I am a seasoned boater, raised in Clearwater, FL but never owned a sailboat. Anyway, I am going to buy one, and this channel is an inspiration to me. All of your trials and tribulations have been shared to show if one is focused on a dream it it will become a reality. I am a nurse and the past two years have taken a toll on me due to Covid and now it is my turn to take care of me. Thank you so much for all I have learned from your channel. Here is where I would say something " sailboaty", but I don't know the lingo yet, so just THANKS, James.
Being a seasoned boater the only thing you will really have to get use to is how slow sailboats are 😂 glad the videos are helping you get familiar will some of the differences 👍🏻
Absolutely love your Channel mate, watching you guys helped me outa a massive slump after loosing everything during lockdown. Im now saving for a folk boat 26' pop top, and making the transition from Van life to boat life. thanks heaps again, Fair waters mate. PS: hit me up when u get too Townsville, NTH QLD Australia. I'll take ya diving, fishing, hunting etc I'v spent 20 yrs living and working in the outback I could show ya some amazing things :)
James, I did look at Ryan's video on the subject and my eyes glazed over in the first ten minutes. Maybe it had been a long day BUT... Your discussion was clear, interesting, easy to understand and persuasive, (especially the comparison of propane and AGM). Like you, I have been using AGM's and alcohol on my 43 year old, 30 footer since I bought her new in 1979. And, as I am planning to resume full time cruising this summer, I'll be following your progress with the install and hopefully the after action reports on actual performance over the next few months. Thanks for a quality presentation. G. King SV Intuition
Very cool, congratulations James. Big shout-out to Dakota Lithium for choosing to make S/V Triteia and Sailor James here one of your brand ambassadors. I'll be very interested to see how your hardware will benefit and/or transform daily life aboard a "smaller," 25'-40' blue water cruiser like James' Alberg 30. Also, props to you James for making a conscious choice to try first to pair up with an American based company and manufacturer. Fair winds ~ 🌬️🌈🌅⛵🏝️✨🌙🐬🐙🐚🗺️🤙🏻🍻💯
Thanks for the video, I have been wanting to buy one of these Dakota LiFeP04 for my RV (100Ah). I bought a LiPo for my motorcycle years ago, it was about one third of the weight of a lead acid battery.
Dakota is a great company. I'm thinking of building my own from cells, but now it sounds like server-rack batteries are getting pretty cost effective. Either way, for the system I want it's going to be a MASSIVE investment in $$, but should last my lifetime if charge-discharge properly. That seems to be the key, but the ability to charge and maintain that charge isn't cheap!! But once it's in, it's in and done!! FREE JUICE!!! LiFeP04 is the only way to go for boat power. I totally agree: AGM is fine for a start-only battery with the right wiring/charging.
I was pondering. Ya know a small room dehumidifier could make you a few gallons/day drinking/cooking water. Especially in the tropics. Plug it in and let it make water...
I found the operation to go to lithium quite costly with the new DC-DC converters, charger and inverter. Not to mention the galley setup. In Northern Europe the inability to charge below freezing is a bit of a bother too. I all has been really time consuming.
Aloha, Magna- thermic induction cooking...my head just exploded. Hahaha. I worked at a zinc foundry that used induction furnaces. The theory and use goes back to N. Tesla. Well done. Waiting to see the galley install.
Yay congratulations! Great upgrade. I think the benefits are best found when you can put a full system in. So the battery controllers, a high output alternator, bigger cables, etc. that go along with a lithium system. It’ll be interesting to see all of those costs. For your purposes it 100% is the right move. Can’t wait for the rudder to be repaired and to see you in the South Pacific. Would love to see you explore some of the more remote / hard to get to islands like Pitcairn. If you’ve only got yourself to be please- id love to see you document people’s everyday life in super remote areas.
I Sailed around the world , never had a problem filling my propane tanks. I have been using propane on my boats never blew up. You carry gasoline for your outboard, that is also a bomb.
Rad i gotta meet you someday ive been so busy getting ready to buy a boat on big island to sail back. Just curious what kind of boat do you have looks similar to the one imgettin a 1968 trintella 1a.
