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We empower BOATERS with the tools, inspiration and know-how to get the job DONE!
Current Affairs - Making the Right Connections
For my testing I connected five brand new Group 31 batteries in parallel with equal length straps. The first set of tests was with Firefly AGM’s, followed by identical tests with RELiON lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) batteries, as I was curious to ...
Power Basement
With these six transfer switches set at Mains, power is diverted from the main Breaker Panel, through these transfer switches, then back to the Breaker Panel and on to the circuits. With the transfer switches set for Inverter, the mains power is deli...
Flexible Solar Panels - Are They Any Good?
But what all those people are saying in effect is, unfortunately, that the flexible panels they bought were of a lesser quality than desired for marine use. At some point we all have succumb to advertising claims that make a product sound too good to...
Sun-Day Racers
By connecting a solar panel to a battery (for simplicity this blog will ignore the presence of a controller/regulator or blocking diode) we create an electrical circuit, which by definition suggests something that starts and ends at the same place. A...
Well Blow Me Down!
This bit may be a tad difficult to comprehend, but whereas the heat that the evaporator removes from a fridge or freezer is very cold, that very same heat magically transforms to become very warm at the condenser. That’s why I love this stuff ...
Off to the Moon? Don’t forget the Sextant!
In the lead-up to the Apollo 11 moon landings, the Apollo 8 mission has been described as the most dangerous while carrying the most risks of the unknown. Apollo 8’s mission was to get to the moon, orbit it ten times, and return the astronauts safely...
Time is Now for Lithium Batteries on Your Boat
Lithium batteries have far more useable capacity than lead acid; charge much, much faster; offer better support for heavy loads; are about half the weight; and have a cycle life many times that of lead acid equivalents; to name just a few attributes....
Ay Caramba!
The turning point came as I was working on the side of the engine and could not banish the image in the corner of my eye of the owner sitting on the settee, leaning forward and scrutinizing every move I was making. This couldn’t continue, and soon it...
Won't Get Cooled Again
This article will focus on small air-conditioning systems that are suitable for sleeping cabins or for small boat applications. With a small air conditioning unit, the DC current draw is low enough that they can usually be powered by an engine altern...
Holiday Spirit
If past years are anything to go by, this office will soon be awash with requests to supply parts and organize repairs to systems on moving-targets of vessels that are flitting from island to island day by day. Our efforts will no doubt be exacerbate...
Making the Most of Bank Charges
Charging Diodes. Many vessels have separate battery banks for the house supply, engine start, thruster, etc. Shore power chargers typically have multiple outputs, each isolated from the other so that separate banks can be charged simultaneously, but ...
I Think, Therefore I Am ... I think
Just imagine: a glob of air is sitting there in the sky, just enjoying life and looking at the clouds, when all of a sudden it is assaulted by a blade travelling at high speed and is split into two air masses. The lower air mass sees the wing passing...
What a Week
Commissioning Week is a week of events, almost entirely within the Academy grounds, that culminate with the Midshipmen 1st Class graduating and receiving their commissions as Ensigns in the US Navy, or 2nd Lieutenants in the US Marine Corps. For the ...
Diodes DeMystified
Although some specialized large panels may incorporate a number of By-Pass Diodes in an attempt to mitigate some effects of total shading, that is not their primary purpose. They are there as a safety device to prevent heat damage to cells if those c...
Frozen Dreams
Then the scramble starts in earnest to get the boats commissioned and all extra gadgets and gizmos installed ready for a Spring/Summer launch. This has been known to be followed in the Fall by buyer’s remorse and a realization that this boatin...
Opps My Mistake!
Back in 1999, after a journey lasting 10 months, the $125m Mars Climate Orbiter which, as its name implied was supposed to orbit the red planet and gather climate and other information, was seen to venture a little too close to the planet surface for...
Pissing in the Harbor
The objective of the cooling water discharges on these sailboats seems to be quite the opposite to the powerboats. Now the trend appears to be to install mini cowlings over the discharge thru-hulls in order for them to be noticeable in various ways, ...
