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Larry W4CSC
 
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Default On-board generators Revisited

Kelton wrote in
:

Doug,
you probably have a battery charger that puts out fewer watts that your
generator supplies. If you have a battery charger that is trying to
supply 100 amps to the batteries (1200 watts) and the generator can only
supply 1000 watts, you have a problem. If you have discovered a way to
do this, let me know. We will apply for a patent for perpetual motion.
Kelton
s/v Isle Escape


Unless you're all using submarine 6250AH cells, I doubt you'll ever see
100A coming out of a 100A charger, especially these new computerized-charge
models. If the battery is THAT dead, there's no sense charging it. Run
the batteries down to what you normally do, then watch the charging current
curve on that 100A charger. 1200 watts will simply boil the electrolyte in
a lead acid battery that cannot dissapate that much heat (the batteries in
these boats). Sounds great in the sales brochure and if you turn every
light in the boat on you might get it up to 50A, but that isn't reality.

If you boys want to see a hard charger, there's an original equipment Amel
40A manual charger in my stepvan service truck out of my buddy's Amel
Sharki ketch. IT will boil any battery you have in a couple of hours,
right out the top caps on every cell. That thing is DANGEROUS.

Glad to be back on r.b.c, by the way. Had a great time in Florida cruising
and in the Gulfstreamer Race from Daytona to Charleston out in the gulf
stream. We had the Amel Sharki heavy old cruising ketch up over 12 knots
with the help of the Gulf Stream....(c;

Larry