More battery questions

[Steve Johansen]

OK, I'll give you a brief update as to what I've got going on and then ask a couple of questions...



I am running 2 Blue-top Optimas and they are wired exclusively to my 12/24V trolling motor.



I added another Red-top Optima (from my truck) to power such add-ons that I have installed such as my sonars, accessory lighting, stereo, etc. This will get replaced with another Blue-Top Optima eventually, but for now it does what I want it to.



I have a single battery wired to start the boat, and run all of the factory-installed options like the live-well, nav lights, bilge pump, etc. The way this is wired and used has NEVER caused me any grief, and the charging system of the main motor seems to keep it fully charged.



When I got the boat it had the single main starting/operations battery and 2 trolling motor batteries with a built-in 2 bank charger. This all worked great until I started wanting to add more draw to the trolling motor batteries, which started limiting my day as to the available power I had available to fish with. That is why I took the advice of you guys on here and added another battery to run my accessories!



What I am wondering is how I how I should go about charging my system. With the 2 bank charger I have hooked up to the trolling motor batteries I don't have a problem except for the fact that the accessory battery isn't getting any charging when I get home and plug in.



The question that I have for you is should I get a 3-bank charger to take care of my trolling motor batteries and the accessory battery all together?



Or...



Since the 2-bank charger works, should I leave it hooked up to the trolling motor batteries and just get a single-bank charger for the accessory battery?



Or...



Does the charging system on my 1993 Evinrude 150hp put out enough amperage that I could use a constant-duty solenoid (or one of those battery isolators) to charge both the main starting battery as well as the accessory battery?



I am already thinking that the 3 bank charger will be the way to go but I would really appreciate any and all input on this!



Have any of you had any experience with the Promariner 20 Plus chargers? They are a 3-bank one that is available locally.



Thank you, in advance!



Steve

 

[TritonGlenn]

Honestly, you are going about this the wrong way. You are adding weight and extra headaches. If I were you, this is what I would do:



a) (preliminary) - get rid of the extra battery. You're toting around an extra 55+ pounds you don't need.



1) Keep your two battery setup for your trolling motor only - nothing else hooked up to them. Keep your two bank charger hooked up to those two.



2) Get a quality cranking battery with enough capacity to crank over your engine effortlessly and run everything else - livewells, lights, bilge, electronics, stereo, etc...



3) Add one single bank Guest 2608A (6 amp) to your cranking battery. Yeah, the engine charges it up when you are on the water, but they discharge when they are sitting at home doing nothing. They are about $65 and worth every penny. Even if you have to order it, it's lightweight and relatively inexpensive. I've had one taking care of my cranking battery on my tournament rig for years now.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[Bob Bourget2]

Are you running a 24 tempest at 8500rpm?..........just kidding.....lol...

 

[Steve Johansen]

To start with, 55lbs of extra battery isn't much of a concern to me, especially since it cured a couple problems I have been faced with. If 55lbs was so bad I'm sure there'd be a few of us that would be hitting the gym a little more often than umm, never??? lol



I have a quality cranking battery, but to have it run 2 sonars, a stereo, accessory lighting, charging phones and MP3 players, running the boy's Nintendo DS and possibly a spotlight on occasion for up to 18 hours or more I don't want to have to rely on it to start the motor up when the lake is empty, dark and it's WAY too late to call anybody!



I understand what you are saying about running 1 battery to 'do it all' but honestly I don't know if I really want to put that much trust in one. I can afford the extra weight, since I never have all of the 180-some litres of fuel on-board, and my partner is usually my 8-year-old son. Besides, doesn't everyone that runs a 36V trolling motor have 4 batteries anyways?



I respect, and thank you for your answer but I think that I am going to leave the 4th battery in there and continue to ask for opinions on keeping them charged. I hope this doesn't come off sounding disrespectful, because I am not at all trying to be that way.



Oh, and Bob? I am running a 27 Shooter at around 6,000 rpm!



Thanks guys!

 

[Marty Klein]

Well then, if your mind is made up and closed, what is the question?

 

[Jeff B2]

An option might be to connect the cranking & accessory batts in parallel and get a 2-bank charger for the pair. Maximizes the juice for cranking and toys.

 

[Mini]

I also run a similar set up. Well at least until yesterday.....I switched from 24v to 36v and I will be adding another battery.



