Battery Charger??

[eckcn17]

Hi,

Just bought a pearson 31-2 and cannot wait to get to sail it next Spring!! One of the only accessories that it does not have that I would like is a battery charger to use in conjunction with the shore power. It has a normal 2 battery system, Any suggestions, help, info, etc on a good make and model and most importantly, what size?? 10 amp etc?? It is our first boat of this magnitude as you can tell
Thanks in advance
Chris

[Sternik]

I am using ProSport 12Amp dual battery charger to keep my two agm batteries charged up every time I use shore power.... I am very happy with it, altough next time I will get 20A charger (just takes a little time to fully charge 2x135Ah) Good price, easy operation and it is compatible with acid, gel and agm batteries.... I am sure there are other brands to consider as well.

[scottyt]

first you need to look at the size of your bank. also you need to look at how you use your boat, if it is normally a week end boat with short stays around shore power you need a bigger charger.

I say a good size is 1/20 to 1/10 your bank size. If you do just short day and weekend sails then a charger sized to 1/20 of your bank should be fine. Use 10 amps as a minimum, and go from there. if you do a lot of long sails followed by just a night on shore power then go closer to 1/10 your banks, as it should be able to charge you up over night.

now remember you dont want to discharge your bank more than 50 % so make sure you have enough battery to do what you need. try to aim for 2 to 3 days of actual use before you hit the 50 % charge.

If you want to you can get a charger that has 2 output for the two banks but a better way is to put an echo charger on your starting battery to keep it charged. you can then save a little on a single output charger. The echo charge also stops the need to switch the battery switch when running the motor to charge the house battery and the start battery.

[DwayneSpeer]

I've been using a Guest dual smart charger for about 10 years and it's serviced me quite well. I keep my boat on shore power all the time it's in dock and my current house batteries are 7 years old and show no signs of wear. I also use an echo charger for my starting battery that comes off of one side of the dual charger.

[nickmerc]

fahnke,

All you need to do is mount the charger to a bulkhead or somewhere convenient. This usually takes for screws or bolts. Then, you will need to run a negative wire to the charger. This involves two crimps, one on each end, and pulling the wire between the charger and the negative bus. Lastly, you need to run a wire from the charger to each battery bank you want to charge. This is done the same way as the negative wire.

For a novice this should take a few hours if you are really careful and take your time.
________
BigTITSall4U live

[mitiempo]

Dwayne
Your Echo Charger is wired to your charger? Shouldn't be. Should be wired to positives of each bank and ground otherwise it will not work.

[eckcn17]

Thanks!
I am looking at a few different 20amp models, one is a (or for a) 24v system, and the other is obviously 12 v (or 2 - 12) I assume I do not want the 24v charger?? since I must have a 12 volt system?

[Stuff4Toys]

Here's a great 2 bank 6 amp per bank charger
Pro Charging Systems : RS2 2 - 6 Amp Banks 12 Amp Battery Charge [RS2] - $125.99 : Dual Pro Battery Chargers - FREE SHIPPING -, the First Name in Marine Charging Systems

or 2 bank 10 amp per bank charger
Pro Charging Systems : SS2 2-10 Amp Banks 20 Amp Battery Charger [SS2] - $215.99 : Dual Pro Battery Chargers - FREE SHIPPING -, the First Name in Marine Charging Systems

or 15 amp per bank charger
Pro Charging Systems : PS2 2-15 AMP Banks 30 Amp Battery Charger [PS2] - $269.10 : Dual Pro Battery Chargers - FREE SHIPPING -, the First Name in Marine Charging Systems

Crimp connectors already there, all you have to is run one of the provided leads to each battery and hook them up under the wing nuts, or regular nuts if you are a safety nut. Then use the included screws to mount the charger on a bulkhead.

John

[sailor1950]

bought a boat last year first owner. Does the battery charger charge both batteries when selected or do I have to select 1&2 on the selector switch?

[celenoglu]

Normally the charger is directly connected to the batteries bypassing the selector switch. Therefore both batteries are charged at the same time.