Great video, remembering what it was like from our circumnavigation in the 1980s without Lithium, presently cruising the Bahamas with Lithium. My wife's book is a good read, published by Austin Macauley of New York, literally a fictional story of sailing and adventure: "Seychelle and the Cannabis Yachties". It is very entertaining, hoping you will give it a read.
That's the key: Not just having the amount of energy stored for the need, but the ability to recharge it quickly and efficiently, AND GREEN preferably. Whatever it takes to maintain battery charge between 60%-90%.
@@SailorJames there are much cheaper ways to have this option. You can mount a Gear on your propeller Shaft and have a belt rotate a 50 bucks DC generator from Ali express, the only requirements being that you dont have a folding propeller (obviously, as it wouldnt rotate without engine power) and your gearbox is capable of handling rotations while in neutral position without damaging itself. I've seen people spend 20.000 bucks or more on similar systems. It's hilarious. You can buy a whole replacement system every year for the coming 2 centuries and still end up being cheaper, as long as you are willing to succumb to china's affordability. All separate parts of such systems tend to be a thousand times cheaper before they were given their purpose to serve on a yacht. Always consider building before buying.
Which make of induction cooktop and convection oven did you purchase? Are you going to upgrade engine alternator/regulator to help keep batteries charged in addition to solar?
A hobby of mine is electronics and circuitry, so much so that I have an entire room turned into a lab. If you ever want to make anything at all, as usual let me know. There's not much I can't build.
Hi Wondering if you have time to give us an update on how these new dakota batteries and charging system worked out for You? Any problems or lessons learned worth passing on. ? Thanks
They have been absolutely fantastic!! I have never needed to use my generator to charge the batteries and even with only 400watts of solar and an all electric galley my Dakotas have been perfect!
Hi again and thanks for the really fast reply. I do not know.all your videos. Did you make one were you go thru controller and inverter install and operation somewhat? Thanks
Hi again Ahh I found the install and the other guys video as well. Question. Do you have a readout for temperature for each cell in your system? Thanks Elmar
It wasn't banned for no reason. Volatile organic compounds in chemicals are being phased out as much as possible do to bad air quality. I know, I worked in the printing industry for decades and it's been going on for about 15 years. It was a struggle at first but you do what you have to for a better life, hopefully. You can still buy it but you must tell the few people who carry it that it's for fuel only.
Hi James. Love your video's. We are currently living on our 31ft. Sailboat named Mars and are considering lifepo4 batteries as well. Considering Tritea being similarly sized to Mars we wondered, how many watts of Solar do you have on board? We'll be having 200 watt's from our Solar panels and 100 watt's from our windmill. Would that suffice to charge a similar setup to Tritea? Thanks in advance, Regards, Jelmer & Deborah
I have 450 watts but if 200 watts keeps your lead acid batteries topped up then it will for sure work. The main thing to know is what are your power needs? If you plan on installing induction cooktop and going with an electric galley then you would also want to add more solar
@@SailorJames thanks for the info James. Gotta give you some credit for getting down with your community. We are happy cooking on propane, as we always have to meet halfway between quality and affordability. All fosset's are pumped by hand, as for our toilet and our shower which is a pressure vessel that allows for 3 minutes of showering and our bilgepump is powered by movements and gravity...we take comfort in the fact that all of our key survival systems onboard function without electricity, after all even lifepo4 batteries hate getting wet which is a considerable risk if you are surrounded by water. But for our entertainment, our laptops and whatnot, a reliable lifepo4 battery would be a welcome upgrade sometime. we'll aim to first get us some good camera equipment and share our adventures of life on Mars.
It's not really true though, as lead acid perform even worse in the cold. They don't always label them that way but lead acid is worse below freezing than lithium.
lithium is great tech no doubts and for full time cruisers is the way to go, but the nature of the systems on a boat makes the "cons" list bigger than just price. turning the engine on is best done with an AGM, and same can be said for the windlass, which are 2 things you use pretty much use everyday. and the issues start here because you can indeed have 2 different techs running together but you need specific gear to charge and manage them. a lot of people are sold the idea of a drop in replacement, only to find out 2/3 years later, that their lithiums are ruined.