A Whisper among Friends
This RV Whisper allows one to check temperatures (fridge, freezer, bilge, main cabin, etc.), battery state, propane levels, and shore power status remotely from a smart-phone, tablet, lap-top, etc. There are also sensors available for door/hatch open...
Full Speed Ahead!
While perusing the promotional material published by what appears to be the sole manufacturer of marine variable speed self-contained air conditioning units, the claim of 50% energy savings leaped out at me right away. But on reading the small print,...
Something's Bugging Me
In my first season running a sailboat in The Caribbean I was faced with the dilemma of an approaching hurricane out in The Atlantic. It was September after all, so not unexpected, and it was forecast to eventually veer northwards and again not bother...
What a Wallop!
So that’s that. Until further notice, Coastal Climate Control will no longer be offering Solara Standard Series panels, from 12 watt through 80 watt. It’s a shame really. We only saw a small return on these small panels as they were quite expensive t...
High From Amsterdam
I wish flights could be quicker though, but there is no supersonic service any more now that Concorde has been mothballed, and Coastal Climate Control couldn’t afford that luxury anyway. So, we’re stuck with flying commercial airlines at subsonic spe...
Beware of the Speedy Meanie!
Observing these two got me to thinking how this speed disparity relates to the variable speed compressors we have now in both refrigeration and air conditioning systems. If there’s not much work to do, then why not slow the compressor down and run it...
Parallel Thinking Blown Sky High
In “traditional” flooded batteries, two lead plates, one positive and one negative in each cell, are suspended dangling in a bath of electrolyte with nothing but liquid between them. In this type of battery, there is indeed the possibility that the p...
Trouble in Paradise
A capillary tube (cap tube) refrigeration system contains a very precise amount of refrigerant. There is no reservoir or holding tank for excess refrigerant, and over-charging will inevitably result in poor performance. The system will be either perf...
Air Conditioning + Your boat + Batteries = Great Summer!
For overnight use in sleeping cabins, where the loads are a fraction of those during the day, running air conditioning units from batteries is often a realistic option. With that thought, Coastal Climate Control offers the very energy efficient Climm...
Mummy, the batteries have melted!
Apart from greatly reducing their life-span, storing and/or cycling batteries in elevated temperatures can greatly enhance the possibility of a thermal runaway situation in AGM batteries, as can using incorrect charging parameters. But thermal runawa...
Get used to it
When backing up I’m nonchalantly expecting a radar device to start beeping if I get too close to anything, a luxury that’s usually non-existent in the level of rental car I’m lumbered with. The first sounds of contact I’d hear would be the scrunch of...
A Walk on the Wild Side
England in November can be a tad cold and claggy, but walking in the beautiful countryside at this time of year proved be a pleasant experience, having donned suitable attire and being prepared for a drenching without warning. However, it was soon ev...
Shining Some Light on Lithium Battery Systems
Prismatic cells with lithium iron phosphate chemistry (LiFePO4) come in many shapes and forms, but a popular size is of around 100 amp/hours with a voltage of 3.2 volts or thereabouts, so four are required wired in series to make a nominal 12 volt 10...
Breaking News!
These bills would also require manufacturers of high-end appliances to allow any service company to repair their products, not just those sanctioned by the manufacturer. This sort of regulation will be welcomed wholeheartedly by geeks like me who jus...
Solbian Solar Panels on Hylas 54 Genevieve
So, we had a curved frame of stainless rail welded to the top of the Simpson Davits which matches the existing Hylas rails. Over that is a GRP [fiberglass] panel color matched to deck GRP to act as structure to attach the semi flexible solar panels (...
10 Steps to a Perfect Refrigerant Charge
2. Do not have someone attempt to asses refrigerant charge level by weight. These small systems contain a ridiculously small amount of refrigerant, and it is impossible to weigh in refrigerant accurately, especially if the boat is rocking. Moreover, ...
