Just cut loose my genset

[healhustler]

After 11 years of repairing, rebuilding, relocating, reinstalling and removing my Northern Lights 5KW generator, I had to yank it again 6 months ago after learning that the last bad hurricane must have backed up water through the exhaust and flooded the cylinders. She froze.

After busting it loose, I was having one of the cylinders bored and sleaved to bring it back to original tolerances when the guy got real sick and the genset block has been sitting there all this time, undone, a day’s drive away and no outlook for finishing it up.

I called the guy today and his situation (already serious) is just getting worse. I thought over these months that I should just pick the thing up and look for a machine shop closer to home, the finish the reassembly myself, but the parts are everywhere and the head is also unfinished. The odd bolts are scattered. The only thing that sickens me more is having to deal with that fragmented mess and then ending up with the same machine I have never been able to depend on for a single overnight anchorage.

I cut it loose. I gave up. That generator has cost me so much money and frustration all these years that having it back, or having ANY generator for that matter, is not going to be part of my boating future.

I cleared my pilothouse roof 8 years ago for 1200 watts of solar (2000 watts will fit now) and all I’ve done is procrastinate while the cost of panels, controllers & battery systems have plunged to the point that I can no longer justify waiting. Living in Florida makes it even more so.

The way we use our boat, 2000 watts and a sizable LiFePo-4 battery bank will take care of everything with no noise and no moving parts. The things I needed 110 for, like tools, fridge, hot water (engine heated) and overnight stateroom A/C are all manageable now. Emergency starts of main engine can be handled by compact jump-start devices. Am I missing something?

 

[LovetoBoat]

Not sure why you needed a Frig or Freezer on 110V? Mine run on 12 volt. The only items I need for my genset is - A/C, the microwave, electric stove top, coffee maker and air fryer. Everything else is 12 volt...

 

[Marco Flamingo]

Nope.

 

[Arc]

Since you don’t require heave loads just go with a 3.5kw . Simple , small and less than $9k for a new unit. Nothing beats having unlimited ac at the flip of a switch

 

[Simi 60]

Not sure why you needed a Frig or Freezer on 110V? Mine run on 12 volt. ..

Some of us like bigger and better refrigeration

The only items I need for my genset is - A/C, the microwave, electric stove top, coffee maker and air fryer. Everything else is 12 volt

.

Everything listed there (we don't have A/C) including our multiple 240v fridge freezers and hot water system runs on battery, inverter, solar.

Genset is only required on day 3 of a rain event and sometimes on day 3 in winter for a boost to charging.

 

[High Wire]

I would much prefer a fully charged LA starting battery than a jumper pack.

 

[guy with a boat]

After 11 years of repairing, rebuilding, relocating, reinstalling and removing my Northern Lights 5KW generator, I had to yank it again 6 months ago after learning that the last bad hurricane must have backed up water through the exhaust and flooded the cylinders. She froze.

After busting it loose, I was having one of the cylinders bored and sleaved to bring it back to original tolerances when the guy got real sick and the genset block has been sitting there all this time, undone, a day’s drive away and no outlook for finishing it up.

I called the guy today and his situation (already serious) is just getting worse. I thought over these months that I should just pick the thing up and look for a machine shop closer to home, the finish the reassembly myself, but the parts are everywhere and the head is also unfinished. The odd bolts are scattered. The only thing that sickens me more is having to deal with that fragmented mess and then ending up with the same machine I have never been able to depend on for a single overnight anchorage.

I cut it loose. I gave up. That generator has cost me so much money and frustration all these years that having it back, or having ANY generator for that matter, is not going to be part of my boating future.

I cleared my pilothouse roof 8 years ago for 1200 watts of solar (2000 watts will fit now) and all I’ve done is procrastinate while the cost of panels, controllers & battery systems have plunged to the point that I can no longer justify waiting. Living in Florida makes it even more so.

The way we use our boat, 2000 watts and a sizable LiFePo-4 battery bank will take care of everything with no noise and no moving parts. The things I needed 110 for, like tools, fridge, hot water (engine heated) and overnight stateroom A/C are all manageable now. Emergency starts of main engine can be handled by compact jump-start devices. Am I missing something?

