Nova Kool refrigerator

You could get a little more out of the solar when cruising if 100% of the energy went to the house bank . As they are set up from the factory , 10% of the solar goes to the starting battery . For storage that's a good setup , but for cruising with frequent movement , its 10% of the energy that could be better utilized by the house loads.
The real solution for the folks that want to be more self sufficient on the hook is to add a battery or two [matching] and another matching solar panel to the roof,go 100% LED lighting and you will have alot longer hook time between "fossil fuel charges" .
Marc
 
Thanks for sharing your power uses, Jim.

My longest boat trip ever was last summer, for 3 weeks, and I am now exploring the idea of staying out much longer, and what I might want to consider.

Although I have LED lights, I haven't needed lights yet beyond a headlamp during the long days of summer nor have I needed to charge electronics since I have not yet figured out reception issues.

Now I can better envision more use of power particularly during periods of shorter daylight or more overcast skies. Since I hope to make more use of the iPad, that will also require additional power.

And for those who telecommute or do research while aboard, of course you are "connected."

Thanks for expanding my horizons.
 
Thanks, Marc,

That suggestion of adding batteries is very appealing to me at first glance. I need to think more about how I might want to live.

Four years ago I chatted very briefly with a couple who were spending their summers in a beautiful and somewhat empty spot in Desolation Sound. They were not the typical "travelers" and seemed very content, having figured out how to make it work for them. Now that I have such a comfortable boat I am recalling their lifestyle...
 
Herb and Knotflying,

Thanks for the information about potential safety issues with a freezer or refrigerator powered by propane on a boat or motorhome. Scary tragedy for your friend, Herb.

My stove and oven on Cascadia are propane powered and I am hopeful that there are no remotely similar risks. I am not clear on the issues but know there is a reason why the propane is stored on the swim step.
 
Hi Anne,
The danger with propane is that it is heavier than air and can collect in the bilge if there is a leak. The propane system on our boats is very safe. The propane tank(s) are in a locker that vents outside the hull. My R27 has the propane locker under the cockpit bench seat, it has a drain (vent) hose that leads to the transom. If there is a leak it will vent out the bottom of the locker through the drain hose and overboard. The propane valve that supplies the stove is electrically controlled and inside the locker. There is also a propane detector under the stove, if propane is sensed it will shut off the valve. The stove will also shut off the burner if the flame blows out, an additional safety feature. Ranger builds our boats to ABYC standards, the propane line from the locker to the stove is well protected and is a single hose with no additional fittings/connections.

I believe your R29 house battery bank has 4 batteries, so you already have twice the capacity of a standard R25/R27.

Jim,
I did a partial conversion to LED lighting. I figured it did not make sense to change lights that are not on much, such as the light in the head. I also did not convert the overhead cabin lights, we do not use these much. I did convert the dinette, galley, and V-Berth lights. We use these the most. I bought the LED lights from MarineBeam.
I also increased the house bank capacity 50% by merging the house and thruster banks. The combined bank is now 3 batteries. I did this work last winter and it worked very well this year. There is a previous post where I describe the work, it was an extensive project because I also added a battery monitor and new high current bus bars.
I also installed an auxiliary battery charger to get a higher charge rate when running the genset. The factory installed charger is only 20A on my R27, it would take many hours to charge the house bank. I selected a 45A charger so the genset could handle the charger and water heater simultaneously without overload. If I need additional charging I can switch on the 20A factory charger when the water heater switches off allowing a 65A charge rate. When in my slip I only use the 20A charger, it is a smarter charger and is perfectly adequate when power is available 24/7.

Howard
 
More solar capacity could probably take care of your needs, Anne. You'd have to do a power "inventory" to see what you use in an average day, then set up solar panels to meet that usage. The fridge is the biggest power user on our boat; I generally figure two days max before the batteries need to be recharged, due to the fridge usage. Ah, the price we pay for the convenience of keeping cold foods cold.

