Battery cable marking interpretation help request

[tpd]

Hi all;

I am upgrading my house battery bank in our SO 440, both adding batteries and increasing capacity.

The bank currently has 2 Super-B 90Ah lithium batteries. I want to upgrade to Super-B 150Ah and add 2 batteries for a total of 4.

I need additional cables and we are in the USA, so I'm trying to figure out what the best match is for the European cables on the boat.

The markings on the cables say:

PH2 DI95 ISO10133 500V 100C

I believe what this is saying is that the cable is a 2 Phase, 95 millimeter diameter cable, complies with ISO10133 standards, and is rated for up to 500 volts and 100 degrees centigrade.

Is this an accurate guess?

Also, for the USA equivalent, I believe I would use 3/0 AWG?

Many thanks
td

[Don Reaves]

I think you have the diameter wrong, since 95 mm is about 3.7 inches. Perhaps you mean 9.5 mm. In that case, 3/0 AWG, with a diameter of 10.4 mm would be fine. 2/0 AWG wire has a diameter of about 9.3 mm, if I've read the tables correctly.

For what it's worth, ABYC standards require 600 V stranded copper wire. You can use soldered terminals for such big cables, but it would probably require a blow torch. Perhaps it would be better to buy cables with professionally crimped terminals.

[tpd]

Thanks Don. You must be right. Reading the documentation more closely, it refers to mm2, which I believe must be square millimeters. 95mm2 = 0.15 square inches.
best
td

[zaphod]

You should never use soldered terminals for battery cables. Under heavy load they can heat up enough for the solder to start melting. Always use crimped terminals.

[Don Reaves]

Personally, I would not use soldered terminals either. But I assume that ABYC permits them for battery connections provided they are properly sized to prevent such heat buildup.

[zaphod]

Oct 15, 2023 1:58:40 GMT Don Reaves said:

Personally, I would not use soldered terminals either. But I assume that ABYC permits them for battery connections provided they are properly sized to prevent such heat buildup.

I don't think ABYC likes solder connections:


"Solder shall not be the sole means of mechanical connection in any circuit.”11.16.3.7."

[Don Reaves]

In retrospect, I see that I shouldn't have brought up this exception. It is never my intention to get into an argument on the forum.

11.14.5.7 Solder shall not be the sole means of mechanical connection in any circuit. If soldered, the connection shall be so located or supported as to minimize flexing of the conductor where the solder changes the flexible conductor into a solid conductor.

EXCEPTION: Battery lugs with a solder contact length of not less than 1.5 times the diameter of the conductor.

I am currently teaching the US Sail & Power Squadron course on Marine Electrical Systems, and was quite surprised to find in the course materials this exception to the rule about soldering that zaphod quoted. I suppose that the standards may have changed since the course was put together. As I stated earlier, I personally would use crimped connections.

[zaphod]

Oct 15, 2023 10:14:42 GMT Don Reaves said:

In retrospect, I see that I shouldn't have brought up this exception. It is never my intention to get into an argument on the forum.

11.14.5.7 Solder shall not be the sole means of mechanical connection in any circuit. If soldered, the connection shall be so located or supported as to minimize flexing of the conductor where the solder changes the flexible conductor into a solid conductor.

EXCEPTION: Battery lugs with a solder contact length of not less than 1.5 times the diameter of the conductor.

I am currently teaching the US Sail & Power Squadron course on Marine Electrical Systems, and was quite surprised to find in the course materials this exception to the rule about soldering that zaphod quoted. I suppose that the standards have changed since the course was put together. As I stated earlier, I personally would use crimped connections.

I don't see it as an argument, more an exchange of information.

ABYC aside, all of the advice I have received was to crimp rather than solder. That being said, a good solder connection is probably better than a bad crimp! I had a marine shop make a battery cable for me, and the crimping was horrific! I would have been better off soldering. Indeed, that was my plan; to buy cable and solder terminals and make a set. Jeff Cote at Pacific Yacht Systems advised me against it, as did another battery shop. Fortunately I have a friend who had access to a crimping machine, and he made all the cables up for me.

[chalkis]

Hello, I have installed 4 Victron 12.8v 200 Ah lithium batteries on my SO 440. I put 2 busbars in the battery box, one for the minus and one for the plus. From these bars, I used the 95 mm2 cables that were originally in the boat up to the battery switch. On the batteries, from the minus, I put 4x95 mm2, of the same length, to the minus bus bar, from the plus, I put 4x50 mm2, of the same length, with a 200A fuse on each cable to the plus bus bar.
And I improved the load with a Balmar alternator.

[moonshadow]

I had great service when I ordered cables from boat cables.com. Fast and well done. I bet a phone call to them would get you the I formation you need.