A Burning Desire to Help
On one such occasion the tranquility was interrupted by the sound of emergency vehicles; mainly fire trucks judging by the sirens. Something was afoot close by, and human nature being what it is, I searched the internet for a means to listen in to th...
10 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Boat’s Refrigeration
3. It’s using too much energy The older DC powered systems using the Danfoss BD3.0 and earlier compressors (or even the humungous, clunky holding plate systems that pre-date the 12v revolution) were great in their day, but their day has passed. Syste...
Magnetic Personalities
Outwardly, the only sign of anything untoward was a small blister in the top foil, but an autopsy revealed a connecting track beneath the blister reduced to cinders, and two tiny zap holes in the aluminum backing plate. Where the lightning went from ...
Decisions: Smoked Phish or Byrned curtains?
1) it has only four strings,2) you plonk along playing only one note at a time, and 3) if you make a mistake no one notices! Perfect. The choice was made. So, now that I’d settled on being a plonker, I needed to see some live action in order to analy...
Introducing RELiON Lithium batteries
We are proud to offer RELiON Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries, dedicated to high performance energy solutions for serious yacht and RV owners. They are available in standard industry sizes. Custom sizes available upon request. These batteries ar...
Gauge Talk
The following refers specifically to MarinAire products, but the principles apply to all marine air conditioning units. There are two actual gauges; one connected to the high pressure side of the compressor, and one to the low pressure side, and they...
Hurry Up and Wait
And that is what I got, a long wait, only realizing the joke when the sniggering reached a level that triggered my suspicions. Another long wait back then was at Easter each year preparing to launch for the yacht club’s first dinghy races of the year...
A Re-Volting Thought
In theory, as the 12v battery is depleted it will be recharged from the traction battery, and when the traction battery gets low the built-in generator will kick in and charge it up. So, in theory if I leave the Volt switched on I could have 110v AC ...
Love Hertz
Typically, onboard generators are synchronous devices. In other words, they must run at a fixed speed to be able to maintain the correct frequency of alternating current (AC). That’s 60 Hertz (Hz), or cycles per second, in North America, and 50 Hz in...
Air It Up!
We can break down the process into three stages: Application – Installation – Operation Application: Do you want it to be a meat locker down below at noon on a 100° day? Or do you just want a bit of cool, dehumidified air for sleeping at night? Hopef...
Fake News in The Pipeline
There were all sorts of strange war-related artifacts left around after the second world war in the area of south east England where I grew up. This was in southeastern Kent, which was given the nickname of Hellfire Corner due to its proximity to the...
RIP Holding Plates
Holding plates are basically a tank containing a solution that is designed to thaw at a particular temperature. Included also is a coil of tubing through which a refrigerant circulates at very low temperatures when the refrigeration system is running...
My Mate Chris
Now, I am as much an admirer of Jimmy Buffett as any other boatie, but there was a time when you couldn’t set foot on a beach or tie up at a dock without hearing the strains of Margaritaville and other favorites. Quite frankly it all got a bit too mu...
Solar Myth Busters - Revisited
MYTH 1 - Glass solar panels with aluminum frames are the most efficient. BUST - No, no, no! The type of cell determines how efficient a solar panel is, not how it is constructed. Coastal Climate Control offers three types of panels: aluminum-framed g...
On the Road Again
Interest was high, but the level of customer participation, the actual act of making a purchase, is too early to gauge. There were many “oohs” and “ahs” for the Solara walk-on panel that we had laid flat at the foot of the steps on our display, and a...
A Good Whacking
The Frigoboat Keel Cooler refrigeration system is a case in point. The actual Keel Cooler component is a condenser/heat exchanger that is the external component of a thru-hull fitting and is mounted on the exterior of the boat, under water, and is de...
Start 'Em Up!
Part 1 Electrical motors powered from single phase alternating current (AC) have one big dilemma, and it’s because the current is alternating between positive and negative. If no provision is made to encourage it to do otherwise, the rotor of the mot...
