Leoma update 9/11/22

[JD-MDR]

Sorry. I didn’t mean monitor. I meant load side of shunt to that bus bar on you photo. It must be late there.

[Steve Laume]

Raven has the same chocks as your boat. I use them all the time for towing a dink but found the bridle would occasionally pop out and rub on the tariff rail. I solved this issue by putting a short piece of, brass, half oval behind the cleat so the line will not rub on the wood.

When at a dock, that is shorter than the boat, those chocks create a bad angle for the dock lines. I solved this by using another piece of half oval, to cap the toe rails for a few feet. That way I don't have to use the chock at all. I simply run the dock line from the cleat to the dock and let it ride on top of the toe rail. Much better situation where the line isn't trying to make a sharp bend around the chock.

[JD-MDR]

Thanks John.. It looks simple enough but what I'm worried about is the ship ground for the starter battery.. I'm not hooking up the starter battery to the monitor at this time. It looks like the ship ground for the house battery goes on the load side of the shunt. Then all other grounds can come off that load side to a bus. I wonder if I should put the ship ground for the starter battery on that same terminal. Maybe I should run it's own cable directly to the engine block.
I tried calling Victron rep. no luck. I left a email .

I think this photo is how I should hook it up I may as well hook up the starter battery also since it only takes one more pos wire

[John Stone]

From the shunt I have a neg cable going to a big post neg main buss. The engine neg goes to that. Same difference but it avoids loading up the shunt.

[John Stone]

The chocks I have on the fantail are Spartan Marine #C206. They have a locking pin. They are brilliant. They list for $118 each. They are original to the Far Reach.

[Jim Walsh]

The CD31 has the locking chocks in the bow and the standard straight chocks in the stern. A set of locking chocks would be an improvement but I’m glad they installed the midship cleats, which I find invaluable. In the catalog they describe it as a “mid-rail chock” which incorporates a cleat.

https://www.spartanmarine.com/all-produ ... rail-chock

[hilbert]

I think this photo is how I should hook it up I may as well hook up the starter battery also since it only takes one more pos wire

Your box is labeled BMV-700. According to the data sheet, the BMV-700 only monitors 1 battery.
There may not even be a +B2 terminal on your shunt (model BMV-702 measures voltage on a second battery).

If you are monitoring the house batteries:

• Only the negative from the house bank goes to the battery side of the shunt.
• Nothing else should be connected to the battery side of the shunt or to the negative side of the house bank (all the house bank current should go through the shunt).
• The other side of the shunt connects to the common boat ground. You can use it as you wish, but it is cleaner to have one connection to a negative bus bar.
• Use the provided fused wire to connect +B1 to the positive terminal of the house batteries (any direct connection to a battery should be fused as close to the battery terminal as feasible).

Victron has a tutorial at:
https://www.victronenergy.com/battery-m ... 700#videos

and more documentation at:
https://www.victronenergy.com/battery-m ... nformation

[JD-MDR]

Thanks. Hilbert. You are right only one bank for the BMV700. I got it. I’m anchored out now. The refer has been on all night. It’s reading 87.7%. It was pretty simple to hook up. I was just wondering if the Neg from the start battery was gonna affect it. I see a thread on the cruiser forum for the smart monitor. Others were also worried about the same

[hilbert]

When properly wired, the starter battery will not affect the battery monitor.

Think of the batteries as water tanks and voltage as the outlet pressure at the bottom of the tanks.
On the "house" tank, there is a water meter that counts up to 100% or down to 0% volume (SOC).
The meter only monitors the water entering or leaving the "house" tank and is not influenced by any other plumbing,

If you combine tanks (battery switch to AB), water will flow from the higher tank to the lower tank. Either way, the meter will sense the flow and calculate the % full for the house tank.

Now assume that the batteries are combined, the engine is running and the alternator is charging the engine battery. In this analogy, water is flowing into the "engine" tank. At first there is a large flow in, but the "engine" tank has a small vent (internal resistance of the battery) and the flow decreases and the pressure (voltage) quickly rises. Now the higher pressure forces the water to flow more quickly to the "house" tank through the water meter. Eventually, the pressure equalizes throughout the system, but none of this interferes with the function of the water meter on the "house" tank.

Bottom line, the meter only needs to sense the flow (current) to operate.
It is a bit more complicated because the voltage is also required to calculate power, but nothing more than ohms law first published in 1827 (when sailing ruled).

[John Stone]

When properly wired, the starter battery will not affect the battery monitor.

Think of the batteries as water tanks and voltage as the outlet pressure at the bottom of the tanks.
On the "house" tank, there is a water meter that counts up to 100% or down to 0% volume (SOC).
The meter only monitors the water entering or leaving the "house" tank and is not influenced by any other plumbing,

If you combine tanks (battery switch to AB), water will flow from the higher tank to the lower tank. Either way, the meter will sense the flow and calculate the % full for the house tank.

Now assume that the batteries are combined, the engine is running and the alternator is charging the engine battery. In this analogy, water is flowing into the "engine" tank. At first there is a large flow in, but the "engine" tank has a small vent (internal resistance of the battery) and the flow decreases and the pressure (voltage) quickly rises. Now the higher pressure forces the water to flow more quickly to the "house" tank through the water meter. Eventually, the pressure equalizes throughout the system, but none of this interferes with the function of the water meter on the "house" tank.

Bottom line, the meter only needs to sense the flow (current) to operate.
It is a bit more complicated because the voltage is also required to calculate power, but nothing more than ohms law first published in 1827 (when sailing ruled).

Let me summarize. It's magic.