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Boat Systems - Electrical, Electronics, Motors, Plumbing & Tankage etc / First ever legit LiFePO4 start battery

« on: February 18, 2024, 11:21:08 PM »

Epoch Batteries has been making a BIG splash the past year or so, and now have what I consider the best value LiFePO4 (LFP) batteries for house battery use by far. In addition, they've recently introduced the battery in the attached picture that can be used for ALL outboard engines up to 250HP. Today I rigorously questioned the applicability of this battery in an outboard powered boat, and got impressive answers back from their US rep. Bottom line: I can recommend this as a start battery in place of AGM, and at 30 lb, 120Amp-hour, a CCA of 1100 amps, in a group 27 size, the specs are simply amazing and precedent-setting.

This is 25-35 lb lighter than an equivalent AGM, can be installed INSIDE the cabin without ventilation (AGM requires a ventilated cabinet), or outside depending on your weight balance, and even under high cranking loads will deliver a solid 12.8 volts, whereas AGM voltage will sag to mid or high 11-ish volts on high winch/windlass loads. Thus this will lead to better windlass/winch performance and a longer life for the motors. Other thoughtful features are an external on/off switch, state of charge monitor, very useful bluetooth phone app, and internal heating for cold temperatures. Altogether this battery blows my mind and represents the very first lithium battery that meets all my specs for safety and reliability as an outboard start battery. You pay for it at 2x the cost of AGM, but I think it's worth it and I'll finally be changing my own boat to all lithium this year.

I would set the boat up with this as the start battery and also connect the anchor winch/windlass and pot puller to it. All other loads would go to house. I'd set up a Victron battery to battery charger between this battery and the house to limit charge current from the outboard, otherwise if this start battery is used for deep discharge loads and frequently has to be charged up by the alternator for 2+ hours or more from 20% state of charge, you risk burning up the alternators, which are NOT meant to be running anywhere near their nameplate capacity for long time periods.

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Projects - Glacier Boats of Alaska boat projects / GA 28 built by Kachemak Skiffs Wasilla, AK

« on: February 01, 2018, 10:03:37 PM »

In late November, after considerable research and examining my desires, I decided on building a GA 28 Newport. Lacking shop space and not wanting to sink money into renting space in Anchorage and spending a year or so building the boat, plus having just sold a vacant property and thus having enough funds to cover the labor, I decided to have Anthony Lyndacker of Kachemak Skiffs build the boat. In early December, Anthony and I bantered back and forth about materials. On Dec 9 he ordered materials and they were in his shop on the 19th, when he began building the scarf jig for this build. So start of the build is officially December 19. He took a 2-week break over the holidays. Today it's February 1 and he basically has the entire hull built.

My goal for this build is to go as light as possible - I'm very comfortable with the strength of the design and see no need to overbuild. In addition, since Anthony has built and repaired a bunch of Tolmans, he will be better able than many to minimize materials while still keeping the build plenty strong. Here is the status today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frjP4kgaYQI&feature=youtu.be

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Boat Systems - Electrical, Electronics, Motors, Plumbing & Tankage etc / heating, cooking, batteries

« on: December 22, 2017, 11:46:04 AM »

I'm having Anthony at Kachemak Skiffs in Wasilla build a 28 Newport for me. No shop space, no desire to spend hundreds of hours glassing, etc. and a lot of desire to get on the water sooner than later, plus the fact that he's built some 10-15 Tolmans and repaired many others led me to that decision. That said, I'm anything but passive, and will likely do a lot of the outfitting once the hull and cabin are complete. With that introduction, here we go:

My small boat galley experience is limited to propane or alcohol stoves and propane cozy-cabin heaters. Alcohol is out, I absolutely detest using it. Propane requires constant diligence and care to stay on top of any leaks or CO, and you get reliable, field-serviceable, and convenient use. Diesel I have no experience with, and this is my biggest question - I've heard just a couple reports of excellent success with the new Wallas Nordic Dt diesel ceramic cooktop/heater. I love the relative safety of diesel, the cooking/heating from the same device, and the simplicity of the setup. However, I'm curious about the ~10 minute warmup period and people's experience here. I understand they're expensive, but I am fine with that for all the little problems it solves.

Second, I'm planning on a Norcold 2.7CF fridge, and otherwise relatively common electrical loads. I am very comfortable with the calculations and will do them shortly, but am curious about real-world experience. The engine will require a group 29 or so starting battery, and I'm likely to go with a proper deep cycle, heavy, house battery. I'm going to install some solar since our resource in AK is so amazing in that regard. Thanks in advance for any info, and thanks to Dave for posting his Pau Hana build a couple years back, that has been my main inspiration