On Board Battery Charger assistance 2024

Madhouse27 reply :

I'm pretty sure this has been discussed but I can't seem to find the thread so I'll ask it again. I'm looking at on board chargers. I'm seeing units with two and three banks. Should the number of banks coincide with the number of actual batteries on your boat? I'm looking to be able to charge three batteries at once. One is for the starting motor/accessories and the other two are in a 24 volt series for the trolling motor. I apologize for asking you guys to explain it all again.

Pa Angler reply :

Hi Madhouse 27, I have 2 batteris for the 24V trolling motor one onboard charger for each battery my alternator on my motor charges my cranking battery. Yes you should have one charger for each battery if you need one for your cranking battery and two for your trolling motor batteries they are made to charge one battery although some will divert it's charge to another battery when it's primary battery is charged helping to expedite the charging process.

Hope this helps.

Chow

The Pa Angler

NBR reply :

You need a bank per battery. Unless you run your big motor a lot don't rely on th big motors alternator keeping the cranking battery charged. I have a set of jumper cables in my boat that were put there after I had relied on the big motor to keep the cranking motor charged.

Ben reply :

Get a three bank. As been said, unless you make long runs, your motor will not keep your cranking battery fully charged, even if you have a 40 amp charging system.

Unless you do make long runs, don't waste the extra bucks on one that charges all the batteries from the motors charging system. It doesn't start charging the TM batteries until the cranking battery is fully charged, and as mentioned, the motor has a hard time just keeping the cranking battery charged. That's why I run the biggest, baddest, cranking battery I can get.

As for chargers, do your home work. You will hear lots of hype about Dual Pro, Quest and all those other transformer based chargers. Good chargers, but old technology, slow and don't do the best for the battery. If you realy do you home work, you will find those made by ProMariner the best for the money. They also make Cabela's brand and BPS brand. The 10 amp per bank PM chargers will charge a battery three times faster than a 10 amp bank in most other chargers. They use three step charging process, where the others use a two step. They also go into the float mode that keeps the ideal maintenance voltage approx 13.03 on the battery and should be left connected and on at all times when not using the boat. This will give max battery life. Some of the others just cut off and then turn back on when the battery voltage drops approx 1 volt, not very good at all for long battery life.

You will also hear all the hype about the great service the other brands, provide. I've been running PM's for seven years and have never had but one go bad. It was three months old and they had me another at my door the next day, so don't think you can knock that for service either.

Unless you run your batteries way down, and have to have them fully charged in just a few hours, you probably won't need a 10 amp per bank charger, unless you get the Dual Pro, Quest etc. They charge no faster than your little $30 10 amp home charger, so you can use that as guide as to what size you will need in on of their bands. The difference is the technology. A three bank PM @ six amp per bank is really a bigger charger than that. As soon as the cranking battery is fully charged (which normally is not very long) the current to it is transferred to the TM batteries so they are charging at nines amps instead of six. It also maintains that full nine amps until the battery reaches 80% charge, then cuts back to a lower rate. With the other, a discharged battery will start off being charged at 10 amps but as the battery gains charge, the charge rate drops, taking much longer to charge.

So, as mentioned, do your homework.

Madhouse27 reply :

Wow great responses. If I buy the three bank charger will I have to disconnect the crossover wire that runs between my two trolling motor batteries while I am plugged in and charging or does this not make a difference.

Ben reply :

No. The leads will connect to each batteries positive and negative post. A 12 volt battery is still just a 12V battery, doesn't matter how they are connected. The combined total of series connected batteries will change by ever howmany you have in series ie. Three will give you 36VDC (actually 38.4 VDC) but each battery will aways be 12 volts. I only have two cables (+ & -)going to my TM and have my batteries connected in series also. I have a covered AC plug at the rear of my boat, I come in, flip the cover up, plug the drop cord in and walk off and foget it. I do raise the lid, to check and make sure the charger comes on. Forgot it too good one time, headed down road and saw my 25 ft drop cord waving in the breeze, still plugged into the boat. For max battery life, you want to leave who's ever brand you get plugged in all the time. Unless the charger goes bad (never known but one to and I think it was actually a bad battery that caused it), it's not like most of your cheap home chargers, it will cook the battery if left for long periods, just the opposite, it helps them.

