Today, we replaced our “house” batteries. These batteries are to us, what the electric company is to “normal” folks. They store all the power from our solar panels, and supply ALL of our electricity for lights, information, entertainment, and even cold beer.
What does this picture represent?
500+ pounds of batteries pulled out of a hole in the floor and moved to the salon (living room). Then carried up a seven step ladder to the cockpit (driving area). Lifted from the cockpit and moved to the aft (rear) deck. 250+ pounds of batteries then lowered five feet into the dinghy (little boat) because it took two half mile trips to get them to shore. Once ashore, lifted from the dinghy and placed on land. Finally, 500+ pounds of batteries loaded into a car.
After a 4 hour round trip to Miami, reverse the procedure to get 500+ pounds of batteries back into that hole in the floor. (Add some depletion of bank accounts and wrangling of very thick electrical cables).
Please don’t get me wrong, we love this life, but it’s not all about sipping umbrella drinks and watching sunsets. Sometimes it’s about overcoming obstacles and being as self sufficient as we possibly can.
If you’ve read this far hoping for techie details, Pearl Lee uses 6 volt golf cart batteries wired in series pairs to give 12 volts. We have four 12 volt pairs, each rated 215 amp hours for a total of 860 amp hours. These are broken Our new batteries are Sam’s Club labeled Duracell but actually made by East Penn.