Raymarine Electronics Upgrade

 We’ve been unhappy with the performance of our old ST6002 autopilot and S3 course computer for several years.  It was particularly bad about overshooting course corrections in anything but the calmest conditions. It could deviate up to 15-20 degrees from the desired course heading, particularly when sailing deep apparent wind angles. This made it dangerous to use in situations where an accidental jibe could occur or in dense boat traffic.

The new Raymarine EV1 system had a good reputation. Its marketing materials say that it is a 9-axis sensor. Well there are only three physical dimensions, so how could it have a 9-axis sensor? After some research, we determined that it senses three factors in each of the three dimensions:

• direction/orientation of the boat in X, Y, and Z - think of this as heading and attitude
• speed of rotation around each axis (roll (X), pitch (Y), and yaw (Z)) - measures how fast the orientation is changing
• acceleration around each axis - measures how quickly the speed of orientation is changing

This combination allows the system to quickly adapt to the boat’s interaction with the wind and waves. Like a good helms-person, it can anticipate changes in orientation. For example, if a wave knocked the boat's heading 5 degrees off, the autopilot adjusts the helm. Acceleration sensing tells it how fast the heading change is occurring and to begin correcting the helm before it overshoots.

Staying with Raymarine meant that we could re-use some existing equipment: the HD Color radome, the rotary drive unit, and the masthead wind instrument. We had previously upgraded the chart plotter to the Raymarine a75, but decided that we wanted the larger 12-inch display for the new installation. We also wanted the hybrid version that has the knob and a few buttons (particularly MOB) and SD card slot on the front. This required changing the helm layout because there wasn’t enough room between the engine gauges.

Prior installation with a75 display

We bought the Axiom Pro 12S, depth transducer, EV1 sensor module, ACU-400 course computer, p70s autopilot control head, three i70s instrument displays, and the iTC-5 analog interface for the wind and depth sounder. Total outlay was about $8000. We produced a schematic of the installation before we started, so we knew that we had everything.

Raymarine Upgrade Schematic

Removing the old instruments was easy. We pulled out a fair amount of old SeaTalk cabling. The only catch we encountered was the depth sounder cable ran to the ST40 depth readout mounted below the VHF radio at the Nav Station. We extended it back to the iTC-5 that we mounted under the galley sink, next to the ACU-400 that controls the rotary drive.

ACU-400 drive and iTC-5 analog instrument interface

The SeaTalk-NG buss cabling is sweet and makes for a very clean installation. The EV1 sensor core was installed near the centerline and above the headliner inside the salon sliding door to keep it away from sources of magnetic interference

EV1 sensor core above ceiling

The 12-inch display required moving the two engine ammeters.

Cutting and drilling the new layout

The final installation looks very nice and we’re delighted with it.

New installation

The third i70s instrument replaced the old ST40 depth display at the nav station. We really like the flexibility of the new i70s instruments.

What about operational results? The EV1 and ACU-400 combination is great. It holds course reliably when going downwind and we’ve held the bow into the wind to set the main by using the wind heading hold feature. It seems to be better than we can manually steer.

The one thing we're missing is a speed-through-the-water sensor. I dislike the paddlewheel sensors that require constant cleaning and a doppler sensor is $2000, which doesn't seem to be worth it for the benefit of slightly better wind instrumentation.

New instrumentation under way

  -Terry

Six Years on Lithium

 We installed our new Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4 or LFP) batteries in the spring of 2015. It's now late 2015, over six years later. What do we think of the upgrade?

At this point we're getting close to financial break-even over buying replacement AGM batteries. The LFP system cost a bit less than $5000 while a set of three Lifeline AGMs would have been $1800. If we had stayed with AGMs, we would have done the first replacement in March 2015. My experience is that lead-acid cells last 4-5 years. Let's say that we took good care of them and they lasted 5 years, so we would have done a second replacement in March 2020. That's $3600 so far.

Cost is only one of the factors. Weight is another, but I can't say that we've detected any difference in Lux's performance under way, so scratch that one. The big factor is the amount of current we can pull from the house bank. We regularly run the microwave and the airconditioner off battery power. Both consume a lot of power - 90A and 120A from the 12v bank, respectively. 

The depth of discharge is the other major factor, which means that we can run the airconditioner for several hours from the batteries. This summer was particularly hot and humid, with the heat index around 100 F in the middle of the day for a week or more at a time. On one week-long cruise, we ran the aircon for the entire trip. There was little wind, so we did have the output of one engine's alternator to supplement the batteries. We were with a group cruise that went marina-to-marina, so we had shore power for nights and to recharge the batteries.

Yes, we also have a NextGen 3.5KW generator that can charge the batteries and run the aircon. But for the most part, it wasn't necessary to use it for the above week-long trip.

What about the LFP bank's current capacity? The bank has a total capacity of 540Ah, so 80% consumption would be 432Ah. Well, we experimented with that by consuming 400Ah at one point during the summer. The system voltage had dropped to 11.8V, still well above the low voltage threshold. This capacity means that we can run the aircon for three hours at 100% duty cycle on batteries alone. 