The only issue might be multiple days of heavy cloud cover. If you don't already have a large frame, high-output alternator, you can add that as a backup generator for a lot less cost and complication than an actual gen. You would then be pretty well covered, rain or shine.

 

[O C Diver]

If it weren't for air conditioning and occasionally heat, I would go the solar route along with my 220 amp second alternator on the main engine. Unfortunately, my body just doesn't tolerate cold or high heat and humidity like it use to.

Ted

 

[Max1]

Hi Larry.
I have solar on board my boat and have enough power to live on the hook almost indefinitely.

As a matter of fact, at our marina, shore power is an added cost on top of your slip fee.
Last year was our first summer on the boat (Summer season in Lake Ontario) and we declined the option for shore power and saved several hundred bucks on slip rental. We lived on the boat full time once it was in the water and were never lacking power.

Given the solar power costs and being able to build a bank of LiFe batteries at a reasonable cost, you may not need a genny at all except for unforeseen emergencies. We have a 1000W Honda genny on board as a back-up and last summer I only ran it twice to run a shop-vac for about 15 minutes each time.

 

[Iggy]

Hi Larry.
I have solar on board my boat and have enough power to live on the hook almost indefinitely.

As a matter of fact, at our marina, shore power is an added cost on top of your slip fee.
Last year was our first summer on the boat (Summer season in Lake Ontario) and we declined the option for shore power and saved several hundred bucks on slip rental. We lived on the boat full time once it was in the water and were never lacking power.

Given the solar power costs and being able to build a bank of LiFe batteries at a reasonable cost, you may not need a genny at all except for unforeseen emergencies. We have a 1000W Honda genny on board as a back-up and last summer I only ran it twice to run a shop-vac for about 15 minutes each time.

I was going to suggest what I call a suit case inverter generator. I had a 2000w Ryobi w/wheels . I wanted the Honda but at the time I could not get one. That unit lasted me 8 years with one oil change, always started. Every winter I just ran it out of gas. I give it away when I sold my last boat.

But if your more south, you may want to run your A.C. Unless you have a soft start unit, a 2000W unit will not do it.

I just don't see anyone running their A.C. units on a inverter, battery bank and solar. Unless the A.C./reverse cycle unit are new using less amps, a very big battery bank and on a sunny day. My 3000 charger inverter is 3000W which is 25A. On shore power I pull about 28A with the 2 units on. But mine are 20 years old.

 

[Don L]

My inboard diesel generator on my sailboat last died AGAIN 4 years ago and I have used a Honda since. I was fixing that DG regularly. In 4 years all I have fixed on the Honda is the pull cord, fuel filter, and clean the carb. I have liked the Honda so much better that I have not even tried to fix the DG.

 

[Cleanslate]

Perhaps a good running used take out. There should be quite a few around after Ian. Not all boats and the equipment got submerged, just tossed around and floated up on land. Just have to be careful to weed through the bad stuff.

Call Phasor marine generators , direct ask for Alan . You should be able to get a quote from them. Good units, they are in Florida .
It’s always nice to have a good working generator on board just in case you need it. It’s your choice on how much you want to run it. But to know you’ve got it.
Good piece of mind.

 

[Iggy]

In my town we have a ferry with a Northern Lights 8K unit. With over 6000 hours in 7 years. Other than normal maintenance, and one controller board. I think that's what its called. Its been a work horse.

A mechanic come down last year and adjusted the valves. They were still in specs after after 4 years since the last mechanic checked them.

So when I bought my current boat with a Northern Lights 5.5k genset with 1100 hours. I knew it was still in great shape.

Cleanslate has a good suggestion. See if you can find a use Northern Lights that you can just push into place. They are very good units.

 

[diver dave]

Hi Larry.
I have solar on board my boat and have enough power to live on the hook almost indefinitely.

As a matter of fact, at our marina, shore power is an added cost on top of your slip fee.
Last year was our first summer on the boat (Summer season in Lake Ontario) and we declined the option for shore power and saved several hundred bucks on slip rental. We lived on the boat full time once it was in the water and were never lacking power.

Given the solar power costs and being able to build a bank of LiFe batteries at a reasonable cost, you may not need a genny at all except for unforeseen emergencies. We have a 1000W Honda genny on board as a back-up and last summer I only ran it twice to run a shop-vac for about 15 minutes each time.

