12" NN3D & N2K FloScan

GUNNIN

Member
Hello from downunder.
I just purchased a boat with last years NN3D, (MFD1, 36m Radar, DFF) I haven't played with it yet as its still in transit.
when it arrives Ide like to connect a FloScan N2K to it.
Can the NN3D system display fuel flow, lph, remaining etc?

I searched the word "FUEL" in the NN3D PDF user manual, came up zip which makes me think it cant do it. I find it hard to believe a great system such as this cant do it.
Also searched this forum but only found good news for the "Touch" model.
Help.
 
The manual doesn't say a lot about it, but the unit will show fuel rate in the data box (page AP-4) as long as you have the required NMEA 2000 PGN. It can be shown as LPH or GPH.
 
My old boat had a NavNet 3D MFD12 and an interface to the engines that put data on the NMEA2000 network. I had no trouble getting it set up so the fuel rate displayed in a data box. It's a little fuzzy now, but I do recall there was an issue at first getting the box to show the combined fuel rate from two engines but in the end I was able to do that.

I don't think you will be able to show the other data you asked about such as total flow, fuel remaining, or fuel economy. Perhaps one of the moderators can confirm.

In the end, I installed a Garmin GMI-10 instrument display. It had customizable engine data pages that could show all the fuel related factors as well as all the other engine data from the oil and temperature sensors, etc. If you have electronically controlled engines, that might be a better and cheaper option than the Floscan.
 
The data box allows for display of the flow rate per engine. So you could display for example, Flow rate #1 and Flow rate #2. The NavNet 3D was designed early into the transition into NMEA 2000. Although it offers this feature and others like showing NMEA 2000 engine information; it doesn't accept as much as the newer TZT system. Being the system processor of the NN3D accepts and bridges NMEA 0183 data, they will not be adding too many more changes to the software. The NavNet 3D is a fully developed system and software changes going forward will be limited. The TZT is fully NMEA 2000 and doesn't accept NMEA 0183 unless you properly convert the data into the NMEA 2000 standard.
 
Ok, so not all bad news, it can at least display instantaneous flow, although I don't think its worth doing just for that. Space is a problem when it comes to fitting an additional MFD such as the garmin.

BTW, single cummins B series diesel only, without smart N2K instrumentation.

I may be better of going down to NMEA0183 95000 FloScan, which requires a NMEA0183 output from the GPS. (NN3D) it simply replaces the original Cummins Tacho.

New question, does the NN3D have an NMEA0183 output?
 
I had a Floscan 9500 display quite a few years ago with a Yanmar 6LP mechanical Diesel. I recall it worked very well as a tach and fuel flow and fuel economy meter. The NN3D does have NMEA 0183 ports so that will not be an issue or require a conversion.

Be sure you consult directly with Floscan on requirements for fuel supply and return line senders and pulsation dampers as the installations are very particular to specific engine models. I am sure they will have configured many, many B series Cummins systems. You need to get it right or there will be all sorts of problems that can affect the engine itself as well as the Floscan unit.
 
Ok thanks guys, I think that's the way to go. Simple Flo Scan display, ignore the NN3D.

Ill get on to Flo Scan & work out the kit for this engine.

Just a shame some thing as sophisticated as the Fur NN3D cant display these basic fuel management parameters, when most of the Garmin models can.

Where I come from fuel is expensive, managing it efficiently is high on the priority list. If I've got this wrong and there is a better way to monitor my fuel usage please let me know.
Mark.
 
With a mechanical injection engine such as the B series, you will need a system based on fuel flow sensors in the lines. The only decent alternative to Floscan I have seen is the Maretron system but that is a NMEA 2000 unit comparable to the Floscan N2K. If you don't have room for another instrument display such as the Garmin GMI-20, the Floscan 95000 is a good choice and proven technology. The advantage of using a GMI-20 is that you can also monitor and display total fuel consumption, trip fuel, and remaining fuel on board.

The NavNet 3D will have two NMEA data ports in the big 18 pin connector cable (I forget the wire colors but you can easily check the manual). There is also a Data 1 port but that may already be in use for the GPS sensor. You will also need to check the port settings in the installation setup to ensure that the necessary data sentences are enabled and the baud speed conforms to the requirements of the Floscan.

Fuel where I am in New England is probably cheap by your standards but my boat has two QSB 6.7 480s and burns lots of it! It is remarkable how sensitive a planing hull boat is to small changes in speed and trim that you wouldn't really notice by feel. I can improve my fuel efficiency by a few percent very easily just with a bump or two on the trim tabs or speeding up or slowing down a knot. Having a fuel flow meter is something you will really appreciate and it will pay for itself after a while.
 
After receiving a PM, I'm now looking at Maretron fuel flow sensors. There's a review on Pambo.
Flow sensor installation appears to be much simpler as it does not require the large pulsation dampers the FloScan uses.
As its N2K, I should be able to network it to many different N2K displays, the Garmin GMI-10 has been suggested, also the 20. not sure if the 10 can display total fuel remaining. Its certainly small enough for my limited space.

I hoping the NN3D can provide the position data via N2K, for a Garmin display so it can display Litres per nm.
Mark.
 
Yes it will put out position.
You can find a list of the PGNs that are output in the installation manual.
 
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