Unlimited energy

Over the last few years, our on-board equipment has developed brilliantly, but consumes much more energy.  For semi-offshore cruising or a long-term voyage, energy needs must therefore be redefined so as to use the new means of recharging and storage suited to this new consumption and the environment. 
Lithium ion batteries are suited to the new consumption modes aboard. More expensive to buy, they offer many advantages and a much greater life span, as can be seen with the new ‘Batteries Atomique’, which advertise 5000 charge/discharge cycles.
Modern Gel or AGM batteries can be stored in waterproof boxes and allocated to the functions for which they are best suited – Gel for the domestic supply and AGM for starting the engines and the windlass. A charge distributor will manage the recharging
To recharge the batteries quickly and to be able to use the power, sometimes with consumption peaks, a suitable configuration is of prime importance, as shown here with these two chargers connected in series
For more powerful chargers, the shore power cables must be of a larger section.
On recent boats, the generator is almost more important than the engines. A powerful generator allows a large battery bank to be recharged in two hours, and limits the noise disturbance.
Energy consumption is such that to monitor the level of the battery bank, a controller becomes essential, to see your consumption in real time. Configured correctly, it can even start the generator automatically before it’s too late.
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Publié le 19/07/2017
Par Olivier Barret
Numéro : 155
Parution : Sep. / Oct. 2017
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Multihulls World 155

Let’s admit it, for a very long time now we have abandoned complicated calculations of our amperes, and our ecological conscience has not convinced us to do without a level of domestic comfort which resembles that of our home. Aboard a modern catamaran, in addition to the autopilot, the instruments and the navigation lights, the minimum allowed by the rules of the new ‘Well-Being Federation’ represents a sizeable list of equipment in areas which are as varied as they are essential. For cold: air conditioning, fridge, freezer, ice machine; for hot: heating, water heater; for domestic appliances…

Tags : Diagnostic

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MM233 - octobre-novembre 2025

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