Triskel power generation system on Distant Shores III

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

With all due respect to EcoTech and so forth -- I would not rush into making the investment into this sort of alternator, at least not before I'd had one apart on my own bench and had convinced myself that I could fix it myself easily in a remote area, and before I had seen the price list for parts and compared it to the Leece Neville one.

Their biggest difference is the uniquely low RPM where HO starts kicking in.

And a tremendous rep for customer servic afaict, for less macguyverish owners.

And seen them for sale secondhand, very reasonably.

But yes, commonly obtained standard OTS parts in primitive places are always A Good Thing.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Their biggest difference is the uniquely low RPM where HO starts kicking in.

And a tremendous rep for customer servic afaict, for less macguyverish owners.

And seen them for sale secondhand, very reasonably.

But yes, commonly obtained standard OTS parts in primitive places are always A Good Thing.

Yes, and they are efficient, and run cool. They are beautiful pieces of kit. I have been looking at them for years.



But the Leece Neville cheap school bus alternators also produce a ton of power right off idle.


We have to be careful here not to let the perfect be the enemy of the good.


That being said -- if I were convinced about their being easy to repair, if parts were easy to obtain and not ridiculously expensive, if they last longer -- might be a good choice for my next boat.

[MaCro]

Originally Posted by zboss

Is there a chance that the controller for that "alternator" hooks into the wire harness of the engine and uses that data as an input for optimizing the load?

Yes, In the video Nigel states that it does read J1939 and NMEA2000 data.

[nitpik]

https://youtu.be/wfX96IWA6m8

Sorry folks, I haven't had a chance to read all the posts on this thread yet, so it may have already been mentioned.
Sounds like an off-shoot of Nigel Calders work with inTEGrel. See above link for more details - looks very promising for real cruisers!

[darylat8750]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is motor sailing. Being able to load a propulsion engine with a big alternator while motor sailing would be the "cats meow".

[rla]

I can understand this system for the rich, weekend and holiday sailor and for a cruiser when its older and used, as I would guess the 'kit' price to be prohibitive.
I do agree with the benefits of driving the alternator to load the engine, I did this myself many years ago with an alternator added to a Volvo MD2,.with a potentiometer adjusting the field excitation.
I could nearly stall the engine at low revs and put a lot of amps back in the batteries.
I remember a dynanomter test on a 70s BMC mini engine showing that the waterpump, fan ,dynamo and fan belt load was over 10hp, of which a large proportion was the filled A section belt, hence cogged ones now or polyvee.

[DeepFrz]

This looks similar to a system that Advanced RV, for one, has been using for a year or two. But just taking a quick look at this system I really like the 48v generator and the offloading of the rectifiers into a fan cooled box. This should make the output of the generator much more efficient and much more reliable as it will move much of the destructive heat out of the generator.

Stepping the voltage down from 48v to 12v or 24v is a no brainer. Can be done by already available electronic boxes that are very reliable. You also have the option of using 48v windlass's and winches, etc.

The big thing about this particular system is the software and that is not off the shelf stuff. Nice system but for folks going off the beaten path a separate generator may still be a requirement although I think a small one compared to a larger one.

[BigBeakie]

Stepping down can be done but the limiting factor is the amp draw of these devices. If you're running electric winches & windlass at 24v, they cannot keep up. Custom made ones from Germany & US used in military are prohibitively expensive.

Which winches and windlass are 48v ??? All my searches turned up were trailer and 4x4 winches.


Sent from my iPad using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Fuss]

sounds good in the presentation, but the reality is that it does nothing that a normal alternator does not do.... the type of boat that this benefits does not need tons of electrical power anyway.... reminds me of the old alternator regulator hype when advantages were compared to a standard alt at 13.8volts

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by Fuss

the reality is that it does nothing that a normal alternator does not do

Did you even read the thread? Watch Nigel's full video?

Maybe "nothing" important to **you**, but certainly not nothing.

> the type of boat that this benefits does not need tons of electrical power anyway

Again huge overgeneralization.

Optimizing alt power suits many use cases, even if you're not getting rid of a dedicated AC genny

High GPH watermaker, powerful gaming laptop, induction stove or microwave, some even want a washer drier

> reminds me of the old alternator regulator hype when advantages were compared to a standard alt at 13.8volts

You're saying their aren't huge advantages there?

Just because **your** use case does not require an advance in technology. . .

No one is saying it is useful for everyone's needs

[Fuss]

looks to me that it makes use of the wasted power from small motors when run in the mid range revs , you can input lots of protocols but i do not see any advantage that makes it worth buying .... i have prop generated power, induction stove etc, so i do know a bit what i’m talking about... are you saying with this stuck on a motor we can have induction, washer dryer, microwave... i doubt it.... and if not. why buy it....

[john61ct]

I'm saying its relative value will depends on the context.

No general statement can be made that is true independent of the context.

[OceanPlanet]

Originally Posted by Fuss

looks to me that it makes use of the wasted power from small motors when run in the mid range revs , you can input lots of protocols but i do not see any advantage that makes it worth buying .... i have prop generated power, induction stove etc, so i do know a bit what i’m talking about... are you saying with this stuck on a motor we can have induction, washer dryer, microwave... i doubt it.... and if not. why buy it....

I plan to install this system on my own boat, so I can have exactly that (minus the washer-dryer)...that is, induction cooktop, compact AirCon with reverse-cycle heating, & microwave (all powered via small 48V inverter) while keeping weight to absolute minimum (will be racing as well as cruising). Could do the same right now with 25V or 50V American Power HPI alternators for slightly less weight, however then would not have the same level of charge control to maximize fuel efficiency.

[john61ct]

Originally Posted by OceanPlanet

then would not have the same level of charge control to maximize fuel efficiency.

So Bruce, is this true?

The charge control box in "under way" mode is detecting the prop load on the engine

and using that data to vary the alternator's load via regulating its output amps,

in order to keep the total load on the engine within the optimum range at a given RPM.

Or is there also any control over the RPM itself?

[OceanPlanet]

Originally Posted by john61ct

So Bruce, is this true?

The charge control box in "under way" mode is detecting the prop load on the engine

and using that data to vary the alternator's load via regulating its output amps,

in order to keep the total load on the engine within the optimum range at a given RPM.

Or is there also any control over the RPM itself?

Basically correct, although no control over the rpm itself. I certainly can't divulge any specific details (not that I know them all anyhow), however at the very least the rpm is monitored and charge load is adjusted accordingly.

Nigel covers these details far better than I can...