I am a seasoned boater, raised in Clearwater, FL but never owned a sailboat. Anyway, I am going to buy one, and this channel is an inspiration to me. All of your trials and tribulations have been shared to show if one is focused on a dream it it will become a reality. I am a nurse and the past two years have taken a toll on me due to Covid and now it is my turn to take care of me. Thank you so much for all I have learned from your channel. Here is where I would say something " sailboaty", but I don't know the lingo yet, so just THANKS, James.
Being a seasoned boater the only thing you will really have to get use to is how slow sailboats are 😂 glad the videos are helping you get familiar will some of the differences 👍🏻
Absolutely love your Channel mate, watching you guys helped me outa a massive slump after loosing everything during lockdown. Im now saving for a folk boat 26' pop top, and making the transition from Van life to boat life. thanks heaps again, Fair waters mate. PS: hit me up when u get too Townsville, NTH QLD Australia. I'll take ya diving, fishing, hunting etc I'v spent 20 yrs living and working in the outback I could show ya some amazing things :)
James, I did look at Ryan's video on the subject and my eyes glazed over in the first ten minutes.
Maybe it had been a long day BUT...
Your discussion was clear, interesting, easy to understand and persuasive, (especially the comparison of propane and AGM).
Like you, I have been using AGM's and alcohol on my 43 year old, 30 footer since I bought her new in 1979.
And, as I am planning to resume full time cruising this summer, I'll be following your progress with the install and
hopefully the after action reports on actual performance over the next few months.
Thanks for a quality presentation.
G. King
SV Intuition
Looking to see how you mounted these as well as when the whole project comes together
You may have convinced me for upcoming fit.
“IF” Dakota offers that warranty, they would have to be anyone’s only option! And they will be mine from here on, no matter the cost!
Nicely done, always amazed how natural some people are on camera
It comes for years of being awkward on camera and having to edit it myself 😂
excellent choice I think.
Very cool, congratulations James. Big shout-out to Dakota Lithium for choosing to make S/V Triteia and Sailor James here one of your brand ambassadors. I'll be very interested to see how your hardware will benefit and/or transform daily life aboard a "smaller," 25'-40' blue water cruiser like James' Alberg 30. Also, props to you James for making a conscious choice to try first to pair up with an American based company and manufacturer. Fair winds ~ 🌬️🌈🌅⛵🏝️✨🌙🐬🐙🐚🗺️🤙🏻🍻💯
How exciting for you And Dakota for your Ambassadorship! Talk about an upgrade! Congrats sir.
Obsession with Delos videos is what led me to following your channel, love that you're a fan too. Keep up the great work!
Awesomeness: I can’t wait to put this system in my westsail 32 I have been on the fence for months..
I’m sold!!! Love the customer service and warranty.
Great Video!
Great video
Awesome upgrade!! You're going to be a fast convert. I use LiFePO4 batteries for portable ham radio operation. They're really amazing batteries!
Looking foward to the project. You have 2 for 400 AHs
Good luck
Thanks for the video, I have been wanting to buy one of these Dakota LiFeP04 for my RV (100Ah). I bought a LiPo for my motorcycle years ago, it was about one third of the weight of a lead acid battery.
Dakota is a great company. I'm thinking of building my own from cells, but now it sounds like server-rack batteries are getting pretty cost effective. Either way, for the system I want it's going to be a MASSIVE investment in $$, but should last my lifetime if charge-discharge properly. That seems to be the key, but the ability to charge and maintain that charge isn't cheap!! But once it's in, it's in and done!! FREE JUICE!!! LiFeP04 is the only way to go for boat power. I totally agree: AGM is fine for a start-only battery with the right wiring/charging.
Congratulations, this is a huge boon for your sailing plans.
I was pondering. Ya know a small room dehumidifier could make you a few gallons/day drinking/cooking water. Especially in the tropics. Plug it in and let it make water...
Really good batteries. You are going to love em!
