ANOTHER BATTERY QUESTION

[000's]

LEAVE THE CHARGER ON AND IT OVER CHARGES AND BOILS THE BATTERY, LEAVE THE CHARGER OFF AND DO NOT GET TO THE BOAT ,ITS A SUB.WHAT DOES EVERYONE ELSE DO.IS THERE A REAL BATTERY CHARGER?NOT SURE WHO MADE MINE BUT IT IS NOT CHEAP.

[gottaflylee]

You need a trickle charger if you are going to do that. Some have a sensor that detects when the battery needs charging. I don't have one on my 23' boat. If the battery is a good one you can go a month without much worry unless you have a lot of rain. On an inboard boat, I would not be without one...

[Avenger]

There are chargers that can maintain batteries as you describe, they have elctronic controls and usually require a temperature sensor on the battery. My experience with standby generator applications is that a set of batteries with a charger will last about two years, whereas an automotive battery will last upwards of four. Unfortunately most boats have a duty cycle that is more like a stanby generator than that of a car.

A cheap solution that I have used is to put a charger on a daily timer so that it cycles on for about an hour each day. This will help top off the charge without over-cooking the battery. Just be warned that this is probably not ABYC spec and could be called into question in a survey or insurance claim.

[000's]

Avenger,can I put a timer on the battery charger that is on the boat now to come on for ,like you said an hour or so a day,if so how hard is it,the only thing about electricty is it shocks the hell out of me if I look at it.Where would I get a timer and what kind? Thanks for the help.

[Avenger]

Well, I don't know what your setup looks like, but when I do it I use a regular outlet timer like you would use to turn your lights on and off in your house. If your charger is hard wired into a AC panel then you'd have to find a way to connect a timer in-line with that. Another possibility is to put the timer on your shore power line and leave the charger switched on. It's a tough question to answer without being able to see how your boat is wired.

As far as where to get a timer, if you don't pick one up in your local hardware store or Home Desperate you can try looking at some of the industrial suppliers like MSC or McMaster-Carr. The industrial guys probably offer more options for a timer that you can put in-line.

www.mscdirect.com
www.mcmaster.com

[000's]

Thanks for the help avenger,I called my mate he has a friend that is an electrician and can do it for me,again thanks, the best Idea I have heard of .

[Avenger]

That sounds good, please let us know how it works out. Maybe post a pic of the install when you're all done.

If you have a gas powered boat don't forget all the rules about marine electric and putting non ignition-protected devices in an enclosed area etc.

[krisis7]

http://www.pmariner.com/productFeatu...oductNum=41212



Use this, will condition and keep your batteries full. Leave it plugged in all the time

[bohica]

Same thing I use for the bike: Battery Tender available on ebay for about $35.