GSM Low voltage alarm

[bbjunkie]

Hi,

I'm in the process of preparing my boat for it's 1st season in a marina since I took ownership.
For peace of mind, I would like to install some sort of low voltage alarm that would send me an SMS message if the battery voltage drops below a certain point (so I can get to it before the batteries are so flat they can't operate the automatic bilge pump)

Is there such a device on the market?

I could probably design/build something based on an Arduino board, but I'd rather have a tried and tested system.

Pete

 

[Don S]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

What motor?
If you have a volt meter and it shows less than 13 volts while running above 1500 rpm, you have a problem.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

Hi,

I'm in the process of preparing my boat for it's 1st season in a marina since I took ownership.
For peace of mind, I would like to install some sort of low voltage alarm that would send me an SMS message if the battery voltage drops below a certain point (so I can get to it before the batteries are so flat they can't operate the automatic bilge pump)

Is there such a device on the market?


I could probably design/build something based on an Arduino board, but I'd rather have a tried and tested system.

Pete

i havent seen one. i have seen the ones that take a picture and ones that sense movement used for security so converting the interface to work on a voltage switch is feasible. If you have a brass bilge pump i would be more worried about someone stealing that than flat batteries as thats what happened to a friends boat that ended up sunk in lowestoft harbour. It would be intresting to see if you can get a wi-fi signal where the boat is located at the marina.

 

[bbjunkie]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

A wifi signal.. good point, not sure - must check that out!

I found an alarm that does what I want and much much more, but it's prohibitively expensive, probably because of the other things it does.

To clarify, I want to monitor the voltage of my batteries while im not at the boat. Therefore whatever motor (Mercruiser 3.0LX) im using is irrelevant as the batteries will be at rest.

I will investigate wifi and see how that turns out, as it would be a cheaper way to run the system and may mean I could have all sorts of telemetry on request.

Thanks for the ideas

Pete

 

[jhebert]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

Look into the Arduino development system. You can probably make your own device using an Arduino. See

Arduino - HomePage

Your idea of using SMS to send the messages means your boat will need its own cellular telephone. You probably want to get a cellular modem, see

MultiModem? iCell Home Page

 

[Don S]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

I misunderstood what you were looking for, so I am going to move this over to the non boating technical topics forum for the simple fact that what you are looking for is not a specifically marine product, just something you want to use on a boat.

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

GSM Auto Dialer 2X Inputs 1x 10Amp Relay Output Monitor Your Home by Mobile | eBay

simple voltage switch and a mobile sim card would work plus its 12v powered

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

A GSM would work okay and monitor a low battery but with any cell dialer you have to get monitoring service from an alarm company for this to work. Now if you had a regular alarm panel and a phone line, then you would be okay.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: GSM Low voltage alarm

Why not install a solar charger, that will maintain the batteries? That is what I do with my RV and I have never had a problem.