Success! We would have never been able to handle the aircon without the genset on AGM batteries.

Would we do it again? Yes! In fact, I've learned of some new cells that are about the same physical dimensions and have 50% more capacity, so we could now build a bank with a capacity of 840Ah to fit in the same space. If I could have a do-over, I would use these cells and install high-output alternators on each engine with WakeSpeed controllers and not install a genset. However, as I noted in my Lithium Battery Engineering article, if you're not comfortable building your own system, go with a pre-designed system from one of the established vendors (BattleBorn, Genasun, Mastervolt, Relion, Victron).

AIS Antenna or Splitter and Axiom 12 Goof

I'm working with John and Kim on their new Leopard 45, GypseaBLU, with some electronics installation and have a couple of tips to share.

Raymarine Axiom 12 Chartplotter Chip Goof

The chart chip socket on the Axiom 12 (not the Pro model) has a small space above and below it where the case fits around it. It is easy to insert the chip into one of the spaces instead of into the chip socket. These spaces are just the size of a chip, so it seems like you're inserting the chip correctly until it doesn't click into place. It seems that missing the chip slot is a common problem. World travelers who need to regularly access and update the chart chip may want to invest in the Axiom 12 Pro or in the Remote Card Reader. At a minimum, be very careful in inserting the chip. A simple fix to prevent this goof is to add a bit of caulk around the perimeter of the chip socket. But on the late model L45's access to the back of the chart plotter is challenging, so a better solution may be the remote card reader. You don't need to ask how we learned this tip. 😞

AIS Antenna or Splitter

We're installing the Raymarine AIS700 transponder. There is a new AIS Class B+ standard that uses a 5 watt transmitter and the same transmission protocols as are used by Class A transponders. Raymarine doesn't yet have a transponder that supports this new standard (very few vendors do as of  Nov 2019).  The AIS700 incorporates a splitter, but we were prepared to install a separate AIS antenna. A bit of searching on the subject found an in-depth analysis of the various tradeoffs: AIS Overview and Installation Considerations. Another good article is VHF‐AIS masthead antenna and coax installation, selection, and test. The end result of this analysis is to use a good quality coax and that height is more of an advantage for distance than having a separate antenna. Note that VHF antennas should not be placed within 4 ft of another antenna or of parallel metal objects like masts and shrouds. These metal objects result in signal propagation distortion that can result in reduced distance in certain directions. So a masthead installation is better than a solar arch. A spreader installation is affected by the mast and shroud. Two antennas on the masthead affect each other.

We opted to go with the built-in splitter, since it has low insertion loss.

  -Terry

Yikes! That's the Smoke Alarm!

BEEP!   BEEP!   BEEP!
BEEP!   BEEP!   BEEP!

It was one of our smoke/CO alarms! Which one? Is there a fire? There was no smoke in the cabins or salon. The genset wasn't running, so that was unlikely.

Both engines were running hard as we motored down the ICW from Charleston, SC.
A quick check of the port engine room shows steam. The starboard engine room was clear.
We quickly shut down the port engine and the steam cleared out. There was coolant on the inboard deck next to the engine. Briefly starting the port engine showed a leaky hose that was spraying coolant onto the hot alternator, which created the steam. About the time we had determined the port engine was the problem, the voice report from the other smoke alarms told us that it was the port engine compartment alarm.

The smoke alarm saved our engine from losing all its coolant and overheating! Installing those smoke detectors paid off! We had installed a set of communicating smoke and carbon monoxide detectors back in 2015, see Detecting Fire and CO. None of the alarms have notified us of an active alarm situation--until today.

Some of the units have failed over the years. When a unit fails, it says something like "Malfunction in Living Room, Please see manual." The room varies according to what we've programmed for each unit. The unit will then beep periodically to let us know that it has experienced a problem when we weren't around to hear the initial message. These units are build for residential use, so it isn't surprising that they occasionally fail in the marine environment. At about $50 each, they are affordable and provide an early warning system.

  -Terry

Lithium Battery Engineering Articles

I've read a fair amount of the articles on the web (forums and blogs) about Lithium battery installations. The best of the best are the following:

http://nordkyndesign.com/category/marine-engineering/electrical/lithium-battery-systems/

https://nordkyndesign.com/electrical-design-for-a-marine-lithium-battery-bank/

https://www.entropypool.de/engineering/

https://marinehowto.com/lifepo4-batteries-on-boats/

In addition, you will find some very long threads on various boating forums. Read them carefully as there are a lot of opinions among a few good facts. The above articles are a much more succinct source of the relevant facts.

The design of a good Lithium battery bank with monitoring circuits, etc., is not for anyone who isn't comfortable with electricity and electronics. There are a lot of things to get right. The articles above will provide the foundation material for getting things right.

If you're not of the mind of an electrical engineer, I recommend going to one of the commercial Lithium battery companies for your system. The short list I give out is Victron (I happen to like their other products too), MasterVolt, and Relion. Yes, there are other good companies, but these are the ones I can regularly remember. Their products are expensive, but are engineered for installation by the typical boatyard or an adept boat owner. Even with their products, it is worth reading over the above articles so you're generally aware of the issues (like overheating alternators or a battery that disconnects itself due to over voltage) so you can discuss them with your vendor of choice.

