August‎ ‎26‎, ‎2013 ‎7‎:‎04‎ ‎AM
> To: c320-list at lists.catalina320.com
> 
> The wiring diagram in the manual isn't the easiest to follow and the actual wires, running under sole plates and through bulkheads etc even less so, so hopefully somebody can help with this.
> 
> As far as I know our fit is 'factory standard' for the build year (1996)
> 
> We have two batteries (under starboard saloon bench seat) and on the port side electrical panel we have a large round switch that enables us to select battery one, battery two, both batteries or all batteries off.
> 
> The automatic bilge pump is 'hot wired' to the batteries so that it will work even if the switch is set to OFF.
> 
> As far as I know, all other electrical services are "downstream' of this switch - is this correct?
> 
> The reason I ask is that last year we fitted a Raymarine e7 chart plotter and now, whenever I start the engine, it turns off. The local electronics expert tells me that this is because when you start the engine the battery voltage drops (more so if you use pre-heat) and the plotter is voltage sensitive so switches itself off when the voltage gets too low!
> 
> This is more than a little inconvenient as it then takes 30 secs to a minute to re-boot and find itself, As we tend to turn the engine on only when we approach a tricky shoreline this is not good!
> 
> I have had two suggestions to fix this:
> 
> I) Isolate the two battery systems so that Battery 1 can only be used for engine starting and battery 2 for other services (in extreme circumstances you could use one to jump the other with cables)
> 
> 2) Fit some form of voltage regulator/uninterruptible power supply between the boat supply and the plotter
> 
> Solution 1 would require some extensive re-wiring and the fitting of another isolation switch to remove power to the engine circuit. Something else to forget to turn off - it seems to me to be an expensive an inelegant solution
> 
> 
> Solution 2 seems good but I have no idea where and what to buy and with my limited knowledge of electronics I think I would need a mini 12V rechargeable battery as well, since I doubt there is a capacitor large enough to supply the plotter for long enough whilst the engine start takes place.
> 
> Raymarine specs state
> 
> Nominal voltage 13.8V
> Operating voltage 10.8V to 15.6V
> Power consumption 13.2W at max brightness
> 
> 
> Has anyone else had this issue, how did you solve it and what would you recommend?
> 
> Thanks in advance!
> 
> Graeme,  "Simia:
> Hull 303, Great Britain