While loading you down the geewiz info, let me educate you a little on deep cycle batteries and charging them.

The recommended charge rate is approx 10% of it's rated AH capacity (105 AH battery, charge at 10.5 amp)and should never be charged at more than 25% of it's rated AH capacity. A lower charge can be used but needs to be at least enough to make small gas bubbles rise from the plates. This is necessary to keep the electrolite the same from the top to the bottom of the cells.

A battery should never be discharged more than 80% or below approx 12VDC. This also damages and shortens the life of a battery. It should also be discharged by approx 20% before charging.

A battery designed for 300 charge cycles at an 80% discharge will last less than 200 if run down to 10%. I may last over 500 if only run down to 50% and even more if run down even less. That's why it's important to match your batteries AH capacity to the way you use them. Don't buy the biggest, baddest batteries you can get and then only use 10% of them each trip. At the same time, don't buy little cheap batteries and run them down to below 12 volts (each) everytime you go out.

Never install a new battery with at battery that has been recharged over 25 times. This can actually damage the new battery.

NEVER, NEVER, NEVER let a battery sit with less than 80% charge. Not even overnight. Permenant Sulfation will start, this is sayed to be the main cause of battery failure on over 80% of the marine batteries checked for the reason they failed. The only way to remove it is with a Pulser. This is a little device that zaps the battery with a high voltage, high frequency signal the breaks up the Sulfation. It will restore a battery that has been left totally discharge for months, as long the plates have not started coming apart. Will also keep your batteries at peak capactiy for the life of the battery materials.

WOW, got a little long winded, think I'll quit.

Well, figured I'd better add one more thing on sizing a deep cylce battery. The amp hour capacity can be hard to find or not even on some batteries. A good thing to look for is the Reserve Capacity. This should be how many minutes the battery will last with a 25 amp load on it. Ah or reserve capacity is important when comparing batteries. Take a Trojan SCS200 (group 27 size) has 200 minutes reserve, an Interstate SRM-27B (note the B, that's their bigger 27) has 180 minutes and their AGM OPTIMA on has 155 minutes. Ain't no battery, don't care who's it is, is going to run any longer than somebody elses with the same reserve capacity or AH capacity if rated by the 20 hr rating. Make sure alway compare apples to apples when shopping and use the same rating. A 130 Ah battery at 20 hours is only about a 105 AH battery if rated at 5 hours. If they give the reserve capacity, it's usually always the minutes the battery will last with a 25 amp load. So, no matter what they claim for run time, the same rated battery will not last any longer than another. Now there is great difference in the life of the battery based on materials used and if it's flooded cell, GEL cell or AGM. AGM's and Gel you don't have to worry about Sulfaction but they normally won't have the run time the flood cell batteries give.

Some of the cheap batteries won't give you any kind of ratings because they don't want you know know that it's only half the battery many others are a just a few dollars more

OK, now I'll quit, about done wrote a book

Madhouse27 reply :

Ben, you are the man!

Yankee_Bassman reply :

" At the same time, don't buy little cheap batteries and run them down to below 12 volts (each) everytime you go out. "

Ben:

My bow mounted Lowrance unit shows how many volts I'm drawing from the trolling motor. It seems to me that it always drops below 12 volts when I'm using it, and it doesn't take much use on a freshly charged set of batteries to start to show high 11's when at rest. I got the boat used last year, and the batteries came with it. Is this an indication I need to replace the batteries? They gave me what I think is more than adequate service time per charge.

Madhouse:

I have a two bank on-board hooked to my two T/M batteries. I wish it was three, but it was brand new to the boat when I bought it.....I had to pull the cranking battery twice last summer to charge it. I just don't run the 115 HP O/B long enough to put an adequate charge in the battery, especially since I'm running the radio most days when I'm out on the lake, or the running/anchor lights when I'm night fishing. We don't have those 50 mile runs to the other end of the lake/reservoir up here.....on the other hand, a little electricity is a lot cheaper that gassing one of those 250 HP monsters, even at PSNH prices.