  -Terry

Lithium Battery Presentation

We've been happy enough with our Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery installation that I volunteered to do a presentation at the Annapolis Sail & Power Squadron meeting, Sept 1, 2016. The powerpoint slides may (or may not) be self-explanatory. If you're interested, a PDF of the presentation can be found here:

I later did a revised version of the talk to the Marine Trawler Owner's Association. This version contains a few more details. It is 29.2MB.
Lithium Batteries as a Marine House Bank

  -Terry

Experience with a Lithium House Bank

We recently wrote about our new LiFePO4 house bank in Lithium Batteries and Lithium House Bank - More Thoughts.

How well is the system working? Here is a picture of a week of use. The right axis shows voltage while the left axis is used for the remaining measurements (State of Charge, Consumed Energy, in AH, and Current. The maximum use is just over 200AH. A good example of a complete cycle is on Wed, where we had used about 188AH and recharged it to full during an engine run from about 0930 until 1230. The Consumed Energy just reached 0 (full) a few minutes before we shutdown our engines. You can see the charge current (green) is normally 60-80A. (Top Blue line is State of Charge - 0-100%), Green line is Current, bottom Purple line is Consumed Energy in AH, and the Red line is Voltage, measured on the right axis.)

Weekly Battery Usage

The next graph shows six hours of Tuesday, during which we ran the microwave oven (the dip in current to -80A at 0845) The red Voltage graph shows that we only drop below 13.0v when we run the microwave oven.

Tuesday's Charge Cycle

We started charging at about 1205, where we had consumed just over 200AH and stopped charging at -60AH at 1427 (the right edge of the graph). We were idling the engines from 1227 - 1245, so the alternators weren’t charging then. We were actively charging for 207 minutes and most of it was at about 80A. This is with the stock alternators. We’ve not installed the new Arduino alternator regulators yet (so far the charge rates haven’t overheated the alternators).

Things are looking good so far. We've had several nights of use and haven't really stressed the system by using more than about 200AH. Theoretically, we can use 550AH * 80% = 440AH. Using a max of 400AH is probably a more reasonable figure (72% depth of discharge). These cells probably have more capacity than 550AH, so this figure is quite conservative.

Lithium House Bank - More Thoughts

LUX had 600AH of AGMs as its house bank. We’ve never been very happy with its performance. The charter management company let them run down to 10.5v once, which may have damaged them. We would typically have a max of 200AH available before the voltage dropped to 12.2v with our typical house load of about 6-8A (most refrigeration), so the total capacity was about 450AH. And we found that the charge times were excessively long.

LiFePO4 had several advantages for our use.

Number of cycles: 3000 or more, versus 500 for lead-acid, a 6x factor.

Discharge to 80% (50% for lead-acid), a 1.6 factor.

Weight of 150lb for the entire bank (12 * 12.5 lb), vs 3 * 124 lb for Lifeline AGM.

Charge faster, which translates into shorter engine run times.

Higher operational voltage which makes a variety of marine devices prefer, such as inverters, windlass, and lights.

LiFePO4 don't need to be recharged to 100% every time.

These advantages don’t come without disadvantages.

They cost roughly 3 times more than AGM.

It is a more complex install due to the necessity of battery monitoring and the need to modify charge sources to prevent overcharging the batteries and to not overheat the charging sources (like alternators).

There are some other considerations to include when investigating a switch to Lithium batteries.

First, a battery monitor like the Victron BMV-602 (now BMV-702) will be important so that you know voltage and the number of AH consumed or returned to the battery.

Second is to configure the alternators with external regulators that have alternator temperature sensors. The sensors should tell the regulator to cut back on charge current if the alternator heats up too much (more than 200 deg F). As Troy said in another note, there needs to be a way to charge your starter batteries separately from the house bank. The Balmar DuoCharge is the easiest "drop-in" solution. I’ve spent the time to learn how to modify alternators for external regulation. For regulators, I’ve been using an open source design, see here: Arduino Alternator Regulator. Building one of these is like a hobby for me. I don't recommend it for anyone who is not very familiar with software and hardware. A much simpler installation is based on the Balmar 614 regulators. Read the blog by Compass Marine for a description of his recommended alternator regulator at: http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/lifepo4_on_boats.

Third is to reprogram your shore power charger. We used a DIP switch setting in the Victron that limits the top voltage to 14.1v in Bulk and Acceptance. Float voltage drops to 13.8v, so the battery isn't charged, and storage is 13.2v. In fact, I noticed yesterday when we were on shore power that our Victron charged until it reached the Float transition point. Then it didn't charge again until the we used 80AH of power and the voltage dropped enough that it decided to switch back into Bulk mode (as I recall we were running the microwave oven, which consumes 80A from the house bank and the voltage sags to about 13v). [Note: We probably need higher ampacity wiring between the battery bank and the BMV-602 shunt.] Instead of using the DIP switches, I should use the computer interface, which allows more detailed programming of the Victron inverter/charger.

