Project Log: Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Earlier, I cut off the battery box riser that was in the wrong
place, sanded away the paint, and installed a new riser,
this time positioned (hopefully) where it was supposed
to be. I epoxied it in place as before and left it
overnight to cure.
|
 |
I spent the day running many of the battery cables
required, starting with the four cables running to the
battery switch, which I'd installed near the engine room
in the main cabin. Although the switch was
physically within a foot of the engine room, running
these cables required many trips in and out of the
engine room, down into the cabin, and to the switch
location. My system mated the engine alternator
with an automatic charging relay (ACR) to isolate the
start battery from house loads and charge it, along with
the house bank, when the alternator was running.
Later I'd build a cover to protect the back side of the
switch.
Two of these cables led to the port battery box, to the
house and start banks there, the third cable led
directly to the engine starter, and the final cable to
the positive distribution buss for the ship's main
electrical system. I also ran the main ground wire
from the negative distribution buss to the engine ground
point. To protect the two cables leading to the
engine, I ran them through some lengths of hose where
chafe points could exist. |
 |
Next I wanted to at least temporarily install the port
batter box. I hoped not to remove it, but the box
(and its starboard counterpart) would be removable
without too much trouble. Before installing the
box, I installed some chafe protection on one of the
hoses leading to the remote oil filter, which was a very
stiff hose that couldn't easily be moved or redirected,
and tied it up out of the way of the battery box, and
cleaned up the area that would be hidden by the box.
I installed the battery box, now with its new aft riser,
with four machine screws into holes I tapped into the
fiberglass "flying buttresses" extending off the side of
the engine foundations.
It was a tight fit around the box, but everything I
needed was accessible, and the box could be removed for
future access as needed. |
 |
With the box installed I could move on with the
installation of the ACR unit and its associated cables.
I located this on the forward bulkhead just ahead of the
battery box, and led its two cables--one for each
battery bank--to the port battery box, and ran a small
ground wire from one of the spade terminals at the
bottom of the unit up into the console for later
connection when a fuse holder I'd ordered arrived. |
 |
Still ahead I needed to run the negative cables for each
bank from the negative distribution buss, as well as
jumpers to interconnect the starboard pair of the house
bank. |
| |
Total Time Today: 5.5 hours
|
<
Previous | Next > |
|
|