Ben reply :

I see a couple of problems I would recommend getting away from right of the bat. You should not be running your Lowrance off the TM batteries. If you are running one of the fully varialbe speed trolling motors, like the Minkota Maximizer, they can damage the depthfinder. The 12/24 motors that have to five or six speed positions are not as bad but still not recommended.

If you're batteries are dropping to below 12 volts on the depth finder, that means you have one of two problems or possibly both. You have a bad connection or your batteries are junk. Most of todays deep cycle TM batteries will show approx 12.8 VDC when good, fully charged and let set for 24 hours after charging. A ball park rule of thumb is the battery is discharged approx 10% for each 0.1 VDC drop. Remember I said ball park, it's actually a little less than 10% but were not gonna split hairs. I would put me a good digital volt meter across the battery terminals. You will sometimes get a couple of tenths extra drop when the TM is in the water running on max but no way should it be dropping below 12 VDC. A battery is considered totally run down when it's below 11.9

Now as for the reading you LCD is showing, is it connected at the TM end of the cables or the battery end. If at the TM end, you way have too small of cables coming from the battery. You could also have bad/dirty connection at the battery. That's why you should first check it with a DVM on the battery post. If you get good readings on the battery post, then take every connection between the TM and the battery appart and clean them good, positive and negative.

Not sure what make and model 115 you have but many have less than a 10 amp charging system. That's hardly enough to charge the battery if you run it all day, even if you don't have any other accessories going. With a small motor/charging system, you should definetly be charging your battery everytime you get back from lake.

Yankee_Bassman reply :

Thanks, Ben....FYI, it's a 1995 Mercury/Tracker.....not sure which end the connection is at. I'm pretty good mechanically, but the 12v electrical stuff is like Quantum Physics to me....I usually charge the batteries each night if I use the boat more than a few hours (it's docked at the lake) since the lake is only about 600 acres, and I usually only use the O/B motor to get back in at the end of the day, or to go to the far end if that's where I want to start....most days, I leave the dock on the TM, and start fishing from right there. I'll take your advice on cleaning and checking all the connections and metering the batteries. They're not a matched set, and I'm not sure of their ages, so I'm leaning toward starting fresh with two new ones in the Spring.

Are you in the battery business?

Ben reply :

Nope,

Don't know anything about them

Retired from the Air Force, as a Ground Radio Communications Equipment Repairman, Now make my wifes spending as a road service Tech for a Clark Forklift dealer. The reason I say "wifes". we made a deal when I went back to work, she gets that check, I get my retirement check. Gives me about $2,000 a month "fishing money" that I don't have account for a singe dime of. I don't have to ask "honey, you recon we have enough left over this month for me buy a new reel etc". My whole married life (37 years, wow), the family has always come first with me, now it's my turn.

Actually, a lot of the equipment I work on is run on batteries (GREAT BIG batteries). I may be messing with 12 volt cranking battery, then six volt golf cart batteries the next and 4,000 lb 48 volt batteries the next, and the general public and people using this equipment doesn't have a clue about how to care for the batteries. I went to a place that as we were walking back to the lift, the man was explaining how it would charge up in about 20 minutes, but would only run about 45 minutes before it was dead again. I told him it just sounded like the batter was low in water. He gave me this dumb look and asked, "are you suppose to put water in them"????????. He'd had this lift for over three years, probably took over 20 gallons of water, I spent a long time with a hose pipe filling it. An $8,000 battery totally fried. Having deal with and make recommendations to people on what equipment, what battery, what charger, how they should maintain the batteries etc. has kinda forced me to learn more than I really ever wanted to know about them.

I always buy my TM batteries in pairs. I've never had but one to fail when less than two years old, which kinda blows the not using a new battery with a battery that has been charged more than 25 time slap out of the water, hell, that's only about two months for me.

