New 3232 Outback Inverter (Sorry old subject)

[caryboat]

I know this subject has been beat to death but in reviewing all the previous posts all i am able to discern is this is the best charger inverter.

As I am redoing this system- New Deka's here in about 2 weeks I plan to dump the Sentry and the Trace as they are just to old and never seemed to be well maintained by the PO.

Here are my questions or what I understand. The Outback 3232 will only charge 1 bank of the 2. As such, I can purchase 2 Outbacks and have double the inverter capacity and or 1 outback for the house bank and another charger only for the starter bank.

I wont be spending much time on the hook, mostly in marinas w 110 power and don't want to run the gen all the time unless I need a/c. Mostly cruising 3-8 hrs marina to marina so need inverter to run all 110

I basically want to run almost all the 110 options from the inverter and do it the easiest way and be able to switch effortlessly between 110/Gen/inverter

My marina electrician will do all the work and is knowledgeable - I just like to guide the project

If I could get the basic plan of action. What needs to be rewired behind the panels? Should I move charger/inverter to Gen room? Is (2) Outbacks a overkill? etc. it would be helpful from those who have done it before on a similar 53MY. As much detail as possible would be great

I would like to run all 110 lights and outlets,TV's Satlellite,2 fridges,micro? Heads etc. I am going to add additional lighting below outside the engine room in the hallway going aft and in the MBR -probably LED's

Just got the full size fridge out of galley today (4) hours -5 sawazall blades and a forklift- Will be installing a Isotherm Cruise 200 undercounted

Thanks

Kevin

 

[MikeP]

THe outback will supply 30A of power so the first thing you need to do is determine whether "all" the 120 stuff you would ever use at one time exceeds that. If not, one 3232 is all you need - with some restrictions re charging.

As far as two-bank charging, you are correct; it can't do that. One option is to combine your two banks into one large bank. You can do this with a single cable and a battery On/Off switch which can then allow you to separate or combine the banks at your discretion. I combined my banks 4-5 years ago when I installed the outback and they have never been decombined since. But if you don't want to do that, you will need a second charger of some sort.

You then have to decide whether you want to have the 3232 operate automatically, using its pass through circuits for ac operation. If you do that, the system is totally automatic and the switchover from shore or genny power occurs instantly. If, for example, you lose shore power, the Outback will switch on and there will be no visible power interruption - TV/computer/microwave, whatever will never even blink. This is the method I personally prefer and it has been running that way with no issues at all.

However, the 30A capability of the outback/pass through is shared with the battery charging power. The default setup provides a maximum of 19A (at 120vac) of battery charging, leaving 11A available for 120 use. If you exceed 11A, then the excess is taken from the battery charging capability. So, in theory, lets say your batteries are quite discharged and the charger is using the full 19A. If you were to turn on 20A worth of 120vac items, 9A would be pulled from the charging to handle it. In reality, this has never been an issue on our 53MY. But some folks do not like that automatic operation and prefer to install a selector switch to turn on the inverter and choose not to use the pass through. IMO, the pass through is one of the best points of the 3232 but we all have different opinions!

If you have a good electrician, he will know how to wire the system(s) to do what it needs to do. It's not technically difficult but all inverter-powered circuits need an independent ground buss if they are to be able to be switched between shore/genny and inverter power. The outback manual is extremely complete and gives you or the technician everything you/he/she will need to know to install in any mode you wish - including multiple outback installations.

As you noted, there is a ton of posted data re the Outback but the basic installation decisions will be whether you want to combine banks and use the single inverter for all charging and whether you want to use the automatic/pass through circuits. As I said, both of those modes are the way I installed the 3232 and I could not be more pleased with it's operation. Essentially, it's totally transparent; it just does its job with no input needed from me.

 

[caryboat]

Thanks Mike. You really simplified the process. I think if I figure out the 110 & 32 amp load first and it does not exceed 30 I will combine the banks. As I mentioned I doubt I would run the inverter offshore for more than a couple of hours before I would run the gen to charge it. If I feel I will be exceeding the amp load I will put in 2 on on each bank and get 60 amp.

What do you have the inverter running?

Again thanks for taking the time

Thanks

Kevin

 

[SKYCHENEY]

The most simple way to install the Outback is to treat it like a second generator. Just add a breaker next to the generator breaker with a slide. Choose either to run off of generator or inverter. Done.

 

[MikeP]

"What do you have the inverter running?"

Off the top of my head (the boat is about 3000 miles away), the inverter pass-through circuit operates 3 kitchen wall outlets which include the- coffee maker/microwave/refrigerator; outlets in the salon - lights, TV/stereo; One outlet in the master SR to operate the TV and to use a hair dryer or whatever; and the Marquipt Davit. There might be another outlet or two.

As Sky noted, if you set up the Outback as a "generator," the actual hookup is much easier. To use the pass-through effectively you have to decide which circuits you want to be on the inverter and set up a second ground buss for those circuits AND split those particular breakers off from the common Hot buss. Again, your electrical person should be aware of this or, if he/she hasn't installed such a setup, will easily understand the requirement in reviewing the Outback manual . All this, again, is not difficult technically but it IS a lot more work than connecting the 3232 to act the same way as a generator as Sky described. To do that, no separate busses/split breakers are necessary though, of course the inverter cannot function automatically that way.

So, as noted, it all comes down to how you want to set it up

 

[bobk]

If you add a battery combiner (not isolater) you can charge from an alternator while under way. The standard DD alternator on my 6V92 starboard engine pretty much supplies all the power needed for everything on my Victron inverter. While running it's mostly large and small refrigerators, some lighting and maybe TV and computers with minor microwave or coffee pot use.

Bobk

 

[doc g]

you can indeed charge two banks with one 3232 , just need a relay. When bank #1 gets to the proper voltage the relay cuts out and switch over to bank #2 and you begin charging Bank #2. Obviously you can not charge both banks at the same time unless you combine the banks as Mike P suggested ........Pat

 

[Nonchalant1]

As stated in the other many posts, get a "mate" for each Outback inverter so you can adjust the many features of the inverter. Also, note that setting up the Outback as a 2nd generator is great for simplicity of operation and when the selector is set to Inverter instead of Generator, it does work fully automatically, However, the outback will not power large consumers like air conditioners, stove, dryer, so if it is set to inverter and the dock loses power when A/C, etc. is running, the Outback kicks in automatically and the load max is exceeded instantly. Therefore you need to wire the big consumers to run on shore power and generator only.
I don't know your setup, but ask your electrician how to have the engine alternators charge the batteries while underway and the inverter is running. Maybe others here know more about your setup and can suggest how. Mine did that fine with power going into the batteries from the engine alternator and coming out of the batteries at the same time to the outback to make 110V power.

Doug

 

[MikeP]

Regardless of how the inverter/charger is set up, unless you change something in the oem alternator/charging circuit - and there is no reason to do that - the batteries will always be charging via the alternators when the engines are running. Whether the genny/inverter/charger is also running at that time doesn't matter.

Dont worry about this at all; simply connect the Outback (or any other charger) as per the instructions and let the charging systems take care of themselves; they WILL do so.