Inverter..do it yourself job???

Ok. Shorted out gps unit and stereo. Hole above the bed where the inverter remote was supposed to go. The door over the ac panel freely swings open and was not put back together right. I'm sure I haven't captured all of the damage. I've lost faith in this guys ability to do a quality job based on how he left my boat without telling me about the damage. I had to discover it on my own. Not to mention he fried a brand new $500 inverter.

What should I do????
quote:
Originally posted by stmbtwle

ouch!

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quote:
Originally posted by Waynepj4

Ok. Shorted out gps unit and stereo. Hole above the bed where the inverter remote was supposed to go. The door over the ac panel freely swings open and was not put back together right. I'm sure I haven't captured all of the damage. I've lost faith in this guys ability to do a quality job based on how he left my boat without telling me about the damage. I had to discover it on my own. Not to mention he fried a brand new $500 inverter.

What should I do????
quote:
Originally posted by stmbtwle

ouch!

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Click to expand...


quote:

Wayne,
I would do some simple Internet research to familiarize yourself with the basics of a boat electrical system so that you can speak intelligently and determine the technician's intelligence. I sincerely doubt that you have 24v batteries in your system and I would run not walk away from that "electrician". Find yourself a good, quality and reputable MARINE electrician and spend the money to do it right or don't do it. You and your family's safety are not worth the few bucks you'll save.

It isn't that complicated a job, but you want it done right the first time, not corrected after the fire.

Blue Skies,
Dave

As light fades, vision increases
Blind people have vision!
Edited by - AbsoLoot on Apr 07 2010 08:38:41
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There are three parts of every job : good quality, fast installation time and low price. Project managers recognize that you can get two of the three not all of them. I would hire a real boat yard that has insurance and a good reputation and let them finish the job, but be prepared to pay more because they now have to go spend time verifying what was previously done is correct since they are now guaranteeing it.

Hope it all works out well for you.
 
Thankfully..good news. according to installer GPS and stereo working...

quote:
Originally posted by Waynepj4

Ok. Shorted out gps unit and stereo. Hole above the bed where the inverter remote was supposed to go. The door over the ac panel freely swings open and was not put back together right. I'm sure I haven't captured all of the damage. I've lost faith in this guys ability to do a quality job based on how he left my boat without telling me about the damage. I had to discover it on my own. Not to mention he fried a brand new $500 inverter.

What should I do????
quote:
Originally posted by stmbtwle

ouch!

Click to expand...


Click to expand...
 
Ditto! Ronnie Reagan once said "Trust but verify"...

Wayne, Who fixed the GPS and stereo? From what you've posted on here, I wouldn't trust that guy to empty a porta-potty and get it right. And I'd sure as h... verify.

"This guy sailed around the world in a 40 foot boat" (So did Josh Slocum, and he didn't know squat about inverters)

"I am now attached by the hip to this installer." (I really hope that barrel you're over is comfortable.)
 
I would rather have a guy that instals inverters and spends 40 hours a week on marine electical systems but has only riden a ferry to Angel Island and couldn't navigate a boat to save his life than a guy that has sailed around the world and has also installed an inverter. I am sure we are all missing something here on how you found the "inverter guy" and what his qualifications really are but from what I have read it does not seem like marine electrical systems is what he does.

I am also looking to put in an inverter system sometime this year. I am very handy with most mechanical or electrical projects and usually do most of them myself. My thought is that if I find someone that does this all the time I will pay less in the long run even if it seems like there may be more economical alternatives using a generalist. I plan to use this electical expert to help determine the most effective battery / inverter size combination and to assist with tying the system into my existing electrical system. I am also sure there are alot of things I am not thinking about going into this project.

This has been an entertaining post with a bit of everything. The anchor topic alone could easily add another 3 pages...

Hope your system works out well so you are able to get out and enjoy your boat.
 
I found the guy on craigslist. His ad said he specialized in fiberglass work, marine electrical, plumbing etc. He has a website, beekboats.com. His website revealed that he also writes for SAIL, Boatworks, Yachting World and more. Based on the ad and website he seemed credible.

Phone conversation made it seemed like he knew what he was doing. I started to question his expertise when he thought I had 24v batts because on top of the batt it said 24m-180 which I later found was referring to group 24 batts.

I lost further faith after I received a call that the brand new inverter "fried" and that he could smell something burning.

A day or two later I swung by the boat to find the stereo and GPS were not working. Furious I called, texted and emailed my discontent.

Before he went out of town he went to the boat and fixed the stereo and GPS. Turns out they werent shorted out but a cable was loose.

I love boating but my luck with regards to boats is about as bad as it gets without sinking. My engine problems, yea, they're back. After months of investing in getting them fixed they still start just fine..and run fine at cruising speed but quit when put in nuetral and quit at low idle. After they are repaired a few weekends later its back to square one. I know carbed engines normally do not work like that and should not need to be consistently tweaked or adjusted.

