Where to start? Rockingham/Perth/Australia

[PelagicNomad]

Hi all




I have just joined. Before replying to this post it's also important that you also read my profile!

As far as I can tell, my very primitive electrical system doesn't even have a gauge to measure the how much charge the batteries have. My understanding is that running batteries empty (which I have done) or over-charging them (which I "hope" I haven't done), is seriously naughty... And to my limited understanding...it seems there is no inverter, so I can't even plug the laptop in! This is a big problem because I learn sooo much from YouTube, and no doubt will here. Also, I am using an ice-box, which is co$ting me a fortune and driving me insane... So as per profile, a fridge...is on the cards...



Any help much appreciated





Thanx

Andrew

[boatman61]

Your laptop/Android should charge/run off 12volts.. you just need a car type cigar lighter wired to the + & - and the appropriate lead/plug from store...
I've done this direct from the battery on some old boats I've delivered which were like yours.. use my Notebook as my Chartplotter and it works just fine..

[charliehows]

if you want to know what state of charge your batts are at get a multigauge electrical tester from your local electrical goods store and look up on the net for voltage/charge levels - i think mine are healthy at around 12.7 and getting a bit flat the closer to 12 or less. You'll find a lot of other uses for the gauge which makes it a worthwhile spend of $25 or so. $50 gets you a usable 12v - 240v inverter, $150 gets you a usable petrol generator. You might want to do some homework and report back on the fridge thing, i havent found a low cost way of doing that myself so i'd like to hear any suggestions. If low cost doesnt matter - take your pick.