Help Installing Inverter/Charger in 309

[J in Mississippi]

Anyone replace or upgrade their battery charge to a charger/inverter? I'm not looking for details, but location ideas. I have a Xantrex HF1800 charger inverter that measure 4.2 x 9.5 x 18 inches. Not sure where to put it. I know it needs to be close to the house batteries, but it will not fit where the old charger was located. Any ideas?

By the way. My original Charles 30amp charger burned out after just 5 years, thought that was strange. My old 1983 Catalina 30 I bought used had a used charger when I bought the boat in 1992. 12 years later it will still working when I sold her. Wish I knew what the brand was.

thanks,

John, Catalina 309, Intrepid II

 

[jsalley]

I mounted my Xantrex inverter (about the same size) in the closed, inaccessible space behind the center section of the starboard settee backrest. It's just above the battery compartment, so good proximity and minimal rewiring. My inverter has a built-in transfer switch and I hard wired it to one of the cabin AC circuits, so no need to access the inverter itself on a routine basis. You'd need to cut and install some sort of louvered air vent in the shelf above the inverter/charger for cooling.

The access was created by removing the teak shelf fiddle, and cutting a panel out of the fiberglass seat back with a jigsaw. It's important to measure carefully so you miss the vertical partitions at each end of the center section. The top cut can be made at the edge of the shelf, so that the removed panel edge slips under the reinstalled fiddle to hold the top in place without fasteners. I glued and screwed some thin batten strips to the edge of the cutout panel, which holds it in place when reinstalled. Once inside the space, I glassed four plywood mounting blocks to the side of the hull to mount the inverter vertically. The inverter shutoff switch is accessible in the adjacent aft settee compartment, the inverter's high-amp fuse is in the compartment with the inverter, and the control panel is remotely mounted in the Nav station panel. I have some pictures on another laptop; I'll try to find and post them.

 

[J in Mississippi]

John,

Thanks for the info. Can you tell me what model Xantrex you have?, so I can get a better idea of size before I cut into that area. Also, Would appreciate the pictures you have. Sounds like a nice installation. Like the fact that you used "recovered" space as opposed to existing "already full" storage areas.

 

[jsalley]

Here ya go. It's a Xantrex Pro MX-1800. Dimensions from manual are 14 9/16 L, 9 W, and 4 H.

 

[J in Mississippi]

Nice Installation. Looks like my inverter/charger will also fit. Had to put in a temporary charger for now as we are in prime sailing season in south. Hope to do install in off season with haulout, the Summer here in Mississippi. Too hot, hurricanes, etc.. Thanks, for the info.