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Old 12-11-2019, 15:28   #1
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Question How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

How would one go about combining (linking together) all the batteries on a 2014 Beneteau Oceanis 45?

I am asking this on behalf of a friend. They have a 2014 Beneteau Oceanis, with 3 battery banks: engine, house, and aux (bowthruster). There is a FET isolator which charges all three banks from the alternator. To the best of their knowledge, the wiring is all stock Beneteau.

The solar panels seem to be connected to the house bank only. Now that the boat is being pulled out for the winter, it would be great if all three banks could be somehow combined in order for the solar panels to trickle-charge all three.

Does anybody know how to combine the battery banks on a 2014 Beneteau Oceanis? Thanks for any and all info!
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Old 12-11-2019, 16:02   #2
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Not really an answer but I thought it pretty ironic that Brian on Delos just released this video today.




I think it's nice... I think it's very nice
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Old 12-11-2019, 16:34   #3
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Wire all charge sources direct to House, concurrent no problem, different setpoints not ideal, but match the spec'd charge profile of the House units as well as possible.

Wire the FET isolator so that the House bank + sources circuit is the INPUT side.

Output continues to go to Starter and Aux banks as before.

Test at their respective posts that final output is in range of the specs for their component units.

If the isolator is causing too much voltage drop, or the chemistries have different needs,

consider replacing with a VSR/ACR/combiner instead, or a DC-DC charger, one per each connection if required.

But then they've been living with that sitch a while now.
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Old 12-11-2019, 17:34   #4
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Don’t think i’ve ever seen a combine switch on one. They come with the silly black neg switch instead.

Just keep the boat plugged in while hailed out.
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Old 13-11-2019, 08:32   #5
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Spilt charge kit will charge your starter and main house , and will work of your solar as well and your battery charger and alternator , the bow thruster battery depends were it is might have to do without
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Split-Charg...3662588&sr=8-2
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Old 13-11-2019, 08:42   #6
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

That's just a VSR plus wiring. Not designed for marine environments.

And you just need 2x VSR (or DCDC) to handle 3 batteries, n-1 if more.
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Old 13-11-2019, 08:52   #7
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Simplest approach, but will depend on where wires are located, is to connect the solar charging to the existing FET isolator at the same location as the current alternator connection. Then the solar will charge all the batteries. If it is only for winter storage you can run a properly sized cord over floors, etc. from the solar controller to the FET.

If the solar controller supports it you can limit output to say 5A or 10A, put in a small breaker, and just use a 12AWG extension cable to do the job over the winter (the batteries shouldn't need much current over the winter). For a more permanent solution, do the same thing with wires that are sized for the solar output and run through existing wiring channels.
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Old 13-11-2019, 08:56   #8
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by john61ct View Post
That's just a VSR plus wiring. Not designed for marine environments.

And you just need 2x VSR (or DCDC) to handle 3 batteries, n-1 if more.
Define a marine environment, in the sense were your battery's are getting wet , humid , or exposed to elements , I think you will find that many cruisers use parts that are cross used from the automotive industry and boats , and before I get started again Salt does not float in air so no such think as humid salty air.
I can assure you that my battery banks are dry , well ventilated and away from any moisture , if there not you are doing something seriously wrong,
Hee Hee marine environments I ain't putting ity up the mast.
Oh and are lead acid Marine leisure battery's different from RV leisure battery's or as usual the price goes up when we say MARINE
To op the VSR is fine your wires will not corrode if well insulated , and will not be an issues in your lifetime. unless you want to stand there and throw water over it every now and then to keep the Marine purest happy
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Old 13-11-2019, 09:34   #9
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Setting salt fog issues aside, the little bit of savings buying "Durite" off Amazon, compared to a Blue Sea unit would not be worth the risk, wrt reliability and longevity. The latter are very trusted, known-good as practically bulletproof, especially the 500-ML version, never seen a failure yet.

The other points are

A. two are needed, of whatever type, as opposed to
Quote:
Originally Posted by tarian View Post
the bow thruster battery depends were it is might have to do without
B. depending on the banks involved, a DC-DC may be required instead, or

C. it may be just fine to continue using the 3-way FET-based isolator, no further gadgetry purchases needed at all
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Old 13-11-2019, 09:38   #10
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by john61ct View Post
...
C. it may be just fine to continue using the 3-way FET-based isolator, no further gadgetry purchases needed at all
Exactly. They already own one. It is already wired to the batteries. If the solar output is wired to the FET input then it is only one small wiring change (with the caveat that any wiring change on a boat is a p..n). FETs have very low voltage drop, especially at low currents, so why reinvent the wheel?
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Old 13-11-2019, 09:51   #11
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dsanduril View Post
If the solar output is wired to the FET input
If you read my post again, that is not what I am recommending.

The power input to the isolator can be "further away" electrically, e.g. a distribution post or buss bar.

While the voltage reading of the charge sources needs to be at the bank posts, or as close/low resistance as possible for accuracy. Unless a 3/4-wire charge source, which is pretty rare.
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Old 13-11-2019, 13:04   #12
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by john61ct View Post
If you read my post again, that is not what I am recommending.

The power input to the isolator can be "further away" electrically, e.g. a distribution post or buss bar.

While the voltage reading of the charge sources needs to be at the bank posts, or as close/low resistance as possible for accuracy. Unless a 3/4-wire charge source, which is pretty rare.
I think I understood, it was your third option, and you did caveat it with "it may be fine."

For deep charging you are absolutely right, but for winter maintenance (the OP's original request) it makes little difference where the various pieces are and how long the cables are. We're talking about maintaining a set of batteries against self-discharge, and for that currents are (or at least should be) very low and thus voltage differences should be essentially nil.
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Old 13-11-2019, 13:16   #13
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dsanduril View Post
I think I understood, it was your third option, and you did caveat it with "it may be fine."
That was for continuing to us the isolator at all.

Within the context of:

>> Wire the FET isolator so that the House bank + sources circuit is the INPUT side.

No matter the weather or usage profile, no matter how small the current or shallow the discharge,

the charge source **must** get as close to accurate as possible **voltage** reading at the bank posts.

Sitting at 98.5% SoC is far far from sitting at 100%, and this is especially true talking about storage for weeks and months at a time, when cycle-life aging should in effect be suspended.
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Old 13-11-2019, 13:24   #14
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Well, I respectfully disagree. Sure, in the ideal world, perfect scenario but in the real world under the OP's specified conditions it makes little difference. As I've posted before, in careful bench measurements (using a calibrated source) I've documented a full 0.3V difference in the reading of solar controller vs. battery monitor vs. regulator vs. BMS. All using quality gear. If the accuracy of the measurement systems isn't any better than that, then a few hundredths of a Volt based on where you measure is insignificant.
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Old 13-11-2019, 13:38   #15
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Re: How to combine battery banks on a 2014 Oceanis 45?

Quote:
Originally Posted by john61ct View Post
Wire all charge sources direct to House, concurrent no problem, different setpoints not ideal, but match the spec'd charge profile of the House units as well as possible.

Wire the FET isolator so that the House bank + sources circuit is the INPUT side.

Output continues to go to Starter and Aux banks as before.

Test at their respective posts that final output is in range of the specs for their component units.

If the isolator is causing too much voltage drop, or the chemistries have different needs,

consider replacing with a VSR/ACR/combiner instead, or a DC-DC charger, one per each connection if required.

But then they've been living with that sitch a while now.
This is exactly what I'd recommend (and very close to how we have our electrical system configured).

It is important to note that each charge source must be switchable to cut power to the house when that is needed, and of course the batteries need to have switches to cut them from the house and engine as well.
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