Chartplotter upgrade C70 to GO9

[Carverlvr2]

Thank you for that info! Since several of you have very similar boats to mine, what sort of amp hour draw do you see when your on the hook? With my two fridges, water/vacuflushes, and some lights, I’m expecting 10ah or less and I have a 300ah bank/150ah usable, so 15 hrs between genny runs?

[KyleR]

We only have 1 refrigerator (the stock NovaKool) and have converted all lights to LED. We do not have an installed inverter.
We are full-time liveaboards and are on the hook probably 90% of the time, maybe more. Our average draw is 5ah from the house bank (200ah LiFePO4).

However, we also have a 3000 watt Jackery solar generator that we use for running the coffee maker, toaster oven, induction cooktop, charging phones/computers, etc. It will keep us pretty satisfied for at least 24-36 hours, depending on how much cooking we do.

So basically, we run our generator about once every 24-48 hours and only have to run it for about 2 hours to charge the Jackery, top off the house bank and get the hot water heater hot again for showers and such.

Now when it is 30F outside - or 90F, we run it alot more for HVAC!!

Hope that helps!
Kyle

[Carverlvr2]

Kyle,
You’ve really got me thinking on that Jackery option. So you just plug shore power 1 into it and it runs the house accessories (stove, micro, coffee) when needed? Do you use the solar panel chargers or just charge off the genny when you run it? Do you shut off things like the boat battery chargers and water heater?

[Midnightsun]

Here is a little test I did on a Jackery 2000. I use it mostly for our 12v electric cooler fridge we keep in the cockpit. The nicest feature is the quick recharge as can be seen in my test, They do pack some serious juice. viewtopic.php?f=12&t=7575&p=59595&hilit=jackery#p59595

[KyleR]

You’ve really got me thinking on that Jackery option. So you just plug shore power 1 into it and it runs the house accessories (stove, micro, coffee) when needed?

No, I don't run it to the shore power 1 connection, although you certainly could. However then we couldn't shut our salon door all the way (unless I left the unit outside) and there would be collateral drain from other non-essential loads unless I switched off the applicable breakers everytime. Too much hassle for me.

Since the unit has four 120V outlets we just plug the coffee maker/toaster oven/etc. into it directly or via an extension cord (appropriately sized for the load of course ). We bought a single burner induction cooktop that works amazingly fast and uses a fraction of the power that a traditional heating element uses.

Do you use the solar panel chargers or just charge off the genny when you run it?

We use the solar panels as much as we can. When we were in the Keys last winter we had them out extensively. When we went north and it got more overcast and such we brought them in and put them away. They store pretty compact. But, in all fairness, the panels don't seem to put out the claimed output of 200watts each. The most I've ever seen is around 150watts per panel. Not bad, but not as good as the claim. Lots of factors impacting that and since I just lay them up on the bow I really have not worked to optimize their output.

But, as Hans wrote about in his thread, I can recharge the unit from nearly drained to full in just over 2 hours with the generator.

As a side note, one nice thing about being able to charge it this way is I can charge it off the boat if desired. When we passed through the Dismal Swamp earlier this year and spent the night at the free dock at the visitors center, the ladies in the visitors center let me bring the unit into their office and charge it up while me and my wife went for a walk. We came back to a fully charged Jackery and didn't have to run the generator that night. We've done similar at places we've stopped that don't have 30/50amp shore power but have a 110V outlet. Pretty cool.

Do you shut off things like the boat battery chargers and water heater?

Not necessary since we don't run it to the shore power Inlet. But if you did plug it in there, those would be loads you would definitely want to shut off as they have a big drain.

Kinda long-winded answer, but hope it helps!
Kyle