CarpeDiem

Some DC DC chargers will trickle charge the start battery when they have excess energy and the house battery is finished charging. The CTEK 250SE is one such unit which includes a MPPT for solar. Coupled with the CTEK 120S this is a pretty good solution for a Lead Acid bank. But it is pricy. I highly suspect you already have dissimilar batteries? Probably a Starter and a Deep Cycle. Most start batteries don't like being charged to 14.7v while most deep cycle batteries need to be charged to 14.7v. I would certainly go DC/DC over VSR any day.

A fray is a time-consuming repair and it is really tough to do on a used/tough rope. And like you say it will turn into disaster at the worst possible time if you don't repair/replace it. $2.30/m for a new 12mm double braid using the link above. And maybe you could go 10mm?

What's wrong with it? For our mainsheet, all other sheets, outhaul and reefing lines we just use polyester, negligible cost benefit from a UHMWPE like dyneema on thjose applications for us. Halyards, code zero tack, runners and bob stay however are a different story.

I highly recommend Nigel Calders Refrigeration on Boats book. It has a strong focus on engine compressor driven refrigeration and cold plates. I found it very helpful. https://boatbooks.co.nz/electrics2.html#4209

That's the capillary tube, not a spring or thermostat. One end has a sensing bulb that will be attached to your suction refrigerant line. The other end goes to a diaphragm at the top of the expansion valve. It holds refrigerant in a closed system (not part of the refrigerant that passes through the condenser). Its purpose is to open and close the txv depending on if the superheat needs to be increased or decreased. Its length, internal diameter and bulb size is specific to the rest of the installation hence it is just coiled up. IMO It sounds like you need to get a profe

Wow. That's a great resource! Thank you for putting that together, hopefully I get to make use of it one day

The overheating is a common problem on the D1-13 and D1-20. So common that my installer knew about it and went out of his way to investigate if the problem existed on the D1-30. Solution is to lift the expansion tank - problem solved. FWIW Starting the engine without firing the glow plugs first is a suspected way to burn out even the latest model MDI boxes. I know two people who have suffered MDI burn out immediately after cranking the engine in cold Auckland weather, coincidental? Maybe, maybe not... turns out neither knew how to fire the glow plugs before starting and were just crank

The D1-13 and D1-20's with the side mounted expansion tanks have a design flaw with the tank configuration. If the fly wheel is aft, (as most are), then when the boat is heeled to starboard, it's possible to create an air pocket in the heat exchanger resulting in overheating. (and of course vice versa) A lot of people have complained about overheating alarms sounding when in wavey/rough conditions. The solution is to relocate the tank above the heat exchanger in all angles of sail. With the D1-30 onwards the tank is mounted on the front and is slightly above the heat exchanger at

The expansion tank can be relocated, that will not effect the warranty. The installation manual states that the coolant tank can be installed in a different location for all the D-Series and give specifications on how far away you can install it. Infact, if you install a hot water system over a specific capacity then you need to add a aftermarket expansion tank to provide extra capacity. There is no mention of the MDI box in the installation instructions. Under NZ law they would need to show that relocating the MDI box was the cause of the fault. I have a friend who has his MD

LiPo (Lithium Polymer), which is what was asked about, is not LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4)). They are different chemistries and different nominal voltages. LiPo is also significantly more dangerous if you get it wrong... Perhaps TCat meant LFP? But the post/question was for LiPo... Yes LFP is awesome for a boats electrical system and better than lead. LiPo has a nominal voltage that is generally incompatible with the normal electrics found on a boat. Although there's lots of different chemistries in the LiPo family so some might be compatible, but I am not awar

Was Fanworm successfully eliminated from Opua?

LiPo doesn't really have a place on a boat as a fixed installation unless you've got some kind of bespoke electrical requirement like a 60v bow thruster? Lots of boats have LiPo batteries on them these days, but these are in the form of auxiliary batteries for an electric tender outboard. So not part of the boats electrical system. There's no legislation in NZ that prohibits you installing your own LiPo or any other chemistry so long as you stay under 60v DC peak power. However the legislation still requires that it is designed and installed by a competent person. As soon as y

Welcome back!

Bit of a thread hijack Zozza ... probably worthy of a new thread... Still no anchoring at the three bays and if you do you have to get a permit to move your boat. A large area at Great Mercury is also controlled by the same notice, but you are allowed to wash your anchor and warp down with fresh water before moving on from there. Best to just avoid all the areas in the notice.

Hey @ynot I contacted them a couple of years ago for BOI race week - summary is here:

3 years old and still well attached. The flexible exhaust hose which goes to the water lift is about 30cm long, but it isn't very flexible...

We're pretty sure it was loaded as we were changing throttle and gear cables the day before so one of us could of inadvertently used it as a crutch to turn/twist in the small engine compartment. But like you say, and I suspect, it was probably already in progress but just had not cracked through until it got loaded... so it's probably better it happened in the marina than out at sea.

Got to the boat last night for racing and discovered the engine refused to run and we had exhaust fumes in the engine compartment. Does anyone knowledgeable have an informed opinion on if this is repairable or if a new one should be fabricated. This photo is of the flange which connects to the engine exhaust outlet, so before the water mixer.

The legal frame work is the: Electricity (Safety) Regulations 2010 The main standards that apply are: AS/NZS 3000:2007 Part 2; and AS/NZS 3004.2:2014 I might save you a bit of time... There is no legal way to DIY install a grid connected certifiable system on a boat in New Zealand. The exemption which applies to electrical work on private residences that you both own and personally live in, does not extend to boats or caravans even if it is your only place of residence. While you can technically go out and buy all the parts, you need to be a certified elect

Been a work in progress since 2017. Strategy was published in June 2021. A Google search will bring up umpteen hits in newspapers online publications etc... Eg: https://gulfjournal.org.nz/2021/06/more-marine-protection-on-the-horizon/ https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/fishing-restrictions-and-new-protection-areas-for-hauraki-gulftikapa-moana/OPGVHDBWWKVTBYHFWWQGXETRHQ/ https://www.fishserve.co.nz/news/doc-consultation-proposed-protection-zones-designed-to-revitalise-the-hauraki-gulf https://www.localmatters.co.nz/mahurangi-news/gulf-plan-to-boost-marine-protection/ Ther

haha - trying to work out what you were on about... yep my maths is way out - CD was launched in '95, built by Bish Marine. So the cables are most likely 27yrs old!

I have just successfully replaced my throttle assembly with the spinlock system. Is it a worthwhile exercise to replace the control cables? They aren't stiff and they operate smoothly. There is no sign of wear on the outside sheath. They would be as old as the boat (27yrs) I have no idea of the internal condition. I only ask cause the throttle assembly, which was the same age, imploded catastrophically resulting in a near miss. And if I had looked at that two weeks ago I would of thought it just fine... nek minute. The last thing I want is a broken gear cab

Did you use all the offset spacers? The body I got lines up perfectly with the spinlock holes... Do you just have the body suspended by the same screws that hold the spinlock plate on?

Sparky, at $21M, is roughly twice the cost of an equivalent new diesel tug. Using todays prices, it will cost one third as much to run as that equivalent tug would. So financially Sparky wins and will only get cheaper as the price of oil increases. In 2019, the equivalent strength Hauraki, used 191000 liters of diesel equating to 515 tCO2e Sparky will use approximately 502MWh to operate in the same way, this equates to 50 tCO2e which would mean an annual saving of 465 tCO2e.

I use mine for anything liquid... When I recently emptied the diesel tank I used a cheap transfer pump from burnsco.