From my perspective, LiFePO4 batteries are safe for boats and have a bunch of advantages. I did a lot of reading over several months before deciding on the DIY approach to lithium batteries. If you need to pay someone else to do the design and installation, then expect to pay for their knowledge.

Lithium Batteries

Our old AGM 4D batteries started dying this summer (August 2015). They symptom is that they would overheat. The Victron inverter system has a temperature sensor and it warned us of the pending disaster in time to disconnect the dying cell from the battery bank. After some investigation, we determined that a Lithium battery bank would be about 1/3 the weight of the AGM battery bank and that it would provide more usable capacity and last longer. AGMs are good for 100%-50% state of charge while LiFePO4 is good for 100%-20% state of charge. The AGMs can handle about 500 cycles while the LiFePO4 cells are supposedly good for 3000 cycles. So, while the Lithium bank is more (less than 3X the cost of Lifeline AGMs), they last much longer and provide more power while doing it with a lighter weight bank.
We checked out different types of Lithium batteries and selected LiFePO4 cells, which are much safer than so-called Lithium-Ion cells that you hear about with airplane and hoverboard fires. We acquired twelve 180AH Lithium cells from CALB, viaTroy Bethel, who was doing an order for several battery banks. He also did the initial top balancing and bottom balancing as well as the aluminum plates to hold the batteries. The cells are connected in a 3P4S arrangement, which means that three cells are paralleled to create a "super-cell". Do this four times to create four super-cells, then connect them in series using 2/0 cables that are the same length so that the wire resistance is the same. Our resulting battery bank is 3*180AH = 540AH at 12.8-13.2v. Most people report their LiFePO4 batteries running very flat voltages around 13.2v over a wide range of discharge capacities. These batteries can source a lot of current, around 10X their AH capacity (540AH * 10 = 5400A). But when consumed at a lower amperage, they can run a long time. LiFePO4 batteries can also be discharged to 20% of their capacity. Our system charges them to 14.2v (the CALB cells have a max voltage of 3.65v per cell, or 14.6v for the assembled house bank). We could have gotten by with a 400AH bank, but decided that having the extra capacity was worth the additional expense. We will have over 400AH of usable capacity. So we won't need to recharge every day if we don't want to. Speaking of charging, these batteries will take all the current we can generate, which means that we need to watch our alternators to make sure they don't overheat. So far the batteries have been down only about 130-140AH and one of our alternators will bring that back up over the course of a day's motoring (which we did yesterday to cover a lot of miles quickly). We would normally use the genset and Victron charger for significant charging at anchor.

Here's a photo comparison of the batteries.

Lithium Batteries vs Lead Acid 4D batteries

Wrap the wrench in tape to prevent accidental shorts

We had bought an inexpensive 12v 4D flooded lead acid battery to replace the dead AGM. But on our trip to Georgia, another AGM died, so we were down to 2 batteries. The Lithiums hadn't been installed yet. The last AGM died on the winter trip from Georgia to Florida, so we were down to the one flooded wet cell battery. That's when the Lithiums were finished and we were able to pick them up in central Flordia and get them to LUX at Titusville, FL.
It took over half the day to install them. They fit into the old slots where the AGM 4D batteries were installed. The Titusville marina took the old AGM cells. Here's what they look like installed. When working with Lithiums, we have to be careful - tools will vaporize if they bridge a battery's terminals. We used a box-end wrench wrapped in tape. We also placed some plastic sheets over the terminals while we worked on the connections. The photo below show plexiglass covers over the terminals.

LIthium Batteries Installed

HousePower BMS with Alarm

It is good to use a Battery Monitoring System (BMS) to monitor the individual cells to make sure they aren't out of balance. A couple of days later, we had an opportunity to mount it and get everything connected the way it should be.
Everything is now installed and working. It is nice to not worry too much about energy consumption while anchored out. Last night we left all the instruments on, some additional lights, and the VHF on while anchored on the Great Bahamas Bank. We wanted to be visible, monitor AIS, and to hear anyone hailing us on VHF. With everything running, we used 135AH, which one engine's alternator replaced when we were motor sailing today.

This morning (Feb 3), we used 145AH since we anchored last night and the battery voltage is 13.2v. We'll use about twice that for 24 hours. We plan on using the genset and Victron 150A charger to charge them later today.

We like our new batteries!

Detecting Fire and CO

We learned about fire detection at an Annapolis Sail & Power Squadron meeting this year, presented by John McDevitt. John has worked in the past with fire departments and participates in NFPA (National Fire Prevention Association) and ABYC standards writing. He said that most standards are written for fire suppression, which means that a fire exists and you're trying to put it out. That's likely to be a losing proposition on a fiberglass boat. His view was the fire detection was more useful.

FirstAlert Onelink Smoke & CO Alarms

He recommended wireless smoke detectors to provide early alert to a developing fire situation and showed us the Onelink Wireless smoke detectors in operation. These detectors communicate with one another wirelessly and when any one of them alarms, they all alarm. The feature that he likes is that you can program the alarm to verbally announce the location of the alarming device. These devices are built for home use, with verbal announcements like "Livingroom", "Child's Bedroom", or "Basement".

