How To: Marine Electrical Seminar - Battery Combiners - Ep 10/30

[@derickdelima5991]

Hi Jeff - just wanted you to know you have a fan from far away in India. Just love your series and the way you put multiple devices to work in harmony in an understandable way.

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Thanks Derick. Glad you find our content enjoyable.

[@ryanskare6670]

This video raises a question for me. Simple 20 foot Bayliner 60 some amp alternator. Currently one battery so I have to be very careful with chart plotter, radio, lights. Game plan is to add an average sized group 24 deep cycle and a blue seas ACR system. The idea is I can drop anchor and not worry about the chart plotter and other auxiliaries because of the battery isolation. The question is, now I will be depleting the house battery by as much as 50% for a day of fishing or just bobbing. All lights are LED (Anchor/Nav) Chart plotter draws about 1 amp. Radio about 1 amp. Is this system appropriate for my intended use?

[@ME-qq2dc]

Hi Jeff, from Australia. I have a small trailer boat with a 104 AMP deep cycle battery for my Minn Kota and a small start battery of around 500 CCA. I have a 140 AMP dual input VSR fused on both sides with 80 AMP midi fuses. My outboard alternator is 16 AMPs. Wiring goes from the start battery positive terminal to an on/off/combined switch terminal 1 then continues from this terminal via midi fuses and VSR back to the switch terminal 2, then on to the house battery positive terminal. I have a seperate cable running via a 30 AMP circuit breaker to a switch panel with inbuilt circuit breakers to run all accessories. The Minn Kota is also fed direct from the house positive terminal with 60 AMP breaker. Finally I have an onboard AC charger connected to both batteries. Any issues with this as described? Would greatly appreciate your opinion. Love your videos mate, extremely informative. Cheers Mark

[@sammaimas155]

Can you explain unswitched distribution. Is it a positive bus bar to combine all the positives?

[@jaketarren]

Yes, located between the battery and the battery selector switch, that way its always "on" regardless of the switch position. On my boat it holds all charge loads, and the bilge pumps/alarm on the engine battery.

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Jake, great reply. Bang-on!

[@AdamC5013]

great series, waiting for the isolator video!

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi Adam, posting that Battery Isolator next week.

[@1975Per]

I have a question - You know that if you turn off the switch from the alternator to the battery, that you break the alternator. I guess that will have the same result if the fuse on that cable trip, right? Won't that ruin the alternator as well? I guess it's better than a fire.... But a nuisance trip would be very costly. Any comment on this? (without going into the rabbit hole for 2 hours, hehe). Love your videos!

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Good points 1975Per. That's why you size the conductor and the fuse for the alternator to never have a nuissance trip. For instance, on my own boat i have a 160 amp alternator wired with 2/0 wiring (handles 300 amp) and my fuse is 250 amps.

[@jaketarren]

@@PacificYachtSystems are you using ANL fuses and holders to connect the alternator, charger, solar, and fuel cell to the bus?

[@JohnKennedy-ll5hp]

Hi Jeff, I have a question I would love your advice on. I have a 31ft tiara with twin yanmar 315hp engines, 12v 80amp alternators on each. Each engine has a lead acid 4d deep cycle battery that acts as starter and house. Port runs windlass and starboard runs house. Battery switch is left on both at all times as I think it needs to be as I only have 2 batteries. I would like them to be combined when they are receiving charge but separate when they aren't so that one can't drain the other. Can you advise how I can avoid that happening as I cannot figure it out. Thanks, and thanks for another great video, I'm learning every time!

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi John, battery switching isn't a easy topic to cover in a chat. But here goes: each engine should have it's own dedicated off-1-2-both switch. Each engine should only start on their respective battery, since you have two engines and two batteries, there is no need to have the battery switches set to all/both.

[@crischnak]

Hi Jeff. Can I connect the SI - ACR at the switch (4 studs), ie using the positives on the switch, ie not after the switch but at the switch? Pros and cons?

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Yep, you can. Challenge is fusing the ACR connections at the battery switch.

[@lyfandeth]

I thought at least some of these used Mosfet's not solenoids. The West/Yandina, the original combiner, uses a relay. The Hellroarer uses Mosfet. Those were all one-way. I thought Echocharge was too. These two-way are all new kids on the block that you are talking about.

[@lynndonharnell422]

I have house bank of 4 and engine of 1 all AGM with a VSR. Looking at going lithium when they crap out. Do I still keep an AGM as engine battery and what are implications for the combiner?

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi Lynndon, many ways to do this, but here is our preferred method with a lithium house bank, install a DC to DC charger to charge the AGM starting battery.

[@denizsevgor8596]

great vid again! Batt isolator video would probably answer my questions. But im in the middle of a decision making while learning. sorry if this sounds stupid, so im gonna throw it anyway. Is it possible to feed the victron argofet (or smilar) or a battery combiner(ACR-VSR) through an external voltage regulator from an alternator (balmar mc or smilar)to charge the batteries at the correct charging state - bulk, absorption or float ? If so how does the voltage regulator know at what charging state the batteries at, especially one (say house batt bank) is at lower voltage and different temperatures. The more i got info bombed the more it becomes confusing. If there is an answer to this question and its too complicated to explain. can you point out where I should pay attention to the Nigel's electrical bible.

[@jaketarren]

I've got the exact same question, what's the product you hint at at the end of the video? Any ETA on when the next upload will be?

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi Jake, next video will be uploaded next Tuesday.

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi Deniz, you can definitely use a battery combiner or a battery isolator with a external regulator. Careful as things get tricky doing the connections for the voltage sense.

[@nonobebert7646]

My service batteries are really weak now and my engine battery is brand new. I have a 55 11e Blue Sea combiner and a Blue Sea SI ACR. There are 3 positions on the combiner : off/0, on/1, and combine batteries. I always keep it on the on/1 position. After 5 days my engine battery is as weak as my service batteries. Is it normal. Isn't this device designed to separate the battery banks ? So that when one banks is dead the other can still be charged ? I hope it is clear enough !

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Hi Olivier, from reading your notes, sounds to me like you have a weak engine battery. Your off/on/combine battery switches keeps the house and engine battery banks separate.

[@nonobebert7646]

@@PacificYachtSystems it is brand new ! What if I disconnect my housse batteries from the ACR to test my engine battery ? Will it work on the on/1 position ?

[@daasboot81]

Ok, so the VSR is hooked up. And my switch is on/off/combine. I never use combine?

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Correct. Combine is only used in case of emergencies, i.e. when you need to force your batteries to be in parallel or combined.

[@daasboot81]

Pacific Yacht Systems very good to know. Thanks again for delivering quality information that matters.!

[@cliffodell8593]

Actually an ACR is "Automatic Charging Relay" not "Automatic Combiner Relay" lol

[@PacificYachtSystems]

Thanks Cliff for the correction, appreciate it.

[@markm6483]

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