I also replace my vehicle batteries every four years, don't mater what the warrenty says. The heat a vibrations under a car hood is hell on one and after three years you are running on borrowed time so for what little they cost, peace of mind is a better than being stranded, waiting for AAA or looking someone that can give you a boost.

One thing, when buying batteries, check the date code, I will not buy a battery that has been sitting on the shelf for three months, which is common for low volume places. Even in Walmart, if they have too many batteries at the end of the season, some may sit there til the next spring.

Yankee_Bassman reply :

Thanks again, Ben. Great info.....

jb_from_texas reply :

this might be a stupid question but here goes anyway.

do i really need an on board charger?

i have a 16feet skeeter with two batts. one for cranking/depth finder/live wells. the other is for trolling only. the trolling one is a deep cycle.

when i get back from a trip i simply hook up my portable charger. it can handle gel/reg and deep cycle. it has modes specific for each. it can charge a 10amp or trickle at 2amp. it also does not over charge.

i charge the trolling batt first then the cranking one. they are both totally charged in a few hours.

here is the stupid part of my question. what is the difference between an on board and mine (other than being able to charge both batts at same time and constantly charging with the on board)?

i still have to run an extension cord to the boat (it stays outside) with either set up.

thanks for not laughing

Madhouse27 reply :

Jb, I've always looked at the on board chargers as simply an easier way to go about getting the batteries charged. I've always used a portable charger but it's a pain getting in late from fishing and trying to get several batteries charged for the next day. For me it usually means getting up in the middle of the night to switch the charger to the next battery. I've slept through the midnight alarm and had to head out on the water with only one of my trolling motor batteries charged. I was looking for a system where I could park the boat, plug it in and get on with my life until the next morning knowing everything would be ready to go. I'm looking at the BPS XPS 3 bank that is around $150. I think it will be money well spent.

Ben reply :

Nobody needs an onboard charger, they are strickly convenience. You do need high quality battery chargers though. You can buy a good "Smart Charger" or "Intelligent" charger that will work just as good as any of the onboards and better than some. With a good charger, you hook it to the battery and leave it connected until you get ready to go next time. If you do this with a standard battery charger, you will have some fried batteries when you get ready to go next time. You can buy a good 10 amp Smart Charger for less than $75. The best chargers going now are the new, High Frequency chargers. They will do wonders at rejuvinating batteies that have starting loosing their run time becuase of the sulfication caused by poor charging practices. Schumacher makes a several different ones and I've just ordered their 6 amp model for less the $70 to use on some batteries that need some TLC, and I already have close to $1000 worth of different chargers. There are all types of high frequency devices being made now to remove sulfication, the #1 cause of dead marine batteries.

Yankee_Bassman reply :

So Ben...

If you have an on-board charger, is it a good idea to have one of the high-frequency chargers on hand to use once in awhile to prevent the sulfication?

Ben reply :

Me and my spelling, should have gone further than the 3rd grade in school, should be sulphation.

A good onboard charger that has a float mode when batteries reach full charge will prevent sulphation as long as it stays plugged in while the boat is parked. In float the charger maintains approx 13.303 VDC on the batteries, the ideal storage mode for lead acid batteries, remeber flood cell lead acid batteries are the only ones that give this problem, since they are the only ones that use sulfuric acid and lead. If the charger is one that cuts off and then cuts back on when the battery voltage drops to a certain level, I would from time to time disconnect it and and hook a high frequency charger or maintainer/conditioner to them and leave it for several days. I have a six year old Dual Pro two bank charger in one of my boats. Been to cheap to buy a ProMariner for that one since I don't use it often. I don't use it much and don't get great battery life from the batteries, that's why I bought the high frequency charger. High Frequency, Smart chargers are the way to go if you're looking to buy a little 10 - 15 amp charger. They charge much faster than the old 10 amp transformer chargers and it actually helps the battery to leave the connected, unlike the old chargers that will fry a battery if you leave it connected. I've also got several batteries that have been sittiing for a while I'm gonna try to recover just to experiment.