We just installed a genset on LUX and are also concerned about Carbon Monoxide. While the genset is diesel powered and has a lower threat of CO, it doesn't eliminate the threat. So we started looking for detectors and found these: "Onelink Wireless Talking Battery Operated Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm SCO501B2 - 2pk", available from Amazon. They are around $100 for a pair.

We had eight places to put them: Four cabins, two engine rooms salon, and forward locker with the genset. The cabins are small, so we felt that mounting them on the ceiling was acceptable and would still alert us in a CO situation even though CO is heavier than clean air. We mounted them to the inboard wall in the engine compartments. Each alarm is programmed with a different verbal location.

Cabin Mount Location

Engine Room Location

We then made up a laminated "cheat sheet" for each cabin and for the salon, showing what location corresponds with each alarm's verbal announcement.

Alarm Verbal Announcement Cheat Sheet

We feel that the addition of smoke and CO alarms on board will make us safer.

Generating Light without a Fire

Much to our surprise, we found that some of the fluorescent light fixtures in the cabins on LUX were overheating. One had been accidentally left on during part of the winter and we're fortunate that it didn't start a fire.

Evidence of Overheating

These lights are Labcraft and consume up to 1.2 Amps, depending on how many bulbs are installed. Replacing the offending bulb was the short-term fix, but we needed something that would never overheat, even if accidentally left on for months at a time. The light fixtures are nice, so we decided to install LEDs in them.

We found FlexFire LEDs, (ColorBright Natural White - Spec Sheet) which were reported to be very bright. They come in a roll and you cut off as many as you need, in 1-inch chunks. They aren't the cheapest around, but they seem to be much brighter than the other LEDs we've seen. 

The FlexFire LED Instruction Sheet

Unsoldering the Board

We started the modification by removing the label and unsoldering the board from the switch - the two points labeled with arrows in the picture. The board has several connections to the lights and a bunch of discrete components. We clipped the wires and unsoldered most of the components. The transformer and a couple of capacitors were left because they don't affect the operation of our modification.

Ballast Board With Components

Ballast Board Without Components

A hole was drilled between the electronics compartment and the light bulb area and wires routed to power the LEDs. A jumper was installed on the PC board to connect the +12v and ground connections to the switch.

Jumper the Power Leads to the Switch

Next, cut the LED strips to the length that fits where the lights used to be located. We cut 11 inch strips of LEDs. Only cut where it says to cut. There are two small solder pads that are obvious if you look carefully at the strip.

Sizing the LED Strips

Solder connecting wires to each LED strip and then connect them to the power leads that connect through to the PC board. Then remove the adhesive paper backing and stick them into the fixture. The connections to the power leads were soldered and covered with heat shrink tubing.

Soldering Wires to the LED Strips

They Are BRIGHT!

The new LED lights are BRIGHT! They seem much brighter than the old fluorescent bulbs and consume 0.4A per fixture. We converted four of the lights (one in each cabin) in a few hours.

After writing up this post, I discovered the Mike Boyd has an excellent pair of writeups on the subject:
http://thisratsailed.blogspot.com/2015/01/converting-fluorescent-lights-to-led.html
http://thisratsailed.blogspot.com/2015/01/fluorescent-to-led-conversion-redux.html

Enjoy!

Anchor Windlass Bypass and Handheld Coiled Cable

A recent topic on the Yahoo Leopard list is bypassing the anchor windlass interlock. The interlock makes sure that the windlass only runs if the port engine is also running. It exists to prevent over-discharging the house bank. Having an engine running is a good idea because the alternator will provide higher voltage and the windlass will use use less current, therefore running more efficiently.

Partial DC Schematic Showing Windlass Interlock Wire

The windlass is (or should be) connected to the house bank. On LUX (L40, 2005 model, hull 009) There is a large, dedicated breaker in the trash can compartment, along with the house bank on/off switch.

The wiring had already been modified on LUX, so I don't have detailed pictures of the change. However, the schematic provides the necessary knowledge of the circuit. The Windlass Control, located just under the Bat Charger in the top center of the schematic, is basically a big relay internal to the windlass. What isn't shown is the hand control unit. This hand unit controls the up/down function through two buttons. A ground connection is needed for the hand control to activate the up/down function. This ground, highlighted in thick red below, goes back to the port engine via a small diameter wire. The schematic shows a single switch on the engine. I think this switch is actually a relay in the plastic gray box mounted on the forward bulkhead in the engine compartment.

On LUX, there is a yellow wire under the windlass that's not connected to anything This wire would normally go to the little black wiring box, also in the forward locker under the windlass, to which the hand control connects. To modify the default configuration, remove the yellow wire and cap it with a length of heat-shrink to keep it safe. Run a new wire from its connection in the little black wiring box to the big DC terminal that's mounted to the side of the mast step in the forward locker. Now you can run the windlass without starting the port engine. Just try to have one of the engines running for the reasons noted above.

Engine Compartment Gray
Relay Box (from Ken Pimentel - Dream Catcher)

Here is a photo from Ken Pimentel (Dream Catcher) showing the gray relay box mounted on the forward bulkhead of the port engine compartment on an L40.