With the load I would put on one cranking battery (it was tested last year) it wont last a day on the lake with livewells running, HDS8, LCX28cHD, Sirius, Amplifier, VHF radio, etc....



I will be adding an addition 29 series battery for teh trolling motor and have 1 cranking battery and one house battery. Both connected to a selctor switch (1, 2, 1+2) so both batteries or one can crank the outboard (and both charge off the same bank on the charger).

 

[Steve Johansen]

re: More battery questions by Marty KleinMember Profile,7/20/2011 08:49 ET



Well then, if your mind is made up and closed, what is the question?

The question all along has been regarding the charging of my batteries, however I DO appreciate all of the other suggestions!



Hey Mini, what are you planning on using to charge your 5 batteries? It would seem to me that you would be using a 3-bank one for your 3 trolling motor batteries, and a single bank for the cranking and house battery? I guess you could use a 2 bank for them as well but you said that you have a selector switch so while they are charging I would think that you could have the selector set on 1+2 and both would receive a charge?



Please keep your ideas and opinions coming! One of these days I will get the chance to actually get outside and implement them...



Thanks again!

 

[Mini]

I am putting in a 4 bank charger and will be charging the crank and house batteries as you described. If the selctor is in the 1+2 position it will charge from both the charger bank and the outboard alternator (when running).



I first have to pull EVERTHING out of the bilge (Ranger 520DVX) and see if I can cram two 24 series batteries in the spot that has a single 29 series tray. I think it can be done....lol



Otherwise I thought of keeping the 3 bank in there now for the trolling motor and adding a single bank for the crank and house batteries...but I woul drather have an all in one unit.

 

[Steve Johansen]

Thanks, Mini! Good luck with your project!

 

[Mini]

Thanks Steve. This boat has been one long non stop project

 

[Mini]

Well the 24 series battery trays showed up Friday afternoon (tournament Saturday morning..lol)



I did it. 5 batteries in the Ranger. I got the two 24 series batteries in the same spot as the original cranking battery. Had to rip apart the whole bilge to get re-route a livewell pumpout hose, add a new 4 bank charger (guest), add the two battery trays, re-run some wiring for the cranking battery and house battery, move some of the power pole wiring, move the circuit breaker for the accessory fuse panel I added, then put it all back together (by myself)....AND it was all done before dark!



Performed flawlessly in the tournament the next day. I wish I would have too...lol Jumped a 5+ pn a crankbait right at the boat and broke off another toad on a drop shot. Still managed 19.05 pounds, but we had two smaller 3 (3lb10oz and 3lb 8oz) pounders too. IF we land just those two fish it would have pushed us over the 23 pound mark and possibly a win....oh well THATS FISHING!!! lol



On another note I did finish 3rd in the Tracker/Nitro only tournament on Lake St Clair the week before

 

[Carl Bowers]

Why not spend the money on a Stealth on-board charging system? If you're getting to the lake on a regular basis, you might find you don't need to plug in more than a couple of times a year. I run three batteries, all Genesis gels. I added a switch that will let me use all three batteries to start the motor if necessary, though I've never needed to yet. It will also allow me to shut the boat completely OFF. Except for a couple of days where we were floating more than fishing and cracking the stereo all day long and pounding my subs, I've not had to plug in all year. I have two volt meters on my boat that monitor my cranking battery and my trolling / amplifier / accessories circuit. It's worked very well for me.

 

[Mini]

Trust me I need to plug in daily if I use the boat in a tournament or practice. We have to run a trolling motor pretty good up here in open water. Fun fishing not as much but I plug in daily anyway. Stealth systems are nice and I had a similar system on my last charger (24v system, Pro Xtra II from Charging Systems International). It would charge the trolling batts after the cranking batt was charged from the outboard charging system. if you are referring to the charge on the run (charges while driving the truck), then I dont need it. I am only 20 minutes from the ramp and will have to plug in anyway.



Its the amount of accessories I have on the boat that are the problem. I dont care what they say that HDS/Structure Scan/Sirius/Ethernet/NEMA2000 drains some amps. But then again so do 2 750GPH livewell pumps running all day, a 750 and 1000GPH bilge pumps (that cycle 20 times a day, more in rough water), a 120w amplifier, Lowrance VHF ship to shore, two power poles and the least draw is LED lighting for the compartments and livewells (which is rarely on).



I dont NEED all of that stuff on at once, but at times they are for extended periods of time.