Problems with Heart Interface Inverter/Charger

piratesbooty · #1 06-21-2011

I have a Heart Interface Inverter/Charger, which appears to be in the older range. The problem is that in the middle of the night (twice now--and this is without any appliances other than a fan on), the I/C starts turning on and off, repeat, until I turn the whole unit off. I "fixed" the issue the last time by turning one of the settings off (the "invert" was mistakenly pushed), pulled everything out (shore power, lines into the inverter) and then restarted, which appeared to work.

Fast forward a few days, and the system is repeating the issue although I didn't have time to unscrew the inverter to reset it the way the boat electrician alerted me I would need to if it happened again. I am hoping that a "reset" will fix this issue again, but anybody have any experience with this?

I just bought the boat not even two months ago and I'm a newbie boat owner (but have lived aboard for a couple of years). Help!

Stu Jackson · #2 06-21-2011

Do you have the manual? What unit is it? What is the age (kinda old doesn't help us) 'cuz there was a topic here within the past six months about a way way way old unit, and we were able to help. You might want to search for that topic. I'm off on the boat now and may not be back til Friday, but I'm sure others here will help. Good luck.

Oh, do you have a Link operating the unit or just the switch on the Freedom itself?

PS - Try this, Anyone have any feedback on this? - circuit breaker wiring design, relays, dump load, and click the link on my first reply (#3)

piratesbooty · #3 06-21-2011

Heart Freedom 30 Heart Freedom 30

This is what my unit looks like. I am assuming (with no real knowledge, that it is about 10 years old--manual is at home). Yes, I have a remote panel, as well as the switch on the Freedom.

First read through of the post you sent was over my head. Tough to not know about all this stuff!! I just want my AC power to work consistently!

Stu Jackson · #4 06-23-2011

Quote:

Originally Posted by piratesbooty

Heart Freedom 30 Heart Freedom 30... Yes, I have a remote panel, as well as the switch on the Freedom.

First read through of the post you sent was over my head. Tough to not know about all this stuff!! I just want my AC power to work consistently!

Understood, and I can agree that the details can be daunting. But if you want to make things work, you have two choices: do it yourself or hire someone to do it for you. The latter can be horrific when you're out there by yourself, so option 1 usually helps.

My stereo stopped working the other day. I installed it. Had no one else to blame. Traced it down to a bad connector (that I personally had made) in the battery compartment for the stereo memory wire.

We ALL started out "unknowledged" and learned as we went along. None of us was born an electrical engineer.

Dink around with what we've shared with you, and come up with more specific questions and we'll be glad to continue to help.

Was the switch or the remote set for charge or invert?

mitiempo · #5 06-23-2011

If plugged in to shorepower the invert switch has no effect, the unit defaults to power transfer and charging. Unplugged from shoreside AC the switch lets you choose.

piratesbooty · #6 06-24-2011

Well, I might not know about electrical systems, but I do have the power of deduction. I ended up switching to the other shore outlet and I think it is a problem with the dock electricity and not the inverter (which was a Freedom 20, not 30). So far so good and it has been 2 days. I have the marina testing the outlets. Even when I had it plugged in to the first outlet, I could literally hear that the energy was not a steady flow but was fluctuating. But I didn't know what that meant.

My electrician and I (and he only charges if he actually does something, not just checking on things--such a nice guy) think the inverter is actually working properly but the dock power isn't. That's as far as I've got. But my AC is now working. I'm getting a little of the hang of this stuff. One of the major misconceptions I have had is that it is MORE complicated than it actually is.

btrayfors · #7 06-24-2011

Shore power outlets, even if correctly wired, can be a BIG problem.

If there is ANY sign of discoloration around the prongs to your shore cord or the receptacles where these prongs fit on the shore power post, replace them. Otherwise, just be sure everything is absolutely clean and that the power cord fits snugly into the outlet.

Have the marina (not you) check that the wires are very tightly attached to the outlets. "Copper creep" happens over time, and it is necessary to periodically tighten things. Spray a bit of DeOxIt on the plugs and inlets.

Do the same on your shore cord (when it's disconnected) if you have access to the prongs or sockets. Ditto on your receptacle(s) on the boat.

Just a bit of surface corrosion can cause high resistances and even intermittents such as you seemed to have been experiencing.

If you're using a splitter with 2 30-amp connections plugged into a single 50A outlet on the dock, be especially careful and prudent. A dropped or intermittent neutral can be devastating: depending on load, it can put up to 240V on one of the cords and can cause fires.

Bill