AC power - Is there a Collection of "Wisdom"

[dvideohd]

There have been some good questions asked about AC boat power - and some really great Power Testing reports... Is there a good collection of "collected wisdom" on practical use of AC power on boats? I read Calder's books.. and various wiring (ok... a lot of) books... and those are great from a "design" and "practical use" standpoint.

What I am looking for is a set of practical commentary on having AC Boat Power. I guess that includes dealing with corrosion issues, insulation, grounding, inverters and such... It's one thing to size and install a system. It's another to LIVE with it for 30 years... So I look for those long term kinds of issues....

I am also getting ready to design some power supply products.. I prefer to be accurate from an engineering standpoint instead of from a marketing standpoint.. (ie, the efficiency is real, from a set of conditions, and not just the "PEAK - BEST CASE")...

Power systems get designed to last a long time - and they SHOULD!!!! So from that standpoint, they are NOT TRUE CONSUMER PRODUCTS... I have always felt that a consumer product was something you could buy at Fry's - would last for 90-120 days - and you were not too unhappy when it broke... A power (or in this case Marine) product - should be something that lasts a long time.. Solar panels LAST a long time.. USB Memory sticks.. well.. a year is a long time for USB Memory sticks...

My Columbia 28 MK II was built in 1969. Almost 40 years old.... the WIRING is in GREAT SHAPE!!!! indeed - almost EVERYTHING is in pretty good shape... Power systems for consumer/prosumer applications may not last that long.. but it is an element in how long the product should be designed to work for....

So I look for collections of complaints, requirements, and so forth.... In order to make a new design "good" - it is important to looking at products as they age and wear.

--suggestions??

--thanks...
--jerry

 

[Ross]

Jerry, some components wear out. Receptacles wear out. Switches wear out. Wire does not wear out. Circuit breakers can deteriorate and lose capacity. Properly made connections don't wear out. My house was built in 1967. I have lived in it since 1971. It has Aluminum wiring for the most part. I have had no trouble with it where connections were made by electricians. The first owner didn't qualify for that title. I corrected his work.

I don't know where you draw the line between consumer goods and permanent fixtures but I changed all of the lighting fixtures when I bought the house and have needed only to change light bulbs since. I have a 1973 model pioneer stereo amp/receiver that still serves as well as when new. I have a couple of refrigerators from the late '60s That continue to provide the service for which the were purchased.

 

[dvideohd]

A lot of modern power products...

will not last... Got to an automotive or big box chain - and take a look at the Inverters or other Power type products.. I would think 3 years would be a while for them...

I too have a early 70's Pioneer Stereo setup... it still works (but needs the electrolytics updated). It was designed VERY well.. I would think your refrigerator was ALSO designed very well..

A lot of such products today are simply NOT designed to last... I am greatly interested in problems or failure mechanisms: gradual or abrupt failures? customer service issues? poor performance...?

A case in point - there were a lot of "energy efficient" washer - dryers made that had VERY LARGE standby power use. (ie, when you THOUGHT it was off... it still drew a LOT of standby power....) In respects, it make the "energy efficiency" a bit of a joke...

In fact -- it turns out that WALL WARTs waste a HUGE amount of power every year.. plugging such into the boat - that can be a nasty drain...

***************

Power profiles on boats - are not "reliable" like on shore AC... so you get to a lot of accelerated failures and strange behavior. It's good to know of these things...

--jerry