There has been considerable discussion recently on the use of a Honda 2000 generator to power AC units when not connected to shore power. Having just purchased one, here is my experience. Note that this was for a 387 with two CruiseAir AC units, a larger one for the main cabin and a smaller one for the stern cabin.
First, the generator had no problem running the stern AC unit. Unfortunately, the stern unit couldn’t deal with the whole boat when at anchor in the 90+ degree afternoon’s sun. We didn’t try it at night.
Second, the generator could run the larger AC unit as long as it was the first time you ran it that day. What you can’t do is to let the compressor stop and then restart it. That causes an overload on the generator.
(Updated: 8/19/2013 – I installed a Dometic SmartStart to the main AC
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Here is a discussion from members using Honda Generators:
We recently moved our Catalina/Morgan 380cc to South West Fl (Punta Gorda) from Long Island NY. When we lived on Long Island we only occasion ly needed air conditioning. This time of the year down here it is almost a necessity every night. The problem is it rains many nights down here as well. I am able to run the air with my Honda 2000 and I normally put the unit on the swim platform or up at the base of the mast when in use. So my question is can the Honda be exposed to a down pour or should it be covered. I know that some of you store the Honda at the mast, do you cover it and what do you do in the rain?
Thanks
Clint Stoddard of SuSea Q
Clint,
I store my Honda at the
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We were heading out on our annual trip to the San Juan and Gulf islands and found that the Radar wasn’t working. We have had to go in fog the last couple times and decide not to go without radar. Raymarine doesn’t make the old non digital raydomes anymore. They will service the old raydomes for $575. But it will take several weeks. The new digital Raydomes are not compatible with my RL70C chartplotter so I am considering buying the E7 and a new Digital Raydome. I would love to hear comments from anyone who has this setup. Specifically how it works with the old Seatalk 6000 plus autopilot, depth, wind, and speed instruments.
Paul McManus
Sea Sea Rider C380 #185
Port Orchard, WA
Paul,
I do not have the radar but I bought a new c125 this year. It’s the same family as the e7 just bigger and without
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On my C387 #96, there is a blower switch on the engine control panel at the helm that has always baffled me. It simply gives you control over the blower when the engine is running but doesn’t allow you to control the blower when the engine is not running. Personally, I can’t see a reason why I would want it turned off at all when the engine is running. I would always want it on. Then again, the plastic cover on the switch is clouded over enough that you really can’t tell whether the switch is turned on or off so your only indicator is hearing it come on when the ignition switch is first turned on.
I want the blower to always run when the ignition is on but also want the ability to turn it on independent of the ignition switch. When I arrive at an anchorage and
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A number of people have asked about how one might create a timer to keep the engine blower running for some period of time after the engine has been turned off rather than have it stop as soon as the engine is stopped. The following were comments made:
Has anyone wired the blower to work when the key isn’t turned on? It would seem to me that doing this may help cool the engine at the end of the day and not bleed so much heat into the stern cabin?
If you say that it helps keep the temp in the aft cabin down I think I may rewire the blower also. How about adding a time delay relay so that the blower stays on for 15 -20 minutes after shutting down the engine? Do you think this will
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Some of us are just a bit obsessive about getting that last quarter of a knot out of our boat. We spend most of our time at the winches and very little behind the helm, which presents a problem. There are no instruments forward of the helm, so how do we know what all that trimming is doing to our boat speed? The usual solution is to have a crew member call out boat speed, or locate a wired repeater somewhere under the dodger. With the proliferation of Apple wireless devices, there is a much easier way to view all of your navigation information from anywhere in the cockpit or even below decks.
The iPad and iPhone have revolutionized many aspects of our lives, and now they are starting to change the boating electronics industry. I discovered this phenomenon last fall at the Annapolis Strictly
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Where do you folks locate a CO detector? I put one down low near the galley and it went off as soon as I started the engine. Relocated it up high near the vberth, but if it is that sensitive I’m guessing that I will still get false alarms. A friend who owns a C400 had to disconnect his.
My boat has three CO detectors. One in the aft cabin above the door to the head, one in the V-berth above and next to the door, an one in the main cabin above and next to the door to the V-berth.
Here is a composite of several discussions I have had regarding CO and smoke detectors:
LOCATION:
Don’t put the detectors too close to kitchen type of equipment or the motor as a little smoke will set off a false alarm
Height – Smoke detectors should be mounted up high
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What kind of flat screen TVs are being installed, where, and what size?? Are there 12 v units or are you working off an inverter. What kind of signal source are you using? What questions am I too dumb to ask?
I have a 26″ HDTV/DVD combo on the forward port side bulkhead in the main salon. I plugs into the AC plugs which are supplied through an interver when on the hook or shore power at the dock. I have a Shakespeare powered antenna. I previously tried the analog/digital converter box on my original TV but it wasn’t very satisfactory. The new TV setup works well — though we don’t use it much.
BTW: I had a problem with the Shakespeare antenna and they replaced it for free even though I was not the original owner. Great customer service!
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In a sidebar conversation, Warren came up with a really simple way to add the raw water alarm to our boats. The sensor that straps to the exhaust hose can be wired into the existing circuit for the engine overtemp alarm. This way, if either the engine overheats, or the exhaust hose gets too hot from lack of raw water, the alarm will sound. The sensor alone is just $54.
The steps would be:
1. Strap the sensor to the exhaust hose just below the water injection elbow.
2. route both wires to the terminal strip in the engine compartment.
3. connect the black wire from the sensor to the same terminal with the black ground wire.
4. connect the purple wire to the same terminal as the engine overtemp alarm. This wire could be identified by finding the sender on the engine or looking at the back of
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