8 batteries upgrade system install
As seen above, the VitaminSea is a 1996 Hatteras 65 Convertible Enclosed Bridge. The customer came to a local, trusted installer with a problem. He wanted a way to limit or even eliminate excessive generator use. The generator, like most generators, was loud and disrupted his time when he would either like to sleep or scare the local fish away. The customer essentially wanted enough energy storage to travel to the Bahamas in a single go. Now, that was a bit of a head scratcher when the installer come to us for help in trying to help this customer out.
But we are eMarine Systems, we do energy systems in our sleep! At first, the installer and us thought of doing a 4-battery system. The four batteries in question were the EPOCH 24V 230Ah. At first, the solution did seem promising. The batteries would have provided energy for about 5 to 7 hours. However, the customer said that was not enough, and he wanted to make sure he could make it without stopping one single time for anything. You have to appreciate it when a customer knows exactly what they want. We went back and forth, but then the answer came to us very simply: Why don't we just double it! Delivering 47.1 kWh of stored energy and enabling over 10 hours of generator-free operation.
Now, with a big 8 battery power bank, the question turns to how to charge it? So usually the first thing we ask all of our customers when they are about to upgrade there boat is how much real-estate do you have on your boat? One can buy as many solar panels as one can afford, but if you don't have the space kind of defeats the purpose. Thankfully, the customer had built a custom shelf and was able to hold about four 420W REC solar panels. Rule of thumb from us is that when you have run out of space for solar panels, then you move into putting in a wind turbine because, while on the sea, you don't know if you will get wind, but you can be for that you will always get at least some sun (at least in Florida). The wind turbine we ended up recommending and ultimately installed on the customer's boat was the 24v Silent X from Ryse Energy.
The last step of this systems is how to connect the power he would be generating from the solar panels and the wind turbine to his batteries so he can change them. For that, we went for a Victron system! For the inverter/ charger, it is a Victron Quattro 5kVA producing 240VAC at 60Hz. To manage the distribution and power flow, we always love the Victron Lynx Shunt. To make sure the customer is able to have real-time monitoring, you can't go wrong with the Victron Cerbo GX and GX Touch 70. With this hybrid energy system, VitaminSea is no longer reliant on its generator for daily operations. Whether cruising offshore or anchored in paradise, this Hatteras 65 is now a model of quiet, efficient, and intelligent marine power.