Of course it has been plugged into shore power all this time so the batteries have been kept topped up regardless.
During the time I have been working inside I have observed that the inverter at irregular intervals stops believing in "shore power" and begins inverting from the batteries for about 1 minute and then goes back on the mains again as if nothing as happened!!
Of course no one has any idea why this is happening . . .
After thinking about it for a while and doing a few little tests I think it may have something to do with a relay in the air conditioner and the polling mechanism the inverter uses to determine if a load needs servicing.
Being one of these modern computer controlled devices it can all be tuned via a laptop with the right software, available from the Victron site, and a special USB converter, from the local distributor. As this device is also quite new in the market even the distributor is not fully up to speed and I observed them doing a little bit of learning on my time when first setting it up. Also I will need to know how to tune it over time as a usage pattern develops, so I downloaded and installed the software and obtained the USB device and plugged it all in.
All went well using the "virtual control panel" until I set a parameter, for which the heading was obscured by a poor graphic, and it turned out to be the OFF switch and now I can't turn it on again via the computer as every time I plug it in it thinks it should be turned off - and that's what it does!
I think I am going to have to eat "humble pie" and borrow a real control panel (or get a new USB adaptor) to be able to monitor it via the computer to see if my theory is correct.
Oh well ! You can't win them all ....
So in the mean while I have finished installing the 12Vdc distribution panel
and now we have some real lights. This one in the kitchen is the most powerful and consumes about 16 watts. The wiring is temporary until I have finished the kitchen wall which is waiting until I finish the bench which is waiting until I finish the plumbing which is etc. etc. etc. . . .
This one is in the "bureau desk" and uses about 12 watts ( the wiring is finished here).
The rest of the lighting will be installed when actual use in the field determines where it is needed.
And just to tidy up the controller for the bed was also installed in the 12Vdc distribution area and the operating switch was enclosed in a small grey plastic box obtained from Altronics the electronics store and positioned with velcro next to the battery controller.
Similarly the limit switches, one each for UP and DOWN, were also enclosed and placed with velcro, in this case temporarily, until the final heights are determined by things like table height and mattress thickness.
So some plumbing is now in order . . .
The drainage side needs to be finished first for obvious reasons and the hand basin and shower are the hold ups.
The first little thing to do was make a collar for the hand basin tap to just lift it up over the edge of the basin.
Now the drain for the basin needs to be finished. After much searching an "eureka" moment occurred when a piece of washing machine discharge hose was spied.
This was soft and pliable and the right size and near perfect except that the corrugations may hold some residue which may smell after a while. Unfortunately I can't put a "P" trap until after the hose so it may just get some chemical cleaner every now and then - I'm told "Dettol" works quite well! So a section was cut out and the fittings fitted.
Then attached to the basin
The end of this you may remember was made to swivel so that it could fit into the confined space under the basin which slides in and out.
This fitting comes out into the space just above the water heater which is the earliest point where a "P" trap can be fitted.
The now standard fabricated variety was constructed
and installed in the appropriate place and then a heavy duty pipe can be connected for the journey down to under the floor
where an elbow changes direction to cross to the other side
where it meets up with the rest of the drainage system going into the grey water tank with the shower and sink and external drain outlet.
The sink was described earlier so only the shower needed to be done. I hesitate to use the "only" word here as the shower base uses a household plumbing fixture 50mm in diam. which needs to connect to the 25mm diam. used in the rest of the system and turn through a right angle all the while using a minimum of vertical space.
Off to the local plumbing shop for about the 50th time . . .
A collection of fittings was amassed which could with a little bit of machining to adjust a few sizes
be assembled into a single fitting to achieve this end . . .
You can just see it in position in an earlier photo of the combined outlets.
So now all the discharge was connected a few buckets of water in each basin and the shower were in order to see if everything works. The sink is very disappointing in terms of the speed of draining but that is due mostly to the silly little outlet sieve to stop large pieces going down the drain, the hand basin is a little better and the shower is best of all.
The following morning revealed only one small leak at the entry to the grey water tank where I had not done a fitting up tightly which was quickly rectified and all looks promising so far.
Next the inlet side needs to be tidied up and a proper system test can be undertaken . . .
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