Current Affairs - Making the Right Connections
Power Basement
Flexible Solar Panels - Are They Any Good?
Sun-Day Racers
Well Blow Me Down!
Off to the Moon? Don’t forget the Sextant!
Time is Now for Lithium Batteries on Your Boat
Ay Caramba!
Won't Get Cooled Again
Holiday Spirit
Making the Most of Bank Charges
I Think, Therefore I Am ... I think
What a Week
Diodes DeMystified
Frozen Dreams
Opps My Mistake!
Pissing in the Harbor
A Whisper among Friends
Full Speed Ahead!
Something's Bugging Me
What a Wallop!
High From Amsterdam
Beware of the Speedy Meanie!
Parallel Thinking Blown Sky High
Trouble in Paradise
Air Conditioning + Your boat + Batteries = Great Summer!
Mummy, the batteries have melted!
Get used to it
A Walk on the Wild Side
Shining Some Light on Lithium Battery Systems
Breaking News!
Solbian Solar Panels on Hylas 54 Genevieve
10 Steps to a Perfect Refrigerant Charge
A Burning Desire to Help
10 Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Boat’s Refrigeration
Magnetic Personalities
Decisions: Smoked Phish or Byrned curtains?
Introducing RELiON Lithium batteries
Gauge Talk
Hurry Up and Wait
A Re-Volting Thought
Love Hertz
Air It Up!
Fake News in The Pipeline
RIP Holding Plates
My Mate Chris
Solar Myth Busters - Revisited
On the Road Again
A Good Whacking
Start 'Em Up!
Stats &
Fun Facts
0
Estimated Aquatic Animals in the Ocean
0
Boats 131' or Longer are Considered "Super Yachts"
0
Sailboats Manufactured in North America Per Year
Cruising vs. Retirement Home
A 2004 study has confirmed that joining a cruise ship after retirement is cheaper than retiring to a retirement home.
Good Luck and Bad Luck Omens on a Boat...
Good luck and back luck omens are different on a boat than on dry land. For instance, whistling on a boat is expected to bring upon strong winds and is therefore considered bad luck. Bananas on a boat are also seen as bad luck especially on fishing boats. It is thought that fish do not bite on a hook if there are bananas close by. Finding a cat on a boat on the other hand is considered good luck, even if it is a black cat. Cats eat rats and keep the boat clean and safe.
17th Century Vessel - The Only One of it's Kind
Vasa is a Swedish warship that is known for sinking in 1628 and being recovered in 1961. After spending centuries in the water, this boat was still completely intact and in good shape. It is actually the only vessel left from the 17th century. This boat now lies in the Vasa Museum of Stockholm which was built as a tribute to this ship. It is now one of Sweden’s most popular attractions. It receives almost 30 million tourists.
Boats Have a Life Expectancy
Usually, cargo ships that sail in the oceans can have a lifespan of 20 to 30 years. Sailboats are meant to be used for 30-40 years even if they are made of softer materials such as plywood or fiberglass. They are not deemed safe or stable after their expectancy.
Simple Social Media Stream: There is no feed data to display!
Overview of Marine Refrigeration from Coastal Climate Control Marine and RV refrigeration offered by Coastal Climate Control and made by Frigoboat and Vitrifrigo in both DC and AC/DC power supplies.
Vitrifrigo offers a wide range of Black Cabinets and Stainless Read More
Vitrifrigo offers a wide range of Black Cabinets and Stainless Read More
Coastal Climate Control offers MarinAire and Climma Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of Marine Air Conditioning.