Windlass Control Black Box - Note disconnected yellow wire

The starboard forward locker is where the Windlass Control Box is located (see red arrow). Note the yellow disconnected wire hanging under where the windlass is located.

Inside the black box is just a connector. I presume that the yellow wire once made a connection in this box and is now replaced with one of the other wires.

What's Inside the Windlass Control Box

Windlass Handheld Control Cable

We also had a problem with the windlass handheld control. The coiled cord cover was deteriorating, exposing the insulated conductors. So it wasn't coiling like it should and it was a matter of time before something bad was going to happen. So we searched the web for vendors selling coiled cords - like the ones you see on hoists in factories.

We found a suitable replacement at:

Specialty Wire & Cord Sets, Inc
One Gallagher Rd
Hamden, Ct 06517
203-498-2932
http://specialtywire.com

3 Conductor 18gauge 24" coiled cord
$42 shipped.

It is a little bigger than we'd like, but it is heavy duty. A 20ga version would be about right. The length isn't enough to stretch to the cross-beam, but on the other hand, it doesn't get tangled in the anchor chain when stowed.

Instead of using the existing strain relief on the hand control, we drilled it out to accept the cord and used black 5200 to create a seal and act as a strain relief.

If someone gets a good set of pictures of the wiring change, please let me know and I can add them to this post.

  -Terry

L40 Bilge Pump Wiring and Indicator Enhancement

The Leopard 40 has four automatic pumps. There is one in each engine compartment and one in the main hull space below the floor boards. Unfortunately, there is no way to know which bilge pump is activated when the bilge alarm light comes on. We wanted to enhance the system so that we knew which bilge pump was running, as is done on newer production boats.

The engine room pumps are a very simple connection, with only the FLOAT SWITCH and BILGE ALARM in the circuit. Diodes at position 265 and 266 allow either float switch to provide power to the BILGE ALARM light. There are two bilge alarm lights, wired in parallel, one mounted at the helm and another on the Navigation Station DC breaker panel.

The main cabin bilge pumps have more complex wiring that allows them to be turned on by two methods: a manual circuit-breaker switch on the DC electrical panel or by a float switch located adjacent to the pump. It took a while to figure out how it works, primarily due to time spent decoding the icons on the diagram.

Here is what I deduced from the schematic. (I've noted the alternate connector in parenthesis.)

Power is supplied from the POS BUS-BAR to fuse F269 (F270), mounted in dedicated fuse holders at position 269 (270) in the wiring panel. Automatic activation is accomplished through the float switch. F269 is connected to two connectors on a control relay (outlined in dashed lines). This supplies power to the right-hand side of the FLOAT SWITCH, which provides power to diode 263 (264) when the float switch is activated (red line). The output of diodes 263 and 264 are jumpered together to activate the BILGE ALARM light, which is connected to NEG BUS-BAR - 2 (green line). The input (left or anode) side of diode 263 (264) is also connected to the relay coil, causing it to be energized when the float switch is activated (purple line). The contactor in the relay connects power from F269 (F270) to the BILGE PUMP, which is connected to NEG BUS-BAR - 2 (yellow line). (Don't let my coloring lead to confusion; all of these wires are energized when the float switch activates. I simply use the colors to indicate the section of wiring I'm describing. The description is only for one pump; the wiring and operation is the same for the other bilge pump.)

Automatic Activation

Manual activation is accomplished by switching the Navigation Station DC panel circuit breakers to the ON position, activating circuit 204 (205). This provides power to the BILGE PUMP, but does not activate the BILGE ALARM (red line).

Manual Activation

What isn't shown in the diagrams is that the output of all four diodes (263, 264, 265, 266) are wired together, so that any of the four bilge pumps will activate the two bilge alarm lights. The diagrams also don't show that there are two bilge alarm lights, wired in parallel. The key element of understanding was that power is supplied to the anode (left side) of each diode (264, 264, 265, 266) when that pump's float switch is activated. The alarm modification was then easy to accomplish. 

The anode of each diode is connected to one of four LEDs that I mounted on the DC breaker panel. I used a 22 gauge multi-wire signal cable for the connection (a piece of Cat5 stranded ethernet cable would work), tinning each conductor and sliding it into the screw-down along with the existing wire and tightening the screw. Each wire in the cable feeds one LED's +12v. Diode 263 is Port Main Bilge, 264 is Stbd Main Bilge, 265 is Port Engine bilge, and 266 is Stbd Engine Bilge.

DC Wiring Panel Located Behind Panel in Port-Aft Cabin

I mounted four red LEDs around the main bilge alarm light on the DC breaker panel. The upper left is port engine, the upper right is port main cabin, the lower left is stbd engine, and the lower right is stbd main cabin. The arrows on the picture show the LED locations.

LED Locations on DC Breaker Panel

LED Gounds Connected Together

All four LED negative wires are connected together and run to one of the negative bus bars in the DC breaker panel. 

The finished installation of the LEDs makes it easy to tell which pump is running. 