A concise summary…Awesome upgrade 👍
I found the operation to go to lithium quite costly with the new DC-DC converters, charger and inverter. Not to mention the galley setup. In Northern Europe the inability to charge below freezing is a bit of a bother too. I all has been really time consuming.
Aloha,
Magna- thermic induction cooking...my head just exploded. Hahaha. I worked at a zinc foundry that used induction furnaces. The theory and use goes back to N. Tesla. Well done. Waiting to see the galley install.
Whoa I had no idea went back to Nikola Tesla!!!! That’s incredible
Dudewhack! this is Awesome Congrats and looking forward to the refit- Saving up to do the sam one Day on Skybird-
Yay congratulations! Great upgrade. I think the benefits are best found when you can put a full system in. So the battery controllers, a high output alternator, bigger cables, etc. that go along with a lithium system. It’ll be interesting to see all of those costs. For your purposes it 100% is the right move. Can’t wait for the rudder to be repaired and to see you in the South Pacific. Would love to see you explore some of the more remote / hard to get to islands like Pitcairn. If you’ve only got yourself to be please- id love to see you document people’s everyday life in super remote areas.
I Sailed around the world , never had a problem filling my propane tanks. I have been using propane on my boats never blew up. You carry gasoline for your outboard, that is also a bomb.
I carry very little gasoline
Rad i gotta meet you someday ive been so busy getting ready to buy a boat on big island to sail back. Just curious what kind of boat do you have looks similar to the one imgettin a 1968 trintella 1a.
I can recommend SOK LiFePO4 marine batteries. They're high quality and cost much less than BattleBorn.
Great video, remembering what it was like from our circumnavigation in the 1980s without Lithium, presently cruising the Bahamas with Lithium. My wife's book is a good read, published by Austin Macauley of New York, literally a fictional story of sailing and adventure: "Seychelle and the Cannabis Yachties". It is very entertaining, hoping you will give it a read.
In California weed is legal,fentynal, meth and heroin are rampant but denatured alcohol is banned!?🤯🤯
Good info
Awesome very happy for you great adventure don’t cut corners on electric system bro air2 s army out
I never cut corners 👍🏻
Nice one!
This is awesome! Sailing Uma really benefit from their electric motor regen when underway. Would you consider a deployable hydro generator?
That's the key: Not just having the amount of energy stored for the need, but the ability to recharge it quickly and efficiently, AND GREEN preferably. Whatever it takes to maintain battery charge between 60%-90%.
I would never install an electric engine but yes would install a hydro if I could afford it
@@SailorJames I feel the same!
@@SailorJames there are much cheaper ways to have this option. You can mount a Gear on your propeller Shaft and have a belt rotate a 50 bucks DC generator from Ali express, the only requirements being that you dont have a folding propeller (obviously, as it wouldnt rotate without engine power) and your gearbox is capable of handling rotations while in neutral position without damaging itself. I've seen people spend 20.000 bucks or more on similar systems. It's hilarious. You can buy a whole replacement system every year for the coming 2 centuries and still end up being cheaper, as long as you are willing to succumb to china's affordability. All separate parts of such systems tend to be a thousand times cheaper before they were given their purpose to serve on a yacht. Always consider building before buying.
@@lifeonmars4347 Any links to these a generator that might work? I'm finding some AC generators but not sure if those would appropriate.
Wow dude that's awesome
I always buy lithium. Quality over quantity 👌
Which make of induction cooktop and convection oven did you purchase? Are you going to upgrade engine alternator/regulator to help keep batteries charged in addition to solar?
A hobby of mine is electronics and circuitry, so much so that I have an entire room turned into a lab. If you ever want to make anything at all, as usual let me know. There's not much I can't build.
Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.
Hi
Wondering if you have time to give us an update on how these new dakota batteries and charging system worked out for You?
Any problems or lessons learned worth passing on. ?
Thanks
They have been absolutely fantastic!! I have never needed to use my generator to charge the batteries and even with only 400watts of solar and an all electric galley my Dakotas have been perfect!
Hi again and thanks for the really fast reply.
I do not know.all your videos. Did you make one were you go thru controller and inverter install and operation somewhat?
