Grand Soleil Unveils Sustainable Boat Project
20 Jan

Grand Soleil Unveils Sustainable Boat Project

Eric ColbyBatteries, Boat & Gear News, Electrical Systems, Engines and Propulsion, Industry & Company News
At the Boot Düsseldorf show in Germany, Grand Soleil Yachts introduced a new project intended to address issues like sustainability and end-of-life cycle. Grand Soleil Blue is a prototype collaboration between Grand Soleil and Cantiere del Pardo to showcase eco-friendly yacht construction. “The sea is our passion and our home,” Gigi Servidati, Cantiere del Pardo chairman said in a statement. “The GS Blue demonstrates how design, performance and sustainability can harmoniously coexist creating a boat designed for future generations.” Other participants in the project include naval architect Matteo Polli, Nauta Design for the exterior and interior design and materials specialist…
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10 May

Chartplotter battery monitoring

Bill MorrisBatteries, Marine Electronics Newsletter
Battery monitoring on our vessels is an obsession comparable to keeping an eye on the wind indicator and the sail telltales. With all of us skippers fussing over slight changes in battery charge several times a day while on passage, we would expect a horde of manufacturers pandering to us with battery monitoring systems compatible with our chartplotters, right? Nope! Of all the marine and recreational battery monitoring systems on the market, only one offers compatibility with our chartplotters: the Victron Cerbo GX, “a hub for all energy on board.” To be sure, other monitoring systems have jumped straight ahead…
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Victron BMS wins 2021 Husick award
31 Dec

Victron BMS wins 2021 Husick award

Tim QueeneyBatteries, Marine Technology
The 2021 winner of the Ocean Navigator Chuck Husick Marine Technology Award is the Lynx Smart Battery Management System (BMS) (www.victronenergy.com/battery-management-systems/lynx-smart-bms). The Lynx unit is a full-featured BMSystem for managing lithium batteries, with capabilities like a battery monitor showing state of charge, a pre-alarm signal, Bluetooth connectivity, local and remote monitoring using a Victron GX device and more. Husick award judge and voyager Rebecca Childress wrote in an email, “Victron makes amazing products and this one sounds like another great way to stay on top of your electrical setup!” The runner-up finalist was the Groco E Valve series with a…
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Balancing and Busses
31 Dec

Balancing and Busses

Dave McCampbellBatteries, Marine Technology
Editor’s note: Below is Part 2 of an article providing information on choosing and installing a LiFePO4 lithium battery system aboard a cruising sailboat. Part 1 appeared in our 2021 Ocean Voyager annual issue on page 8. Recently we removed 390 pounds of GEL lead acid batteries from our catamaran and replaced them with 100 pounds of lithium (LiFePO4) cells. The LiFePO4 batteries have almost twice the useable capacity and take up half the space. Our cells came from one of the many well-respected lithium factories in China. Most of these have been in business for ten years or more…
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Battery changes?
31 Dec

Battery changes?

Ann HoffnerBatteries, Marine Technology
Twenty years ago my husband and I were inside a Florida Sam’s Club buying deep-cycle lead acid batteries for our Peterson 44. That same year the Maxi-cat Playstation set a transatlantic speed record with a lithium battery on board. It started a trend in boating.  In the years since then, how have lithium batteries done in the boating marketplace? At the 2021 US Sailboat Show in Annapolis I asked vendors whether they sold more lithium than lead acid batteries. Custom Marine Products’ Tom Trimmer said at the last pre-pandemic boat show people asked him to “tell me more about lithium.”…
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