I've got three different ones I'm going to connect my O-scope to and compare the outputs this weekend. I picked up a BatteryMINDer Plus, high frequency 1.3A Maintainer - Conditioner (approx $50) and a Vector 2/6/12 Amp High Frequency Charger (approx $65) at Northern tools today and the Schumacher I ordered should be here. Gonna look a the peak voltages, frequencies and wave shapes to see if theres any difference between them. They also had a Century for $100 but decided not the get that one right now. I'm more interested in the frequency and peak voltage in the float mode (maintenance mode). This is where I would be using them to desulphate a battery, got plenty of all kinds of chargers to charge them.

So, to answer your question. If you've had your batteries for several months or more you might be surprised how much a High Frequency charger or High Frequency Maintainer/Conditioner might bring them back to life. Should mention, this is not a one charge deal, it's conditioning them a number of times over several weeks to fully recover them. Going by what the battery folks and other experts are saying, they should be well worth the $50 - $100 investment. Like I said, I'm playing with a couple of different one to see for myself.

Madhouse27 reply :

I wish Ben was my next door neighbor so I could go over and borrow all his good stuff.

Yankee_Bassman reply :

One again Ben, thanks....I guess its time to retire that old Sears charger that doesn't shut itself off.......

jb_from_texas reply :

same topic, different question...

is there any precautions or concerns when mounting a charger near fuel?

i was thinking of mounting a charger on the underside of the hatch that covers the fuel and batteries

Triton_Mike reply :

Don't count out the Dual Pro. I've been running a Dual Pro for almost 10 years. They set the standard in customer service bar none. If your Dual Pro is EVER needed in repair all you have to do is call Dual Pro and they will ship you a NEW Dual Pro in the mail no charge in exchange for your old charger and have it there almost overnight. In other words once you buy a Dual Pro thats the only Dual Pro you'll ever buy in your lifetime.

Here are 20 TOP reasons to buy a Dual Pro.

1. New Millenium Charging Technology.

Exclusive method that incorporates failsafe, step down power supplies, silicon controlled rectifiers (SCR's), highly advanced integrated circuitry and a new microprocessor that not only assures a full charge but keeps your batteries conditioned for extended life.

2. Safest Chargers Ever Manufactured.

Protected against reverse polarity, short circuits, overvoltage and ground faults and will not allow sparking or arcing under any conditions.

3. Most Reliable Chargers On The Market Today.

Their chargers are designed to last for the lifetime of your equipment. The return rate is less than two percent-well over 150,000 in service.

4. Charges Batteries to 100% Without Overcharging.

Our chargers will bring the batteries to 100% of their full potential. Our tests against major competitors confirm that we achieve both the highest Specific Gravity and longest discharge times of any charger on the market without overcharging.

5. Full Shut-Off After Charge. No Trickle Charge

Most equipment owners are looking for a charger that has a full shut-off since they know that this is the best way to prevent overcharging and "frying" their batteries. We have a full shut-off and a monitoring system that allows our chargers to return to charge mode only as needed.

6. Trouble Free - Just Plug It In And Forget It.

This is the number one comment that we hear from our customers. We recommend that the chargers be plugged in to power at all times since it has the automatic shut-off and automatic return to charge features. This makes our chargers ideal for both overnight charging and long term storage.

7. Totally Independent Chargers In The Same Housing.

They use independent power supplies and totally independent electronic circuits for each bank of our chargers. This allows for seperate and simultaneous charging of each battery. For example, our Three Bank Pro Charger actually contains three seperate battery chargers.

8. Monitors The Ambient Temperature To Assure A Full Charge.

A unique feature of our chargers is a temperature sensing device located in the leads going to each battery. By automatically adjusting the charge for any given ambient temperature, we assure a full charge in all weather conditions.

9. True Reverse Polarity Protection.

When the leads of the chargers are accidentally touched together or connected to the wrong poles of a battery, no sparking or arcing will occur and the charger's circuits will not be damaged. Before the charger can deliver current it must be connected properly to a battery.

10. Fully Waterproof.

We were the first completely waterproof charger on the market. Our chargers are sealed in a waterproof case that protects the electrical components without smothering them and causing severe overheating.

