What Is the Difference Between a Galvanic Isolator and an Isolation Transformer?
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- Опубліковано 16 лип 2024
- "Jeff , I really enjoy your videos!", writes Henry. "Quick question, I am at a large marina (I won't tell you which one) and I seem to be going through a lot of zincs. What is the difference between a galvanic isolator and an isolation transformer? Which one would help me the most if I only boat from marina to marina?"
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Keep fine tuning that new intro; its almost there! Sound quality is much improved too. Thanks again for doing these! As a boating noob I am always learning.
Thanks Doug... live to learn to improve.
Thanks a lot Jeff.
Very welcome
You are all amazing!
Thanks for watching!
Great Work 🙏
Thanks 🔥
OK. Sure enough, yesterday, after asking you to survey some of my favorite utube sailing vlogs for electrical danger, I dialed up Sailing Zingaro, and James was in the act of sinking from a broken thru hull, and his batteries, which were in the bilge, were under salt water and he was bailing with a bucket.
Wow... that's crazy sad, must be a crazy stressful situation.
Hi Jeff,
I am a huge fan of your videos,
Thank you so much for doing all that work for us.
I am considerind purchasing a Victron ITR050362041 isolation transformer, and if I understand properly, it can handle both 110V and 230V.
But I suppose that if I cross the atlantic and plug my boat in a marina in north America, I will have 110V as a result on the boat side of the transformer. So What is the purpose if I cannot use my 230V devices ?
Some other questions :
Is it « Marine environnement certified », as you advice?
What about the noise ?
Thank you again, and best regards from France ;)))
What will be the best protection for a shore current steel boat? Can a galvanic isolator handle that task?
Hi Jeff, thanks a lot for making that clear! I installed a galvanic isolator just over a week ago. We have a steel cruiser just like most inland boaters here in The Netherlands. Is that reasonably good or should we choose an isolation transformer for steel boats? That is a bit of a no-go for us, exactly for all the reasons you just described :):)
Thanks for sharing!
If I have a 240vac split phase 50amp service, would I need to purchase two of these transformers?
Jeff , can you do a Q&A video on shore power cables . I see pictures of burnt cables on a regular basis and wonder why this is such a common source of shorts and fires .
Good idea, will keep it in mind.
For sure the #1 cause of boat fires is bad electrical connectivity. Primarily from shore power connections. The old style pin connections have been around for ages. Check out SmartPlug. During Jeff's Q&A with Nigel these are highly recommended by him.
Hello Jeff in the eighties I had a Mercury with the mercathode system put out some kind of opposite current compensating do they still use these?👍
I think so, although I have no experience with them.
Thanks for the great videos! Can isolation transformers fail? How do you know? I've got a 2006 boat with one in place, and uncertain if I should be trusting it to be functioning correctly. Would i be correct in assuming that the AC power supply would fail (cease to engergize the boat) if the isolation transformer failed? Thanks in advance.
If you're asking does the Isolation Transformer "wear out", then no, not really, not in anything like a short span of time. Really high voltage spikes, (think near lightening strikes) are about the worst thing on transformers.
Hi. Another Question.
When installing a inverter/charger can a large AC circuit panel be split to have some circuits powered by shore power and some by the inverter or is it better to get a seperate sub panel for the inverter circuits.
I am installing a inverter/charger and had planned to use a seperate sub panel for the inverter circuits but an old salt told me I could split my existing Blue Sea panel. This would leave to main breaker and two circuits (inverter ac in and the hot water heater) powered by shore power and the remaining 4 circuits to be powered by the inverter. I believe this would involve shortening the 3 common buses in the panel and creating new ones for the inverter circuits.
Even if this is possible, is it recommended? It would save space and money and make for a neater installation.
Thank you.
Depends how the boat is wired. ABYC normally REQUIRES a separate sub panel for inverter loads. You may have to install a breaker powered by the inverter so you can isolate it from the loads. At least that is how I would wore it and I do marine electrical for a living.
Hey Mike, yes what you ask is doable and we sometimes deploy inverters like this too.
Jeff, should the AC grounds (shore power and generator) and all DC source grounds (inverter bank, engine starter battery, generator starter battery) be connected together and where should that connection be relative to the sources?
Long overdue on doing a long grounding video, it's coming.
@@PacificYachtSystems must. have. grounding. video. plz
Hi Jeff, where should the galvanic isolator be installed, close to Power entry, inside ? Does it protect your boat against others and or your boat leaking in the marina, ? Great intro ,
JC
Galvanic Isolator should be installed as close to shore power receptacle as possible. A GI doesn't protect against all stray corrosion events but it helps a lot, definitely worth having.
I am adding an inverter to my boat and I have a galvanic isolator on the shore power coming into my boat. I have a breaker on the shore power after the galvanic isolator. Should the neutral and ground be bonded at the breaker going to the inverter or should they be isolated until they reach the AC distribution panel where they are all bonded together? Thanks for all the great videos and information! Love the PYS Hat!
Hi Ben, the AC neutral and ground can only be connected together at the source of power. Normally that neutral and ground tie happens at the source of AC power on shore. A Marine inverter, when inverting will automatically do a neutral ground tie.
You definitely should NEVER do a permanent neutral to ground tie on your boat.
Thanks for the information. Trying to break my bad habits from wiring houses. When I see a breaker box I want to tie all the neutrals and grounds to the rail. I'll isolate them to the inverter and from there to the AC panel. Keep up the great videos!
What are your thoughts on the isolation transformers from Victron Energy? I have a steel boat and planning on getting one but not sure how to size it.
Hmmm, some but not lots of experience with metal boats. You size the isolation transformer based on your shore power voltage and max amperage.
Hi I have 2 shore power connections, one fwd and one aft connected in parallel.
Do they both need separate Galvanic Isolators?
you can not connect 2 shore inlets in parallel. They each need their own AC panels, main breakers, and keeping the neutrals separated. or a switch that selects which one is in use. If they are parallel you will never be able to plug into a dock that has gfi / elci / rcd breakers. or add them to your boat.
With a switch you could get away with only one rated for the shore size. if you are using both inlets you'd need 2 rated for the shore size or 1 rated for the total shore amps (2x inlet amps). wiring 2 would be easier to make sure they get wired correctly
Is any of this different if you're in the Great Lakes?
Good question, limited experience with fresh water and don't know.
I believe it would be a difference in degree only since salt/brackish water is more conductive than fresh. You could try reaching out to some of the marinas and even the boat builders here in the Great Lakes region and ask if they have any recommendations on having electrical work done. Then call _them_ and ask.
💯
Thanks Javier.
Would it be reasonable to have shore 120AC only go to a charger and run all of your 120AC loads from an inverter?
Yep, some boaters have this exact setup, especially for boaters that have a boat wired for AC loads at 60 hertz and are now in a different jurisdiction where shore power is 50 hertz.
I've used isolation transformers in power closets(IT rooms) that are only about 100 pounds and about 1.5 cubic feet. I've seen smaller ones than that but I'm thinking of the few thousand watts you might need on a smaller vessel which is certainly less than a smallish IT room consumes. They don't have to be the behemoth size and weight you are describing. Yes they are going to be pricey, but if you own a million dollar yacht, what is it worth to keep that 80k Seakeeper or the 50k worth of electronics you have installed in safe working conditions?