I am the second owner of a 1998 Hunter 376 - she has a solar panel installed on deck. Is this panel always charging the batteries, or is there something I need to do to engage it? I don't have a generator - is it possible to run my air conditioner at anchor if I parallel bus A and B, run my 40 HP diesel, isolate my starter battery, and the AC is on an automatic thermostat so the compressor will only kick on occasionally? I don't know what the startup wattage of the AC compressor is... I know that's probably the limiting factor. My freezer plate is constantly covered with 2 or more inches of ice, and freezes the hell out of everything I put in there to the point where everything just freezes solid, and freezes together. I have it turned all the way down and it still does this. Any ideas? Thanks, Andrew Mylander S/V Suncatcher I know, I'll just leave my freezer open all night at anchor, and forget about the air conditioner!
- Status
My 376
Andrew, My 376 (June 1996) had its solar panel wired to only charge the engine battery and this was permanently connected. There is a 5 amp fuse on the engine battery master switch panel under the nav table. My solar panel failed after about a year and the mexico manufacturer had been taken over and that size was no longer in production, though I think someone makes it now. I bought a larger size panel and in filled the existing recess with epoxied plywood and screwed the new one on top. What I then did was to connect two diodes from the panel + output, one directly to the engine battery and the other directly to the house bank. It now charges both batts and the lowest gets most of the charge. Works fine and to switch it off I just take the fuse out.
Andrew, My 376 (June 1996) had its solar panel wired to only charge the engine battery and this was permanently connected. There is a 5 amp fuse on the engine battery master switch panel under the nav table. My solar panel failed after about a year and the mexico manufacturer had been taken over and that size was no longer in production, though I think someone makes it now. I bought a larger size panel and in filled the existing recess with epoxied plywood and screwed the new one on top. What I then did was to connect two diodes from the panel + output, one directly to the engine battery and the other directly to the house bank. It now charges both batts and the lowest gets most of the charge. Works fine and to switch it off I just take the fuse out.
Rare Breed
us 376 owners
From what I've been told, mostlikely that panel doesn't work anymore so I wouldn't worry about it. If your AC is the same as mine (1996) then you need 110 V, not the 12 V the engine generates, so to run it at anchor you need a 110 V generator. You freezer may have the same problem mine does and that's that it never cycles. Mine is a constant 6 amps draw. Now mine doesn't over freeze so that may also be a problem on top of a problem because I think it should be over freezing. I've been meaning to get a pro to look at it.
us 376 owners
From what I've been told, mostlikely that panel doesn't work anymore so I wouldn't worry about it. If your AC is the same as mine (1996) then you need 110 V, not the 12 V the engine generates, so to run it at anchor you need a 110 V generator. You freezer may have the same problem mine does and that's that it never cycles. Mine is a constant 6 amps draw. Now mine doesn't over freeze so that may also be a problem on top of a problem because I think it should be over freezing. I've been meaning to get a pro to look at it.- Status