MarinAire 110v and 230v water-cooled compact air conditioning, from 6,000btu to 24,000btu. Manufactured with great attention to Read More
MarinAire 110v and 230v water-cooled compact air conditioning, from 6,000btu to 24,000btu. Manufactured with great attention to Read More
Coastal Climate Control offers Solara and Solbian solar panels Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of solar panels - Solara from Germany and Solbian from Italy. These are both designed for the rugged environment of mobile applications - your boat, car, RV o Read More
Coastal Climate Control offers - Firefly and RELiON Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of batteries: Firefly and RELiON
RELiON are LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) Batteries made in standard sizes to easily fit in the space you have available f Read More
RELiON are LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) Batteries made in standard sizes to easily fit in the space you have available f Read More
Frigoboat Keel Cooler demonstration This demonstration rig has been used at many boat shows over the years as well as for training and sales purposes. The water in the fish tank can be set to any temperature, and is cooled by operating Read More
RELiON Charging Video This video shows what charging voltages and routines are neccessary when changing to RELiON LiFePO4 batteries. Also includes advice on shore-power chargers, alternators, combiners and battery-to-batte Read More
RELiON LiFePo4 introduction from Coastal Climate Control. Introduction to RELiON lithium iron phosphate batteries supplied by Coastal Climate Control.
MarinAire 16K Start Load Tests Results of tests to see how a MarinAire 16,000 Btu marine air conditioning unit starts on mains power and from a Honda 2000i portable generator. Tests are done with and without EasyStart compressor so Read More
MarinAire Air Conditioning Part 1: Units A detailed look at the MarinAire reverse-cycle air conditioning units now being offered by Coastal Climate Control, Inc.
MarinAire Part 2 : Controls A detailed guide to the controls and control options available for the MarinAire units. Includes third party option of control from smart phone via WiFi and internet connection.
Tech Tip - Compressor Controller Connections Wiring connections to the controller(module) on the Danfoss/Secop BD35 and BD50 compressor.
Tech Tip - Compressor Cutaway View A look inside the Danfoss/Secop BD35 and BD50 compressor.
Overview of Marine Refrigeration from Coastal Climate Control
Marine and RV refrigeration offered by Coastal Climate Control and made by Frigoboat and Vitrifrigo in both DC and AC/DC power supplies.
Vitrifrigo offers a wide range of Black Cabinets and Stainless Steel Cabinets and Drawer Units, all with integrated air-cooled compressor/condensers.
Frigoboat offers both Stainless Steel Cabinets and Drawer units, and individual components to install into an existing ice box.
Vitrifrigo offers a wide range of Black Cabinets and Stainless Steel Cabinets and Drawer Units, all with integrated air-cooled compressor/condensers.
Frigoboat offers both Stainless Steel Cabinets and Drawer units, and individual components to install into an existing ice box.
Coastal Climate Control offers MarinAire and Climma
Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of Marine Air Conditioning.
MarinAire 110v and 230v water-cooled compact air conditioning, from 6,000btu to 24,000btu. Manufactured with great attention to detail, these units are quiet and easy to install and use. Each unit comes with a remote control and wall display and electrical box. All you need is a pump and grilles/ducting.
Climma 115v water-cooled compact units are available in 4,200btu to 16k btu. Also available in 230v from 3,500btu to 24k btu. All come on a stainless steel base with high sides to prevent any condensation sloshing out when your boat is heeled over. They come with a digital display and electrical box.Coastal Climate Control offers MarinAire and Climma
MarinAire 110v and 230v water-cooled compact air conditioning, from 6,000btu to 24,000btu. Manufactured with great attention to detail, these units are quiet and easy to install and use. Each unit comes with a remote control and wall display and electrical box. All you need is a pump and grilles/ducting.
Climma 115v water-cooled compact units are available in 4,200btu to 16k btu. Also available in 230v from 3,500btu to 24k btu. All come on a stainless steel base with high sides to prevent any condensation sloshing out when your boat is heeled over. They come with a digital display and electrical box.Coastal Climate Control offers MarinAire and Climma
Coastal Climate Control offers Solara and Solbian solar panels
Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of solar panels - Solara from Germany and Solbian from Italy. These are both designed for the rugged environment of mobile applications - your boat, car, RV or trailer.
