480 DB Owners Club

I had a starter go bad on my port engine last year while getting the 1000 hour service done by Cat techs. I have the same Cats you have. They had to jack the engine up to get the bolt out. I was not on the boat at the time they did it so I cannot tell you how they did it, or what tools they used to get the engine lifted. My hatches were open at the time, but my guess is they jacked it up instead of rigging it from the top and lifting. Good luck and keep us updated. I just got "lucky" for it to fail when the engines were being serviced or I would have been doing the work myself, which sounds like a pain to change out. The starter is not cheap either. I found one at Whayne Supply in Cincy and had it shipped to my marina in Kentucky. If my memory is correct, it was around $700 for the starter. Sending the starter off for a rebuild would have delayed the techs to long and cost a lot more for the service.

Keith
That becomes a really expensive starter if engine needs to be lifted and then re-aligned.
 
Have any of you 480 owners installed an inverter to run the fridge and freezer (and maybe other 120v stuff)? If so, which batteries do you use? I'm thinking of installing one and using the bow thruster batteries. Any thoughts on this?
 
Have any of you 480 owners installed an inverter to run the fridge and freezer (and maybe other 120v stuff)? If so, which batteries do you use? I'm thinking of installing one and using the bow thruster batteries. Any thoughts on this?
I have inverter on my boat. There are 2 additional big ol batteries for it. I run my refrigerator, freezer, water pumps and vacuflush off of it. I also have solar panel on fly bridge roof to charge them
 
mquiet, my VacuFlush and water pumps run on 12v, so I won't need them to be on the inverter. I'm thinking the bow thruster batteries are seldom used, only when docking or rafting up with another boat, otherwise they just sit there and don't do much. I have two 8D batteries that run the bow thruster and I don't understand why so much battery power for something that is so seldom used. They even have their own dedicated charger. In any event, I'm thinking a 24v inverter using those batteries would work fine. I might be wrong but I plan to check with friends who understand electronic stuff better than I do.
 
I have inverter on my boat. There are 2 additional big ol batteries for it. I run my refrigerator, freezer, water pumps and vacuflush off of it. I also have solar panel on fly bridge roof to charge them
I am interested in possibly doing this. Can you fill me in on the set up that you did?

Keith
 
After 6 years of ownership I learned something new. If you're down around 1/4 tank and you fill the STBD tank first the generator will shut down due to lack of fuel. Apparently the generator pick up tube is set at around 1/4 and we rolled far enough over with the extra fuel weight that it sucked air. Always fill your Port tank first if the tanks are low.
 
After 6 years of ownership I learned something new. If you're down around 1/4 tank and you fill the STBD tank first the generator will shut down due to lack of fuel. Apparently the generator pick up tube is set at around 1/4 and we rolled far enough over with the extra fuel weight that it sucked air. Always fill your Port tank first if the tanks are low.
Doesn't the 480DB's have the capability to switch the generator to one or the other fuel tank?
Or was this an enhancement on the later 520/52's?
 
Nope, we're locked into the port tank.
How inconvenient.. Also learned something new. FYI, depending upon the valve configuration the 52 can even use the generator to transfer fuel from one tank to the other. One, however, must be knowledgeable as it would be a problem to transfer fuel from a full tank to a full tank.
 
How inconvenient.. Also learned something new. FYI, depending upon the valve configuration the 52 can even use the generator to transfer fuel from one tank to the other. One, however, must be knowledgeable as it would be a problem to transfer fuel from a full tank to a full tank.
It is amazing how much fuel is returned to the tank during operation. I switch sides on the feed/return every 10 hrs of genny operation - I figure its acting as a fuel polisher in addition to maintaining fuel balance.
 
mquiet, my VacuFlush and water pumps run on 12v, so I won't need them to be on the inverter. I'm thinking the bow thruster batteries are seldom used, only when docking or rafting up with another boat, otherwise they just sit there and don't do much. I have two 8D batteries that run the bow thruster and I don't understand why so much battery power for something that is so seldom used. They even have their own dedicated charger. In any event, I'm thinking a 24v inverter using those batteries would work fine. I might be wrong but I plan to check with friends who understand electronic stuff better than I do.
I would not touch the bow thruster batteries. They use a ton of juice to push the boat. That's why they are separate and have their own charger.
 
mquiet, my VacuFlush and water pumps run on 12v, so I won't need them to be on the inverter. I'm thinking the bow thruster batteries are seldom used, only when docking or rafting up with another boat, otherwise they just sit there and don't do much. I have two 8D batteries that run the bow thruster and I don't understand why so much battery power for something that is so seldom used. They even have their own dedicated charger. In any event, I'm thinking a 24v inverter using those batteries would work fine. I might be wrong but I plan to check with friends who understand electronic stuff better than I do.
I installed a 3000 watt inverter utilizing the bow thruster batteries. Put the Xantrex unit under the port stateroom bed. Put the remote monitoring panel up below the salon carbon monoxide detector above the electrical panel. Went with the 24 volt unit. Have all 110 volt hooked into it except engine heaters, converter, washer/dryer. Works well.
 
Hello fellow 480 owners. I purchased our 02 480DB earlier this year. I recently attempted to use the washer/dryer for the first time. The wash cycle works fine, but as soon as you turn the dryer on it will flip the breaker after about 5-10 seconds of run time. Has anyone had any issues with this and any advice? Thank you.
 
Hello fellow 480 owners. I purchased our 02 480DB earlier this year. I recently attempted to use the washer/dryer for the first time. The wash cycle works fine, but as soon as you turn the dryer on it will flip the breaker after about 5-10 seconds of run time. Has anyone had any issues with this and any advice? Thank you.
I have run mine through the cycle, but never used it to wash clothes. Most will agree that the unit is not worth the space that it takes up and I have talked to a few who have removed the unit for more storage. I am not an appliance guy but my first thought would be the dryer motor is bad. You are drawing too many amps from something and it is kicking the breaker. Normal dryers are simple machines with a heating element, blower motor, and a drum motor. There is a computer board also, but if that was bad the unit most likely would not work at all.

Good luck on this one since I believe it is a pain to remove for service. The bunk bed is in the way. I am removing my washer this fall. It will probably come out in pieces since I don't know if the unit will fit through the salon door (I have not measure yet). If you need some parts down the road I may have them. I want more storage.

Keith
 
Hello fellow 480 owners. I purchased our 02 480DB earlier this year. I recently attempted to use the washer/dryer for the first time. The wash cycle works fine, but as soon as you turn the dryer on it will flip the breaker after about 5-10 seconds of run time. Has anyone had any issues with this and any advice? Thank you.

From what I've heard over may years on CSR the "wrinklemaster" is probably not worth repairing.
 
We actually use ours, but we typically only use it for swim suits, t shirts and small items like shorts. We really take advantage of it when we are staying longer durations on the boat for trips and don't have to bring along so much clothing.
 
Thank you for the replies. Went out to the boat yesterday and did a bit more investigating. Might have found the problem. If any of you can confirm - there is a blower motor under the Port stateroom bed that looks like it is for the dryer which is not coming on when the dryer comes on. If this is in fact for the dryer, I guess either the motor is bad or a relay is bad. Possible this could be causing the dryer to over heat and flip the breaker?
 
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