11. Most Economical.

Our chargers are competitively priced with others on the market. In the long term we save the equipment owner money by prolonging the life of his batteries. The best thing you can do to extend battery life and performance is to keep a full charge on the battery without overcharging it. We accomplish this better than any other chargers.

12. No Mounting Restrictions.

Since our chargers generate very little heat, there are no mounting restrictions. To our knowledge we have the only chargers with this feature.

13. Available In Stainless Steel Models.

We offer all of our chargers in a stainless steel case for about 10% more money.

14. Designed And Manufactured In The U.S.A.

We design our own products and they are manufacturerd by our company in Nashville, Tennessee. This gives us total control of product quality and assures our commitment to customer service.

15. FCC Part 15 A and B Interference Compliance.

Our chargers are in total compliance with these FCC Regulations. Most chargers do not comply and some competitors have been taken off the market for this reason.

16. Recommended By Battery Manufacturers.

If you were to ask most major manufacturers, chances are they would tell you that our chargers charge their batteries better than any other charger on the market. Some are considering extending their battery's warranty if the customer uses one of our chargers.

17. Chargers Of Choice For Major Equipment Manufacturers.

We market our chargers to OEM's, Distributors, and Dealers in the following industries: Marine, Trucking, Material Handlers, Fire Engines, Rescue Vehicles, Hi-Tech Industrial Equipment, Golf Carts, RVs, Wheel Chairs and Others.

18. C.E. Approval For European Customers.

We have one of the few battery chargers that have C.E. approval. This certification is required for battery chargers installed on equipment to be sold on the European Market.

19. Best Warranty And Customer Service.

We are known for having the best possible customer service. Our two year, no hassle, warranty is unconditional. We ship a free replacement the same day we find out about a problem, and we pay the freight both ways.

20. One Year Money-Back Satisfaction Guarantee.

We offer our customers a full year to try our chargers and if they are not completely satisfied, we will take the product back and give them a full refund of the purchase price. The only offer of this kind anywhere.

T Mike

jb_from_texas reply :

thanks mike.

but i was wondering if there was any cocern mounting a charger new the fuel. anybody?

Triton_Mike reply :

JB, Absolutely no issues mounting near fuel. Thats the thing with Dual Pro you won't have any sparks if you happen to cross the leads by accident.

Mike

fishwish reply :

Just a thank you to Ben for all that good info. I really learned a lot and appreciated the time it must have taken to share it. Answered a lot of questions I've had about batteries over the years.

Ben reply :

Hopefully there's no fuel vapors in the compartment, if so you need to fix that, but you have nothing to worry about mounting the charger in there. The charger is fully sealed and once the cables are connected to the batteries you leave them connected so there's no chance of a spark. The only time it would have any chance of making an arc is when plugging and unplugging the AC. Get one of those AC connectors with a cover that mounts in the gunwall somewhere so you don't have to raise the cover to get to the charger cord and then theres nothing in there that can cause an arc.

You just don't want to get it into too tight of an area that it can't get air circulation around the charger case and make it get too hot.

-hydrillagorilla- reply :

Not trying to hihack this thread - but I am in the same boat as above. My boat has an on board 2 bank charges I want to use for my trolling batteries. I just switched from a 12v system to a 24v system (with the jumper that goes from neg to a positive). I took one of the cables from my on board charger and was trying to connect to the coordinating + terminal and it sparked! I quit and unplugged my jumper and hooked it up as usual to my portable charger. I was very concerened hooking it up to a 24v system correctly. So I am still disconnecting my trolling batteries and charging them individually but I have an on board and really want the convenience.

I am most worried about messing up my system - everything works great now (except the on board charging situation)!

Ben reply :

When connecting the charger to the batteries, connect the negative and positive leads of the charger to their respective battery. It's very common to get a small arc when you first connect the charger. My Pro Mariners always make a small arc when I first connect them. As long as the same set of negative and positive charger leads are connected to the same, how the batteries are tied together makes no difference to the charger. You can have 10 batteries connected together in series (120 volts) and still charge each battery with a 12 volt charger, without disconnecting any of them.