Water temperatures play a part in needing air con. Lake O in summer reach 73 or so. SWFL water reach mid ‘80’s. Air humidity is another factor.

 

[Cleanslate]

Second Phasor generator I’ve owned on my second boat. Always performs great all mechanical an NO computer control board to worry about . Nice basic shut downs for low oil pressure and over heating. That’s it. Uses nice heavy duty metal toggle switches etc. Analog hour meter.
First one was a 6.5 kw Pancake unit . Current one is an 8kw Pancake unit with 700 so far. Pancake is there term for small compact model. It is nice and small uses and Kabota engine and Marathon generator end unit. You can have your “ control boards “ it’s not for me due to failure.

 

[SIBERNUT]

Dontcha hate these inconsiderate people that start stuff & then die? Steig Larsen, Ian Fleming & others have let me down.

BTW i have a 3.75 gas Westerbeke for sale in MD
Only 46.7 on the clock

 

[backinblue]

Hi Larry.
I have solar on board my boat and have enough power to live on the hook almost indefinitely.

As a matter of fact, at our marina, shore power is an added cost on top of your slip fee.
Last year was our first summer on the boat (Summer season in Lake Ontario) and we declined the option for shore power and saved several hundred bucks on slip rental. We lived on the boat full time once it was in the water and were never lacking power.

Given the solar power costs and being able to build a bank of LiFe batteries at a reasonable cost, you may not need a genny at all except for unforeseen emergencies. We have a 1000W Honda genny on board as a back-up and last summer I only ran it twice to run a shop-vac for about 15 minutes each time.

I am adding solar this season and also thought about not plugging in to shore power, but then thought that the continuing charge/discharge cycles every day/night might not be the best for battery life vs. keeping them plugged in and topped off. Main draw overnight is the fridge. My house bank is pretty modest compared to most here. Thoughts anyone?

 

[rslifkin]

I am adding solar this season and also thought about not plugging in to shore power, but then thought that the continuing charge/discharge cycles every day/night might not be the best for battery life vs. keeping them plugged in and topped off. Main draw overnight is the fridge. My house bank is pretty modest compared to most here. Thoughts anyone?

My boat would do fine on solar alone, but I leave it plugged in when we're at our home slip. Partly to reduce battery cycling, but the big reason is so the water heater can stay hot and I can keep one of the HVAC units running during the hottest and coldest parts of the season.

 

[mvweebles]

If it weren't for air conditioning and occasionally heat, I would go the solar route along with my 220 amp second alternator on the main engine.

Same thought process and conclusion for me. I was really on the fence about adding a generator. 15-years ago we spent a few very unfomfortable days on a friend's boat without A/C in the Bahamas. Wasn't bad at anchor. In a marina was pretty bad.

I am adding solar this season and also thought about not plugging in to shore power, but then thought that the continuing charge/discharge cycles every day/night might not be the best for battery life vs. keeping them plugged in and topped off. Main draw overnight is the fridge. My house bank is pretty modest compared to most here. Thoughts anyone?

That's where I'm headed. I have 600AH (12v) LFP bank and 800w solar. I'm still dialing-in my system so not sure on my daily draw with fridge and freezer (two BD50 compressors). But best I can tell, when boat is vacant and no 120VAC being used (inverter), should be more than enough for even a few cloudy days.

As far as cycling the batteries, I'm not concerned. LFP appear to have a very long life. I put LFP Cycle Count in the same category as diesel engine hours - Ill be long dead by the time it dies of use. Something else may kill it. Old age won't.

At least thats my current thinking. More gut-feel than thinking though.

Peter

 

[PM]

Sometimes, through no fault of our own we just have to bite the bullet and incur an expense we would rather avoid. It sounds like you "took the high road" in resolving the problem. In this day and age many people would resort to a lawsuit (like the rebuilder doesn't have enough problems anyway), violence, or threats. Life needs to move on!

FWIW, I love having a genny. I do not use it often but love it when I need it. Not sure if I would replace it if it died but love having it.

pete

 

[ronobrien]

I'm in the midst of a refit. The boat never had a genny. My idea is to install a sizable house bank, solar panels with a charger/inverter, probably 5KW. I have a spot on the trunk cabin top to store a suitcase Honda 2200W inverter generator for any times the solar doesn't do it. Just plug the gen into the shore power receptacle. I will have gasoline for the dinghy anyhow. Cheap enough I think ($1200ish) that if the genny fails, just replace it. I could probably buy 5 or 6 of them for the price of a diesel unit without taking the E/R space and installation/maintenance hassle.

