Life aboard even a small boat can be wonderful when you're tied up securely in a marina and the 110-volt shore power cord is providing plenty of electricity for your blender, a television and the refrigerator.

But when you head out for a remote anchorage, you no longer have the convenience of "household power." Do you have to give up all the amenities and rough it when you're away from a marina?

The simple answer is no, because a number of manufacturers now offer an array of 12-volt appliances that will give you all the comforts of home even when you're far from civilization.

Sure, you can install a generator on even a small boat these days, but who wants to put up with the noise and vibration just to blend up a pina colada? Inverters are another way to use household appliances on your boat, but they can suck the power out of your batteries in no time.

No, the best solution for most small boats is to use appliances designed specifically for 12-volt applications. Let's take a look at what's available.

Blenders

It should come as no surprise that the number one appliance on most boater's want lists is a blender, and the Waring Tailgater 12-volt blender is just the answer. It's no wimp, either, and it can reduce a carafe of ice and liquid into a smooth slush in no time. Use the blender for making drinks, smoothies, creamy soups or even salsa.

Refrigerators

Right up there with the hedonistic blender on your want list is probably a refrigerator. Icechests are fine for short trips or keeping soft drinks cold, but there are the constant worries about melting ice and finding more ice at each stop on a cruise.

The good news is that not only are there some outstanding 12-volt refrigerators, but they do more than just keep your food cold. The word to remember here is "thermoelectric," a high-tech concept developed by NASA for space vehicles, which allows you to use your portable cooler to keep food either hot or cold. The Coleman PowerChill and the Igloo Kool Mate both look like conventional ice chests. Plug them in, however, and they will quickly cool down to 40 degrees or more below the ambient temperature to hold your food and drinks at that chilly level. Reverse the plugs or flip a switch, and these units turn into portable food warmers, heating up to 155 degrees so you can keep casseroles or even a pizza plenty hot even on a cold night.

Available in sizes ranging from personal 16-quart coolers up to cruise-worthy 50-quart refrigerators that can be used either upright or as a toploading chest, both the Igloo and Coleman thermoelectric coolers have AC adapters so you can use them dockside or even in your office at home.

Entertainment

You've used your 12-volt refrigerator to keep the ice hard, and the 12-volt blender has churned up a frothy concoction. Wouldn't it be nice to watch Jeopardy or perhaps your favorite video movie while you're at anchor?

Several companies, including Samsung, Sansui and RCA, all offer TV/VCR combination units that use 12-volt power. The Samsung CXF0932, for example, operates off either 12- or 24-volt DC power as well as having an AC adapter for use anywhere in the world. The 9-inch color screen is easily visible even in the cockpit, and the 181-channel receiver tunes in and memorizes the active channels in your area, so you can use the television in all areas.

Miscellaneous

Keeping a boat clean on a weekend cruise could be greatly simplified if you only had a vacuum cleaner, and the 12-volt wet-or-dry canister vacuum from Medof Marine is just the solution. Measuring just 10 inches high and 8 inches in diameter, it has a 16-foot power cord and more than enough power to pick up all the dirt and dustballs that seem to come from nowhere. Since you can also use it wet, it's perfect for tidying up in the bilge or around the engine compartment.

Mini-compressors for 12-volt power are available in most auto supply stores and, though designed to inflate car tires, they can be used to pump up your water toys or even an inflatable boat.

Guest Products offers mini fans which can be used to cool off the cabin on those sultry summer evenings, and they also have incredibly powerful 12-volt handheld spotlights for picking your way into a harbor on a dark night.

Oil drain pumps with alligator clamps to attach to your 12-volt battery are also available at auto shops to make short work of your oil changes, and 12-volt soldering irons can take care of any electrical repairs away from home.

I've saved the best for last, and this one item is likely to make your family even happier than providing them with a blender or a refrigerator. Medof Marine offers a 12-volt hair dryer that looks like a toy but actually puts out a surprisingly toasty flow of air. Use it to fluff up your hairdo after swimming or showers, and you can also use it to defrost a frozen windshield.

Some Caveats

As one expert said, 12-volt power does have its drawbacks, and a DC powered boat is not just a big, benign flashlight. There is a lot of electrical current available in a 12-volt boat battery and it can easily injure or even kill you if you short-circuit it.

Your battery is not a bottomless source of electrical power, either, so you need to carefully monitor the number of appliances you use as well as the length of time they run. Don't be misled by the amp/hour rating of your battery or the appliances, because the numbers don't always add up. It would seem reasonable that using a 10-amp appliance for one hour would leave 90 amps of power in a 100 amp/hour battery but, in fact, it will reduce the usable amp hours even more. Be sure you have a voltmeter (not an ammeter, which measures alternator output) to monitor your battery level, and remember to check it regularly.

As you add appliances and increase the drain on your batteries, you should have two banks of batteries that are separated, with one for use for all your toys, and the other for starting the engine. In that way, you'll always be able to start your engine to recharge a dead battery after a late night watching television.

If you plan to add additional outlets for your 12-volt toys, pay careful attention to the wire thickness because the thicker the wire (the lowest gauge numbers), the less the resistance. For example, a 20-foot run of wire (10 feet out and back) for a 15-amp appliance should be no smaller than 10-gauge wire.

When it comes to the actual plug, most boats rely on conventional automotive-style cigarette lighter plugs, which is what the appliances mentioned above are pre-wired to accept. Don't just buy a cheap receptacle at an auto shop, however. You'll be better served with a plug specifically designed for marine use, which has both a sealing ring and contacts that won't rust or corrode. A very useful accessory for almost any appliance is the 8-foot extension cord from Medof Marine that is designed specifically for 12-volt use with the proper connectors at each end.

One interesting alternative to using your boat battery to power your 12-volt accessories is the growing number of portable batteries (see the Tested item this month) used for jumpstarting cars, but which have ample power to run a television for up to 20 hours.

As long as you remember that your batteries won't run forever and that you need to be judicious in the use of your appliances, there's no reason not to have all the luxuries on your boat that you take for granted at home.

Coleman Co.
P.O. Box 2931
Wichita, KS 67201
(316) 832-2653

Igloo Products
P.O. Box 19322
Houston, TX 77224
(713) 461-5955

Medof Marine
P.O. Box 1084
Agoura Hills, CA 91301
(818) 707-2991

Waring Products
283 Main St.
New Hartford, CT 06057
(860) 496-3100