Thanks
Hi again
Ahh I found the install and the other guys video as well.
Question. Do you have a readout for temperature for each cell in your system?
Thanks
Elmar
Just as an aside, the MOST efficient electric appliance to heat food/water with is induction.
Congrats James! Did you just spend more on batteries for your boat than you spent on your boat?
I have a full sponsorship with Dakota so no I didn’t but if I had Yes it would have been more 😂
Electric is the way to go for sure!
Insane that they banned that fuel down there for literally no reason. They better not ban methyl hydrate up here in BC. Love cooking on my Origo
It wasn't banned for no reason. Volatile organic compounds in chemicals are being phased out as much as possible do to bad air quality. I know, I worked in the printing industry for decades and it's been going on for about 15 years. It was a struggle at first but you do what you have to for a better life, hopefully. You can still buy it but you must tell the few people who carry it that it's for fuel only.
Hey James, What did you choose for a cook top/oven?
I retrofitted my gimbaled stove to accept an induction range and convection oven, I will get onto all the details in a future video 👍🏻
Hi James. Love your video's. We are currently living on our 31ft. Sailboat named Mars and are considering lifepo4 batteries as well. Considering Tritea being similarly sized to Mars we wondered, how many watts of Solar do you have on board? We'll be having 200 watt's from our Solar panels and 100 watt's from our windmill. Would that suffice to charge a similar setup to Tritea?
Thanks in advance,
Regards, Jelmer & Deborah
I have 450 watts but if 200 watts keeps your lead acid batteries topped up then it will for sure work. The main thing to know is what are your power needs? If you plan on installing induction cooktop and going with an electric galley then you would also want to add more solar
@@SailorJames thanks for the info James. Gotta give you some credit for getting down with your community. We are happy cooking on propane, as we always have to meet halfway between quality and affordability. All fosset's are pumped by hand, as for our toilet and our shower which is a pressure vessel that allows for 3 minutes of showering and our bilgepump is powered by movements and gravity...we take comfort in the fact that all of our key survival systems onboard function without electricity, after all even lifepo4 batteries hate getting wet which is a considerable risk if you are surrounded by water. But for our entertainment, our laptops and whatnot, a reliable lifepo4 battery would be a welcome upgrade sometime. we'll aim to first get us some good camera equipment and share our adventures of life on Mars.
Congrats you planning any trips anytime soon to test out this battery ?
Once all the boat projects are done I will be spending time anchoring all around Maui before heading to French Polynesian in May
@@SailorJames Looking forward to it thanks for the response.
people have used kerosene for ships stoves,is that not an option anymore?
Yeah it’s an option just not a great option
You still need denatured alcohol to preheat the burners.
what does one battery weigh? that new Lithium one?
One of the 200ah batteries is 50lbs I think
Methanol leads to blindness,denatured alcohol is contaminated. ethanol
"How to not blow up your Alternator when charging Lithium"
Victron Energy
Check out the video on YT. It's very good information....
Running a Diesel engine without load will glaze the bore and you will burn engine oil.
Everything about California is just crazy!
The only other con is that lifepo batteries can't be used below 32 degrees Fahrenheit,
It's not really true though, as lead acid perform even worse in the cold. They don't always label them that way but lead acid is worse below freezing than lithium.
lithium is great tech no doubts and for full time cruisers is the way to go, but the nature of the systems on a boat makes the "cons" list bigger than just price. turning the engine on is best done with an AGM, and same can be said for the windlass, which are 2 things you use pretty much use everyday. and the issues start here because you can indeed have 2 different techs running together but you need specific gear to charge and manage them. a lot of people are sold the idea of a drop in replacement, only to find out 2/3 years later, that their lithiums are ruined.
Very good points, They have lithium cracking batteries. I have a manual windlass.
Dude those batteries are $1600 a piece. Eeks!
Yeah but how much is 8 Quality AGM batteries?
You don’t a bomb on the boat…but you’ve using a fuel that burns a colorless flame and has a low flash point….. smh
too much chat and no action...
Should I have done a small dance while explaining the benefits of lithium?
! Dude, You Deserve It !!
wow that's one big battery