continuous power??

[Garahel]

whenever a new fuel rod is inserted into the reactor, the sub shuts down for a second until the reactor reaches a certain minimum power value and stuff starts turning back on. I tried wiring it so that the battery takes over when you remove an empty fuel rod, but when replacing the fuel rod, the sub will switch from drawing from battery to the reactor.

the problem is that it takes a second for the reactor to warm up and as the reactor is "spooling up" that's when the power outage occurs. Is there anyway to make it so that the battery continues to power the sub until the reactor reaches a certain power value to take over?

[Figas]

You would have to connect the reactor to a main junction box, and this junction box would power various batteries that would then power all the junction boxes that you don't want to suffer Power outages. This way, if the power goes out the junction boxes would keep sucking power out of the batteries until they run out.

[Garahel]

Originally posted by Figas:

You would have to connect the reactor to a main junction box, and this junction box would power various batteries that would then power all the junction boxes that you don't want to suffer Power outages. This way, if the power goes out the junction boxes would keep sucking power out of the batteries until they run out.

would the batteries recharge again after hitting 0?

[Figas]

When the reactor gets power again the batteries will be refilled, just keep in mind the max output of the batteries and recharge rates, some machines may not be viable to be ran through a batteries, like the engine and oxygen generator.

[Yumemirareru]

I've created circuit designs for submarines I'm on that have battery power kick on whenever the reactor falls behind a certain amount, whether that's from sudden acceleration but it would also cover reactor failure. So, yes, very possible with circuits.

However, in your case... I would put more than one fuel rod in the reactor. Then when one runs out, put a new one in, no power interruption.

[Garahel]

Originally posted by Yumemirareru:

I've created circuit designs for submarines I'm on that have battery power kick on whenever the reactor falls behind a certain amount, whether that's from sudden acceleration but it would also cover reactor failure. So, yes, very possible with circuits.

However, in your case... I would put more than one fuel rod in the reactor. Then when one runs out, put a new one in, no power interruption.

doesnt the reactor overheat when theres more than 1? or does it stabilize after a while?

[Orravan]

Originally posted by Garahel:

doesnt the reactor overheat when theres more than 1? or does it stabilize after a while?

It does, but fission rate can be lowered (either automatically, or manually if a player is handling the reactor in real time) to account for this.

Having several rods inserted means the drain will be equally split between them, which in turn means they won't deplete as fast and you won't have to switch them as often.
It also prevents short outages when removing the only rod you got inside, and in the case of normal uranium rods (heat potential below 100), ensure that the reactor can run at max efficiency.

There will indeed be a heat surge, so be extra careful when inserting more rods, decrease pressure as you do, and/or manually adjust fission rate before switching back to automatic.

Those articles are worth a read:
https://barotraumagame.com/wiki/Fuel_Rod
https://barotraumagame.com/wiki/Nuclear_Reactor

[Crimsonial]

Read Orravan's post twice. Getting back into the game with 1.0, and while you can usually just handle the problem (read: consequences) in solo or with a known co-op crew, it is extraordinarily embarrassing to forget that while playing an engi main on a pub server where everyone is nervous about griefing.

Battery backup generally handles fuel replacement, but maintaining enough and charge rates is a good use of time on the engi front between encounters.