Breakfast on a 2011 GLi

Boatingbob

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We have been spending a few nights on a lake and really loving it. I am looking for tips about what would make fixing morning coffee and, perhaps, more easy. I am interested in any ideas members have, but especially I am interested in a small table that could be put out of the way and issues related to power. I don't know what I need to know. I assume the DC power out would be sufficient to run a smallish water heater after running through a DC/AC converter. Coffee press coffee is a delight first thing in the morning. Additionally, I've seen grills and such that attach to rails on yachts. Can someone recommend a source of those?

Thanks.

Bob on Lake James, NC
 
No idea on a coffee maker, but we have the grille that attaches to the rail. Nice little gadget, just dont ever cook cheddar brats out on the lake! LOL!
 
We have been spending a few nights on a lake and really loving it. I am looking for tips about what would make fixing morning coffee and, perhaps, more easy. I am interested in any ideas members have, but especially I am interested in a small table that could be put out of the way and issues related to power. I don't know what I need to know. I assume the DC power out would be sufficient to run a smallish water heater after running through a DC/AC converter. Coffee press coffee is a delight first thing in the morning. Additionally, I've seen grills and such that attach to rails on yachts. Can someone recommend a source of those?

Thanks.

Bob on Lake James, NC
I doubt any kind of heating element would work off a converter. If it did you may be left swimming back to shore! Heating elements draw allot of electricity and most dc converters only provide a couple of AC amps. I would be very concerned about killing the batteries unless the boat is running and even then I'm sceptical that the dc power would be enough to run a coffee pot. If you plug two coffee pots into a regular 15 amp circuit in your home it will usually trip the breaker.... Your best bet is a small 1000amp honda (very quiet) generator.....Or a propane grill with a coffee pot!
 
Ahhhh Moring coffee. I dont know any quick and easy way to do it and we are coffee snobs so Either do it right or forget it.

We have a colman grill. Its a small propane grill that sets up and breaks down in 30 seconds.

We use the propane grill to heat water in a pot. it only take a few mins to get the water Very hot.

Its called a Colman Road Trip $44

We take the hot water and pour it into a Press.

7 Mins later you have a Awesome cup of coffee.
 
I don't know the amp draw on your coffee maker but it's on there somewhere. Harbor Freight sells two inverters. One is 750 watts continious which will handle 6 amps and costs $50. The other is 2000 watts and will do 16 amps for $170. Their current sale paper has a 20% off coupon so it will be $136. No longer than it takes to make coffee shouldn't drain the battery but I would only do it with a second battery. Steve
 
I sure appreciate the replies. I've never gotten a grip on amps/watts and such and I don't have a second battery, so maybe I'll go for something that runs off propane. A couple cups of drip coffee while the mist burns off and the birds awaken floats my boat.

First night on the lake we listened to what we later learned was a Screech Owl. WILD warbling sound, especially wild when you have no idea what it is. The second night there was a sound like someone dropping a 10 pound rck into the water from, maybe, 6" above the surface. Happened about an hour after sundown, about 8 times within 3 minutes. While it didn't sound like a flat surface slapping the surface of the water, I am guessing it was a beaver expressing unhappiness about our being in its cove.

Delightful.

I don't know the amp draw on your coffee maker but it's on there somewhere. Harbor Freight sells two inverters. One is 750 watts continious which will handle 6 amps and costs $50. The other is 2000 watts and will do 16 amps for $170. Their current sale paper has a 20% off coupon so it will be $136. No longer than it takes to make coffee shouldn't drain the battery but I would only do it with a second battery. Steve
 
Sounds like you are on a very nice, undeveloped lake. My lake is developed about 85% around, but we still have tons of fish, seagulls, swans, geese and herons.
 
Can someone, please, tell me the amp rating on the DC plug on a 2011 GLi?

Many thanks.

I sure appreciate the replies. I've never gotten a grip on amps/watts and such and I don't have a second battery, so maybe I'll go for something that runs off propane. A couple cups of drip coffee while the mist burns off and the birds awaken floats my boat.

First night on the lake we listened to what we later learned was a Screech Owl. WILD warbling sound, especially wild when you have no idea what it is. The second night there was a sound like someone dropping a 10 pound rck into the water from, maybe, 6" above the surface. Happened about an hour after sundown, about 8 times within 3 minutes. While it didn't sound like a flat surface slapping the surface of the water, I am guessing it was a beaver expressing unhappiness about our being in its cove.

Delightful.
 
Hi Boating Bob, the 12v outlet on the dash of the GLi is 15 amp. Very powerful! TB
 
I've never gotten a grip on amps/watts and such...
You don't have to get a grip on it. Just use the formulas below when you know any two things and you can get the third.

Amps x Volts = Watts

Watts ÷ Volts = Amps

Watts ÷ Amps = Volts

BTW, you can get all sorts of 12v stuff at a Truck Stop. Or if you prefer online shopping, places like 12 Volt Travel are useful. There are other stores as well, not to mention Amazon. Just use google to find them.
 
You can probably use any pot you want on your boat, it's all about how you hook it up... The 12V DC cigarette outlet is breakered at 15 Amps, which is your "limiter" in this case. You need about double that amount of power to run the pots at the "12 volt travel" website Eric gave you. Understand that your battery has the power to run your pot, it's the circuit to the cigarette lighter that is limited by the wire size and 15 Amp breaker.

So, again, you can use any pot (AC or DC), but in order to do that, you will have to hook it DIRECTLY to the battery. So your choices are:

1) Get a DC pot and hook it directly to the battery, or

2) Get a higher wattage inverter (which will also have to be hooked up directly to the battery to draw this much power).

High wattage inverters come with 2 sets of cables. One connects to the cigarette lighter which is good enough for most low wattage stuff you'd use in your car (or boat). The other set of cables it will come with look like a minature version of a set of car jumper cables, and they clip directly to the battery for times when you need the higher output. Like making coffee. Or running a TV.

If it was me, I'd go the inverter route with a regular AC coffee pot. You will find other things to use the inverter for over time (laptop, DVD player, phone charging, car trips, small hand vacuum, air pump for the tube, etc) and if you go the inverter route, you might avoid buying a new pot all together if you have a spare at home.

Just my 2 cents.

Oh yeah - If you're worried about battery drain, you could use a second battery (which no boat should be without in my mind - and I will be adding one to my boat this winter). But, it likely wouldn't draw enough power to kill your battery in the small amount of time it takes to make a pot (assuming a full charge on the battery). You could idle the motor while making a pot to help offset the demand on the battery, and continue to idle for 10 minutes afterward to charge the battery back up. If it was me, with just one boat battery, I'd make a couple pots in a row while docked, just to make sure there was enough left to start the motor.

Good luck!
 
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You need about double that amount of power to run the pots at the "12 volt travel" website Eric gave you.
You make a point that I should have.

We tend to think of a 15amp circuit as having lots of power, and at 120v it does. 15a x 120v = 1800 watts. BUT... 15a x 12v = only 180 watts.
 
We have been spending a few nights on a lake and really loving it. I am looking for tips about what would make fixing morning coffee and, perhaps, more easy. I am interested in any ideas members have, but especially I am interested in a small table that could be put out of the way and issues related to power. I don't know what I need to know. I assume the DC power out would be sufficient to run a smallish water heater after running through a DC/AC converter. Coffee press coffee is a delight first thing in the morning. Additionally, I've seen grills and such that attach to rails on yachts. Can someone recommend a source of those?

Thanks.

Bob on Lake James, NC
Propane Grill mounted on the swim platform heats a tea kettle of water and a small frying pan of bacon.
 
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