Ive put 2400 bucks into these engines in parts and labor since August of last year and cant seem to get to the bottom of these problems.

quote:
Originally posted by kgd

I would rather have a guy that instals inverters and spends 40 hours a week on marine electical systems but has only riden a ferry to Angel Island and couldn't navigate a boat to save his life than a guy that has sailed around the world and has also installed an inverter. I am sure we are all missing something here on how you found the "inverter guy" and what his qualifications really are but from what I have read it does not seem like marine electrical systems is what he does.

I am also looking to put in an inverter system sometime this year. I am very handy with most mechanical or electrical projects and usually do most of them myself. My thought is that if I find someone that does this all the time I will pay less in the long run even if it seems like there may be more economical alternatives using a generalist. I plan to use this electical expert to help determine the most effective battery / inverter size combination and to assist with tying the system into my existing electrical system. I am also sure there are alot of things I am not thinking about going into this project.

This has been an entertaining post with a bit of everything. The anchor topic alone could easily add another 3 pages...

Hope your system works out well so you are able to get out and enjoy your boat.

Click to expand...
 
Wayne,

I'm sure you feel like nothing is going right with this new boat, but take heart, at some point, hopefully in the near future, you will have all the bugs worked out the boat will provide many hours of enjoyment. It's kind of like slamming the barn door after the horse is gone, but if you look at the project gallery of your mechanic's web site, you'll see that his projects consist of maintenance type items that a cruiser would routinely perform (i.e. marlinspike (knots), baggywrinkles (more knots),rebuilding a marine head, and redoing some electrical connections. He may be very knowledgeable about many boat things, but I would get a real marine electrician to look over the work. You don't want to have a fire on your boat because of a mistake.
 
Sorry to hear your misadventures aren't limited to just the inverter.

I get a charge out of the folks that claim to "specialize" in engines, fiberglass, electrical, electronics, plumbing, deflowering virgins, emptying wallets, etc etc etc. That used to be a "Jack of all trades, master of NONE!" About the only thing they really "specialize" at is emptying your wallet.

Anyway, I hope the boating gods decide to give you a break, you're due.
 
In the end the 12v system is not that complicated so I would bet your not far from a working system. Probably would be worthwhile to have it inspected by someone else when you are done just to make sure nothing was overlooked.

I really hope that your engine problems get worked out soon. Losing power at idle is not good. Most engines also are not that complicated so I hope those are put into good order soon. Most of the idle problems I have had with prior boats were related to the fuel system. With previous carburated boats I have had, a carb rebuild has fixed the problem. Fuel filters and / or a fuel water separator could also cause problems at idle. Could also be bad fuel. Unfortunately the trouble shooting can take time which of course means $'s for the time but most of these parts aren't that expensive. Hopefully it will be resolved quickly.

At least you have a little time before the really nice weather gets here. Once you are back out on the water it will seem that much better.
 
Wayne, I see no reason to not keep going with this guy, with a few reservations.
1.
 
It is incumbent on you to make sure nothing goes up in smoke on your boat. Not during installation, and not while your family is sleeping offshore. So you have to discover what happened last time. If the explanation doesn't include something that the installer did wrong, you are being lied to and need to just move on.

There better be a WORKING handheld voltage meter on this jobsite. And when this job is complete Captain Wayne better still have one in the tool locker.

Post here the detailed plan is for connecting the inverter to the existing electrical plant. By the time you and the installer have worked out this detail, you will know it well enough to explain it here. If you can't write this out yourself, you haven't leaned your lesson yet. Before handing over the next inverter, you should know every connection point, the terminal size of that point, on, and on. When you post it here, you will have your own expert review panel. I bet that if you sent an email detailing the proposed installation to both the inverter manufacture's and the boat manufactures technical support department, you might get a response of whether the plan is missing something.

If your installer completes his half of the bargin, does clean work, and documents it well, he will have a happy customer talking about him on the internet. Through this maturation process, he is likely to find himself installing equipment for some other boaters on this site.

On the other hand, if he insists that it is not necessary to install the system as per the manufactures requirements, you need to get him off your boat before his actions lead to tragedy. Although this is simple stuff, the cost of not doing the job right can be huge.
 
you will need to keep tweaking carbs if you got a drop of water in the gas

im sure that port motor sucked some more, based on what you told me last night

we need to get that out of the tank
 
Findme. Great advice. When the installer gets back in town I will find out exactly went wrong and get a sense of what he plans to do about damage to appliances.
 
Did he say when he would return? Hopefully he didn't decide that it would be a good reason to sail around the world again.
 
Findme. Great advice. When the installer gets back in town I will find out exactly went wrong and get a sense of what he plans to do about damage to appliances.
 
In the meantime you might find (or download) the installation manual on that inverter and read it; otherwise you won't know if he knows what he's talking about or BSing you.
 
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