An enhancement to the bilge pump alarm system would be to add an audible alarm, wired in parallel with the bilge alarm indicator at the helm and/or on the DC breaker panel.

We've also found that the main cabin bilge pumps can be unreliable because the relay connectors on the DC wiring panel may get corroded or the release handles may be accidentally activated, causing the relay to get unseated from the receptacle. Note that athe lower relay's handle is slightly out of alignment, which may cause the pump to not activate. I think that R&C should have used a permanently wired relay instead of something that's easily disconnected. It is useful that the bilge alarm will light when the float switch is activated, regardless of whether the relay functions.

After installing the new LEDs, we have been able to verify that the starboard engine compartment bilge pump runs regularly. We've not seen any of the others run. This information validates our assumption that only that pump has been running (the rudder post leaks - a job that we will fix during this summer's haulout).

  -Terry

Keeping An Eye On Things: A Boat Monitoring System

It is a good idea to monitor boat systems in order to detect problems before they become major problems. Collecting basic information like engine operating temperatures, refrigeration system temperatures, and battery performance information are a few examples. It is best to gather an information baseline when everything is operating correctly so that abnormal readings are easy to identify. A manual method of recording the information is easy - just record the measurements on paper. Transferring the information to a spreadsheet makes it easy to display as graphs, making it easy to spot trends that may indicate a pending problem.

IR Thermometer Gun

We've been recording engine temperature readings for some time, but only doing it on a sporadic basis and putting the data into a spreadsheet. Even with the sporadic measurements, we've developed a baseline that allows us to determine if there is a problem with one of the engines. (Note: We recommend that everyone capture the data to create a baseline of engine operation. An IR thermometer isn't terribly expensive ($40-$90 on Amazon) and is a great diagnostic tool. Put one on your gift list for your spouse/SO to buy for you.) We have a remote temperature sensing system to show us the refrigeration system temperatures (freezer, fridge, compressor housing). But there is no historical information stored that allows us to determine if (or when) the system is experiencing problems.

My "day job" is computer network design and monitoring, which requires automated systems to collect the large volume of data. Applying those same principles to boat monitoring led me to automate data collection using a single board computer known as a Raspberry Pi. The other attractiveness is that it is a cool project. I'll refer to the Raspberry Pi as "RPi" in the rest of this post. I'm starting with temperature monitoring and will add other features as I go.

I plan to monitor the temperatures listed below. The engine temperature readings are the same as what we've been manually monitoring. We have the Oregon Scientific Clock Weather Forecaster BAR206A and THN132N Wireless Temperature Sensors for monitoring the refrigeration system, but have not recorded measurements. Manually recording refrigeration system temperatures would be useless because of the changes in temperature after the door was opened. Automated temperature recording would let us know how long it takes to return to the desired operating temperature.

Raspberry Pi with Pi Plate Development Board and Acrylic Enclosure

* Ambient air (clipped to the back of the DC panel)

* Freezer plate

* Freezer mid-rack

* Refrigerator mid-rack

* Refrigeration compressor cabinet

* Port and Stbd water heater

* Port and Stbd air conditioners

* Port and Stbd engines

  - Alternator frame

  - Exhaust mixing elbow

  - Raw water inlet

  - Oil pan

  - Cylinder head (one sensor - the ideal would be one next to each injector)

This photo shows the RPi with the attached Pi Plate development board in an acrylic enclosure. The is the fully assembled unit. It measures 6in x 3in x 1.5in. In the foreground is one of the waterproof temperature sensors, which is attached to the white cable that connects to the board. My prototype has three sensors, which I've labeled freezer, fridge, and compressor.

Sample Hourly Temperature Graph

I have a script (a small computer program) that periodically creates graphs of the collected data. All three temperatures are shown on one graph. I'll wait until I get on the boat to refine what types of graphs I want.

The Details

The temperature probe is the DS18B20, which is available in a waterproof version (we'll see, they are probably only water resistant) from sellers on Ebay (search for "waterproof DS18B20"). I found that connecting the DS18B20 using all three wires (Ground, Data, +3.3v) worked the best. I used a "Pi Plate" development board for connections between the RPi and the DS18B20. All sensors can be connected to the same 3-wire bus, which I'll snake around the boat to all the locations. The operating system supports up to 10 temperature sensors. That's not enough for my purposes, so I'll have to generate a new kernel to support many more sensors, probably 30.

The Internet contains many examples of interfacing the DS18B20 temperature sensor with the Raspberry Pi.

http://thepiandi.blogspot.com/2013_06_01_archive.html

http://www.raspberrypi.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=6649&start=175

http://forum.arduino.cc/index.php/topic,20574.0.html

I am using the Round Robin Database (RRD) to store the sensor values. RRD is typically used for network management functions. It is very simple and does a good job of storing and displaying time-series data. The current implementation stores a month of samples. I have plenty of storage space and RRD is very efficient, so I'm planning to increase it to several months so that we can see longer term trends.

http://blog.turningdigital.com/2012/09/raspberry-pi-ds18b20-temperature-sensor-rrdtool/

http://thepiandi.blogspot.com/2013/09/rrdtool-for-dummies-like-me.html

http://thepiandi.blogspot.com/2013/10/graphing-real-temperature-data-using.html

12V to USB Power Adapter

I needed a way to power the RPi on the boat. The easiest solution was to modify a 12V to USB adapter. This photo shows the adapter with two new wires soldered to it. I wrapped the modified adapter in heat shrink. The red wire connects to an in-line fuse for connecting to the boat's 12V system.

