Adding Batteries and Inverter?

[bud37]

Parts can really add up in a hurry heh.........actually that is probably the right way to do it, although somewhat expensive. What I have done as others have suggested here is to have one bank of start and the other as house....the start includes two 12V in parallel and the house bank includes 4x6V in series /parallel for 425 Ah, all lights in boat led......smart charger and engines take care of all, it just requires you paying attention to your battery switch to keep it in the right position.

I think from some version of this you could wire in a small inverter like has been suggested to power up what is needed.

[km1125]

Running the tv and lights isn't going to be much.... could easily run those for an overnight on even just one group 31 battery and a small inverter.

Making the coffee means you need at least a 1500w inverter but you could easily make a pot of coffee with just two 6v batteries in series (200a-h), as it only takes about 35 a-h to run the coffee pot.

On most boats the generator is never run enough.

[Viper]

Source of the post....On most boats the generator is never run enough.

+1
km brings up a very good point often overlooked. Why do you not want to use the generator to make a pot of coffee while charging the batteries, heating water, and cook at the same time? Not using the generator regularly is the fastest way to kill it!

More often then not, to do it properly and safely, the inverter itself is the cheapest part of installing an inverter system. If you'd rather spend the money on something else, or can't afford a ship-wide inverter install, use a small dedicated inverter as others have mentioned for the TV and other small loads. If you're worried about power usage and battery capacity, don't run anything with an element such as a coffee maker. Plan your usage for such loads so you run them all at the same time off the generator at certain intervals during the day. I do this first thing in the morning, mid-afternoon, and in the evening. You could install a 12 volt cig lighter socket behind the TV and plug the inverter to it. Then you'll have it for the TV, USB/cell charging, etc. This method is practical and convenient for the money as it gives you several options such as moving the portable inverter to other locations like the bridge or simply have dedicated units in different locations. I have a small one mounted under the helm at the bridge that I used to run a laptop for navigation. It was easier than running wire to install an outlet as part of the 120 volt on board AC system.

What ever you do, don't get complacent with battery power. Whether you simply keep what you have now or put in a dozen batteries, output will only last so long. Battery/load management is key to carefree boating AND safety.