They are both made with high grade cells offering great power in a small space. After all, your vehicle is not like a roof top or spacious field, it has limited real estate on which to install solar panels.
They are both made with high grade cells offering great power in a small space. After all, your vehicle is not like a roof top or spacious field, it has limited real estate on which to install solar panels.
Coastal Climate Control offers - Firefly and RELiON
Coastal Climate Control offers two brands of batteries: Firefly and RELiON
RELiON are LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) Batteries made in standard sizes to easily fit in the space you have available for traditional lead-based batteries. Add this convenience to a cycle-life in excess of 3,000 cycles, a discharge to 80% of capacity, and quick recharging and you can easily justify the higher costs of lithium to the number of times you will not have to buy and lug around new batteries.
Firefly makes Carbon Foam AGM batteries with PSOC (Positive state of charge) technology. This means that unlike other AGM batteries you do not have to charge them 100% each and every time. The Carbon Foam chemistry allows you to charge these batteries faster, making them as close to having lithium characteristics without the higher cost.
RELiON are LiFePO4 (Lithium Iron Phosphate) Batteries made in standard sizes to easily fit in the space you have available for traditional lead-based batteries. Add this convenience to a cycle-life in excess of 3,000 cycles, a discharge to 80% of capacity, and quick recharging and you can easily justify the higher costs of lithium to the number of times you will not have to buy and lug around new batteries.
Firefly makes Carbon Foam AGM batteries with PSOC (Positive state of charge) technology. This means that unlike other AGM batteries you do not have to charge them 100% each and every time. The Carbon Foam chemistry allows you to charge these batteries faster, making them as close to having lithium characteristics without the higher cost.
Frigoboat Keel Cooler demonstration
This demonstration rig has been used at many boat shows over the years as well as for training and sales purposes. The water in the fish tank can be set to any temperature, and is cooled by operating a pump under the direction of the thermostat that circulates it through an air cooled heat exchanger hidden in the base. The water is naturally heated by the Keel Cooler as it adds the heat that has been removed from the cabinet to the water.
The fish are not real.
The fish are not real.
RELiON Charging Video
This video shows what charging voltages and routines are neccessary when changing to RELiON LiFePO4 batteries. Also includes advice on shore-power chargers, alternators, combiners and battery-to-battery chargers, and battery monitors.
RELiON LiFePo4 introduction from Coastal Climate Control.
Introduction to RELiON lithium iron phosphate batteries supplied by Coastal Climate Control.
MarinAire 16K Start Load Tests
Results of tests to see how a MarinAire 16,000 Btu marine air conditioning unit starts on mains power and from a Honda 2000i portable generator. Tests are done with and without EasyStart compressor soft-start device.
MarinAire Air Conditioning Part 1: Units
A detailed look at the MarinAire reverse-cycle air conditioning units now being offered by Coastal Climate Control, Inc.
MarinAire Part 2 : Controls
A detailed guide to the controls and control options available for the MarinAire units. Includes third party option of control from smart phone via WiFi and internet connection.
Tech Tip - Compressor Controller Connections
Wiring connections to the controller(module) on the Danfoss/Secop BD35 and BD50 compressor.
“I must frame this review in light of the pandemic. Jeannette and I drove to Coastal's Office, calling on the phone we were introduced to Maureen. She explained their new policies so we placed our order through the glass, paying over the phone... Maureen was a jewel, helping us every step of the way.“

Rauf Bolden
“These folks will bend over backwards to make things work for your systems. They have the critical parts and they know how they work. Great customer service. Nothing in life is perfect but with integrity, knowledge and patience you can solve the hardest problems.“

Redwood T
“I had a fabulous experience purchasing marine batteries from Coastal Climate Control. Maureen was a pleasure to work with - lightening fast responses, courteous, professional and knowledgeable. When I picked up the batteries, the staff went above and beyond by confirming the charge on the batteries and helping me get them into my car. I will be repeat customer for sure!!“

Rheanna Sinnett