 

[Xlantic]

I installed solar panels with 1kW nominal capacity five years ago and realised I seldom needed to use the generator. In fact, I only used it once after a few days anchored in rainy weather.

A couple of years later I increased the solar panel capacity to 2 kW and last year I removed our ancient Onan (original from 1973) when we re-powered.

I also removed the three A/C units (two had stopped working in the last couple of years) and installed a Caframo fan in each berth, eight in total.

I had earlier replaced the electric stove with bottled gas, replaced the refrigerator-freezer compresor with two new, efficient 12V compressors and switched all the lighting to LED.

Our fall-back is the two 100A externally-regulated alternators.

We gained a lot of space in the engine room and have one less thing to deal with, make noise and break down.

 

[rgano]

You're gonna miss the air conditioning.

 

[Xlantic]

You're gonna miss the air conditioning.

Not sure if the comment is to me or the OP.

In my case, I don't think I will miss it much. The only times we used it was when we were in port, and that was rare as we usually anchor when cruising.

At least here in the Med I never felt the need for A/C while at anchor. We do use fans at night, though, and these deal quite nicely with the heat and humidity.

 

[backinblue]

Same here. Depends on your location. Even on the hottest days/nights, I've never found the need at anchor in New England. Florida is probably a different story.

 

[hollywood8118]

Florida and the Caribbean are pretty brutal without ac. It becomes pretty much a necessity the closer to the equator one gets. Also those areas get really buggy and screening a boat really drops the flow through wind. We lived 2 years at anchor all across the so. Pacific in our early 30's without ac and not it would be no bueno for us to be stinky and wet all day and night. In a perfect world a big solar array and huge battery bank that ran ac would be awesome.. but it never seems to be able to work.
The crewed charter boats in the bvi use their gensets almost non stop and 20-30000 hours are pretty common life spans.
I think non use kills most trawler geterators.
Hollywood

 

[High Wire]

When we were in Waterford NY at the beginning of the Erie Canal in 2019 the afternoon temperatures were 95-98 for 3 days straight. Very thankful for A/C. It can be brutally hot anywhere in summer.

 

[Sababa]

I think non use kills most trawler geterators.
Hollywood

I’ve probably spent $20 in maintenance and repair costs for every one of the few hours of use I’ve gotten out of my 5.5 kw NL. I’d love to ditch it but I like having my pilot house roof free for kayaks and paddle boards, and I do need to run it for a few hours in the morning when I’m on the hook and not cruising far that day. Apart from the noise I’d be glad to run it more, but I just don’t have anything to load it with here in the PNW.

I’ve been curious about the fuel cell units I’ve seen for sale down at Fisheries. They are hella expensive but I love the concept of something that will quietly put out a couple of hundred amp hours a day to keep the house batteries charged.

https://www.fisheriessupply.com/efoy-comfort-pro-2800bt-fuel-cell/158-000-082

 

[Southern Boater]

You can have your “ control boards “ it’s not for me due to failure.

Exactly, they are designed to fail and not be repairable. As long as the sensors on the mechanical system are good, much better to keep things basic and repairable.

 

[Portage_Bay]

I’ve probably spent $20 in maintenance and repair costs for every one of the few hours of use I’ve gotten out of my 5.5 kw NL. I’d love to ditch it but I like having my pilot house roof free for kayaks and paddle boards, and I do need to run it for a few hours in the morning when I’m on the hook and not cruising far that day. Apart from the noise I’d be glad to run it more, but I just don’t have anything to load it with here in the PNW.

I’ve been curious about the fuel cell units I’ve seen for sale down at Fisheries. They are hella expensive but I love the concept of something that will quietly put out a couple of hundred amp hours a day to keep the house batteries charged.

https://www.fisheriessupply.com/efoy-comfort-pro-2800bt-fuel-cell/158-000-082

I looked into the fuel cells a few years back. At that time they were meant to supplement solar not replace a generator. Things may have changed since then.