110V not working when off shore power

[Syversens]

We had the first day sailing with no rain today but had a sea emergency in that our son could not watch Spongebob on the DVD. We know outlets were working before taking off an upon return while on shorepower but when we disconnected and ran engine or sails the outlets would not work. Any hints to what this could be would be appreciated, here is what I checked:all main switches over the engine were ONthe breaker under the nav station was ON (working on shorepower)checked a breaker on the wall to the aft bed and tested both settings on itWe haven't had this problem before, anyone have any hints what this could be ? the manual was again pretty useless for me...

 

[David10790]

Hot Water from the heat exchanger

When you are using the engine a heat exchanger uses the excess engine heat to create hot water for use in the sink and shower. The water heats up pretty quickly, and stays hot a surprisingly long time, but not overnight in cold seas. If you need hot water an anchor, you can run the engine, which will not only create hot water, but also recharge your batteries.At the risk of being impolite, may I suggest that you consider taking a course or reading a book on boat systems? Modern sailboats are pretty complex, and the interaction of the engine, the plubing and the electrical is hard to sort out without help. This is the kind of stuff that is "nice to know" while in the marina, but can get to be "need to know" in a hurry.Best of luck,Safe Retuns, B 373, Toronto

 

[Syversens]

any recommended reading ?

David, thanks for the info on the waterheater. not impolite at all, I should get to know the boat technical better but I find the manuals for the boat (if I can find the right one) very hard to read. Also I had a boat before but it did not have hot water or 110V, these are new to me Most other aspects of the engine and sailing are familiar.If you have any reading that you recommend let me know.thanks !

 

[Doug_Meyer]

Manuals

Keep plugging away at the owner's manual.. it will help. I don't know how much information you got with the boat, but my B323 binder contained manuals and instructions for every piece of equipment (manufacturer's manuals). One way to try to et that information would be to search the equipment maufacturer websites and see if they have downloadable versions of their manuals for the make and model of the equipment on your boat.Also look for How-to publications like "Boat Works" or other periodicals aimed at the do-it-yourself boater... them might help to improve your understanding of some of the technicalities.

 

[Mike]

110 VAC

Some things to check for:Do you have a switch marked "Inverter" on either of your electrical panels at the nav table? If so is it on?How many batteries are installed on the boat? The 361 typically has at least two. The first is under the steps in front of the engine. It's a deep cycle battery used for the lights, refridgerator, navigation electronics, etc. The 2nd one is under the bunk in the rear cabin near the center line of the boat. This is the engine start battery and is usually much smaller than the one by the engine. If these are the only two batteries installed on the boat then you probably dont have an inverter as inverters require a lot of battery power to do their job. Sometimes there is a 3rd battery under the rear cabin bunk. This should be the same size as the one by the engine. The two of them would be wired together to provide extra power for times when you were at anchor, and could also power a small wattage inverter. Remember though, even if you have a 3rd battery it does not mean you have an inverter. Check under the starboard settee for one. It's where the battery charger is installed and would be the likely place for the inverter. Usually the inverter replaces the charger so you would only have one component in there. Look on the cover for any lettering that would indicate which you have.My guess is you wont find an inverter and that whenever you disconnect from shore power all your AC outlets will shut off. Dont confuse still getting hot water with having or not having power. The water heater is plumbed through the engine and is heated whenever the engine is running. It's a 6 gal tank so once you shut the engine off you'll slowly lose hot water.Good luckMike

 

[Syversens]

thanks Mike !

Great informational answer... really appreciate the insight as I got one step close to happy cruising