-hydrillagorilla- reply :

OK thanks so much Ben! I will connect the batteries to the respective positive and negative termanals just like I would normally.

Appriciate the info!

redboat reply :

Good thread, guys.

One thing I didn't see mentioned - I may have overlooked it, if so I apologize - you've got to keep the batteries topped off with water. This is especially important if you use an onboard charger because if you let the battery water level fall it'll get hot when you charge it, causing even more water loss, making it get hotter next time and so on until you finally fry the battery.

This happened to me when I put a charger on my last boat. It was a real pain watering the batteries, hard to see the water level, so after replacing the TM battery I installed a battery filling system. It connects the cells in all the batteries, you fill it using a squeeze bulb. Stops when the cells are topped off so you can't overfill it. I use distilled water. I recently put this system on my new boat, a Triton with 2 TM and 1 cranking battery. I had 'em put a three bank charger on it, despite the dealer assuring me I'd "never ever" need to charge the cranking battery.

Couple of other comments:

1) If you're going to use a charger for the cranking battery its best to replace it with a deep cycle battery. Cranking batteries aren't designed to be discharged then recharged like the trolling motor batteries. You lose a few cold start amps but thats easy to fix - get a bigger battery.

2) All batteries have internal resistance; therefore, its normal for a fully charged battery in good condition to show a voltage drop when its loaded. You'll see this same thing on your car if you turn the lights on when the motor's not running - turn the ignition on and look at the voltmeter; you'll see it drop to 12 volts or less. I put a charge meter on my old boat. I could run the TM for a minute or two, then hit the meter button - it'd show about half charged. If I let it sit for a minute or two then read the voltmeter again it'd be right back up.

jb_from_texas reply :

Quote
Hopefully there's no fuel vapors in the compartment, if so you need to fix that, but you have nothing to worry about mounting the charger in there. The charger is fully sealed and once the cables are connected to the batteries you leave them connected so there's no chance of a spark. The only time it would have any chance of making an arc is when plugging and unplugging the AC. Get one of those AC connectors with a cover that mounts in the gunwall somewhere so you don't have to raise the cover to get to the charger cord and then theres nothing in there that can cause an arc.
You just don't want to get it into too tight of an area that it can't get air circulation around the charger case and make it get too hot.

i dont plan on mounting an AC cover but wouldnt it be the same if i always plugged the charger in first then plugging into the outlet in garage? this way there is never a loaded connection made in the hatch on boat.

Gatorbassman reply :

What if I have two batteries wired in parallel. Can I use one charger for them?

Ben reply :

Plugging the charger in first, then the cord would work just fine.

Maintaining water level and using distilled water is extremely important.

On the post above, must have been one dumb dealer and you were smart to ignore him and install a bank for the cranking battery, there have been numbers of studies done on tourament pro's and other bass boats showing the cranking battery is usually down to about 80% charge at the end of the day unless they made long run back to the ramp. Plus the fact that it's just as important to keep the charger connected when the boat is not in use to keep the batteries at full charge. A lot of people are too used to the old, cheap automatic charges that fries a battery if left connected and they have a hard time with leaving a good charger on all the time, but that is the best for the battery.

Deep cycle batteries do ok as cranking batteries on smaller motors but can cause you problems on the bigger, Direct Injected V-6 motors, they may not deliver the cranking amps needed. The 200/225 Fichts are very demanding when it comes to cranking one of those. For those, you need to run a big, dual purpose battery.

I would question the condition of my batteries or cable connections if my battery charge indicator (BCI) was dropping that much while running the TM. Even on max, the battery should drop very little if everything is good. I run a Curtis, 24V digital BCI mounted at the front deck on my batteries that constanlty monitors the level of charge an it never drops when the motor is running and goes back up when not. Once a battery gets near the end of it's life cycle or has become heavily sulphated, they will do that because they can't deliver the amp demand.

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On Board Battery Charger assistance 2024

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