Depending on your location and the water temp, you can turn your fridge off when you go to bed... as long as the door isn't being opened, ours actually does pretty good holding the temp. Just DON'T forget to turn it back on in the morning!

Sailboat cruising friends of ours have learned to do without refrigeration, eating fresh fruits and vegetables, canned goods, and drinking beverages that are the same temp as the water. Fine, I suppose, if you are in the cold water of the San Juans... not so good in Desolation Sound, where the water temp can be 20º warmer. :? A bit too "spartan" for our style, but they make it work.

When we are cruising, traveling around is what we do; two nights at anchor in one spot means we're going to be running the generator... which we need to do for the microwave, and Joan's Keurig, and charging all the devices. Charging everything while you are running to the next destination is like getting "free" power. 😉

There is a limit to how "self sufficient" we can be on our boat: at some point (measured in a few days), we'll need water, a pump-out, an electric plug-in, and the real necessity: ice cream. 😉 Sometimes it's nice just to be tied to a dock so you can take a walk any time you want. A bigger boat, with bigger tanks, a water maker, and a bigger generator can keep you out there longer - all it takes is $$$.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Regarding adding a battery. I took a suggestion from Howard Roland and I put a line and switch between my house bank and the thruster battery. When I am cruising and will be on the hook I just switch it to on and then I have 3 batteries for my house power. I am all LED for interior, cockpit and anchor light. After a night on the hook with Wabasto heater, lights, TV, refrigerator and my C-pap my voltage is down to about 12.32V or a 70% state of charge. Then the sun rises and the solar panel starts to take over and by the end of the day I am pretty much up to a full charge. I sometimes will run the engine for an hour to get full hot water and that will give me a total top off at end of day.
 
I purchased a Norcold 45 and am now wondering about where I planned to keep it, in the basement on the floor. The manual says it should have 10" on both sides for venting, which it does not there.

What do others do with that issue? I am guessing that the venting is a major issue extending to the floor. I also hang clothes in that area and notice that will not work either with the venting issue, which I had not considered.

Now I am not clear now where to keep the freezer.

Any suggestions will be great.

Thanks in advance.
 
We have talked about this before but..... The little square fan that runs on 2 D batteries is the ticket to keeping everything cold and not freezing things in the refer. They run for a month of 2 batteries and really make a diff. RV item.
 
Tug@myHeart":3tvrtdlq said:
We have talked about this before but..... The little square fan that runs on 2 D batteries is the ticket to keeping everything cold and not freezing things in the refer. They run for a month of 2 batteries and really make a diff. RV item.
Click to expand...

Here's a link to one...

http://www.rvwholesalers.com/catalog/fr ... 7Aod5DgAmA

You can get one at your local RV supply or Camping World.

03-0980.jpg
 
Perhaps you could call us a throwback but we fill the vegetable bin up with ice when we cruise and turn the refrigerator off when the engine is off. Ice last about four days if you are careful about the length of time you open the door. Nova Kool make decent ice box.
 
Thank you for this post on the NovaKool refrig sensor. I emailed their support and within 10 minutes I had a call from their customer service with a helpful reply. Apparently the coil, as you outline, is not supposed to be coiled up behind the temp control. He walked me through pulling it up through to the cold plate and latching it with the two tabs located in the freezer (cold plate). Dramatic difference in how the refrig runs.

So.....I now think this was leading to my battery draining issue. The refrig was constantly running trying to keep cool as the coil couldn't sense that it was cold enough (not in the freezer box) - this draining the batteries as the solar panel could never keep up. Frankly nothing could unless I was on shore power.

Amazing how all of these things tie together; but thankful for this original post to help me get to the bottom of the problem! It only cost me a new bank of batteries and a being stranded twice with no juice :-/
 
I love this site! It makes me feel normal, that I am not alone. There are others out there with the same issues.
If I listed all of my fubar's, including near self immolation, no one but folks on this site would believe me.

Pat
Ladybug, Too
 
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