I'll be publishing the scripts that I've developed for this system so that anyone can make their own and can contribute to it.

  -Terry

Emergency Engine Starting

I recommend learning how to hot-wire-start marine engines. Our old monohull, a WestWind38, we briefly had a bad starter button and I had to learn how to start the engine without it. Diesels are easier to start than gasoline engines because all they need are compression, fuel, and air while gasoline engines also need high voltage spark to the spark plugs. I'll focus on diesel engines in this post because that's what is normally used in modern auxiliary sailboats.

You will need a good starting battery to turn over the motor to get it started, but electricity is not needed for the engine to run (unless it has a shutoff solenoid that needs power to allow the engine to run). To turn over the motor, you need to power the starter motor. The starter motor will normally have a big solenoid mounted on its side ('Solenoid' in the photo). There will be a big red wire from the battery connected to a bolt on the solenoid ('Battery Wire' in the photo). There will sometimes be another big wire connected to the solenoid, which provides the connection to the starter motor ('Starter Wire' in the photo). In other cases, this connection is an internal connection between the solenoid and the starter motor. There is a third, smaller wire that is the connection from the ignition for activating the solenoid ('Activation Wire' that's yellow/brown in the photo). There is a second photo from 2carpros.com that shows a clear view of the back of the solenoid.

Volvo MD2040D Engine Starter and Solenoid Components

Starter Solenoid, courtesy of carpros.com

The ignition switch at the helm supplies 12v on the Activation Wire (Starter Trigger Terminal in the photo to the right), causing the solenoid to be activated. Contacts internal to the solenoid close, connecting the battery wire to the starter wire, and causing the starter motor to turn.

Of course, the diesel has to have the engine stop disengaged, because that stops the flow of fuel. The Volvo MD2040 engines on LUX use a mechanical stop cable that causes the high pressure pump to stop injecting fuel into the cylinders, causing the engine to stop. Newer engines that don't have stop knobs will typically use a stop solenoid that is electrically activated.  If your engine uses one of these solenoids, you will need to hot-wire it to allow the engine to run. Learn whether your solenoid is activated to allow the engine to run or if it is activated to stop the engine. In the first case, you'll need to hot-wire the solenoid to allow the engine to run. In the second case, you'll need to hot-wire it to stop the engine. Or you may be able to pull the stop lever by hand - it depends on how the stop solenoid operates.

There are two approaches you can use to starting an engine when the starting system at the helm doesn't work. In both approaches, you must have a good starting battery. Make sure that the stop cable or solenoid is not engaged. Make sure that the engine is not in gear and the throttle is at idle setting.

WARNING! WARNING!

When you hot-start an engine as I'm about to describe, you and your various body parts and clothing are very close to machinery that will soon be rotating. Getting a T-shirt caught in the alternator or water pump belt can yank you into the engine compartment and cause serious injury. Keep all body parts and clothing away from the engine. And watch out for the wire you're using to jumper the starter.

When you start the engine, your head is going to be close by a suddenly very noisy engine. Be prepared for the noise and don't react in a way that imperils you.

Method 1

If the starter solenoid is good, all you need to do is jumper from the Battery Wire to the Activation Wire on the solenoid. I use a good quality (16 gauge wire or greater) alligator clip jumper wire. Clip to the Battery Wire and touch it to the Activation Wire terminal on the starter solenoid. Make sure that you're clear of all rotating parts because the engine will turn over and should start. You'll also get a few sparks as you make contact. Note that the ignition does not have to be 'on' for the engine to start and run. This is like a lawn mower that can start unexpectedly when the blade is turned by hand. On LUX, the Activation Wire is an insulated terminal, so I have to remove it from the solenoid to gain access to the solenoid Activation Terminal.

Method 2

In some cases, you may have a dead solenoid. Either the coil in the solenoid has broken or the contactors are worn out and not passing the battery's power to the starter motor. In this case, you use a short, fat cable (#2 or larger) to jumper from the Battery wire to the Starter Wire. You're using the wire as a replacement for the big copper contactor that's in the solenoid. You may need two hands to properly hold the cable and make a firm contact between the two connectors on the solenoid. You'll get more sparks with this method, because there is a lot more current involved.

With both methods, don't leave the jumper wire connected for long. It should only be used long enough to get the engine started. The alternator should be charging if it wasn't damaged in whatever caused the starter solenoid to fail.

If you have an engine that has a compression release lever, and there is little battery power left, you can activate the compression release, start the engine turning over with the battery power you have, then release the compression release to get the engine started. This procedure would be useful where the alternators are also damaged and are not able to charge the batteries.

By learning how to hot-start an engine, you are a safer mariner, able to make landfall with engine power even if something like lightning takes out most of the electrical system.

  -Terry