[Rhodes22-list] Battery Advice

[Geoff Farrell]

I have the same setup as you do. My batteries stay charged with the solar
panels. It's interesting to note that although I stored my boat under a
roof from April 15 through Dec 1 my batteries were fully charged when I got
the boat out of storage. Seems the ambient light was enough to keep them
topped off.

I do notice that my batteries use a lot of water, perhaps because they are
constantly being charged by the panels. I was warned by an old salt to
check the fluid often, and he was right.

 Recently, I purchased a battery meter that simply plugs into the 12V
outlet over the galley. It monitors the batteries during charging and also
while they are being used, and seems to work great. I can measure voltage
drop while using various combinations of equipment (radio, nav lights,
etc.). I have been very pleased that on bright sunny days I can use the VHF
radio and my Ipod (for navigation and music) and charge an external
portable speaker without any battery drain.

My motor is hard wired to battery 2. When cruising I set my battery switch
to battery 1 to keep battery 2 fully charged for restarting the engine. I
haven't, however, done any overnighters so my battery use is minimal.

I still have Stan's original batteries and so I would also be interested in
what the best replacement batteries are for when mine die.




On Mon, Apr 2, 2012 at 10:00 AM, Leland <LKUHN at cnmc.org> wrote:

>
> Need some battery advice.
>
> Probably should have replaced my battery long ago.  When I need to
> pull-start my outboard in the marina it usually recharges the battery
> enough
> that I can use the electric start when I'm ready to come in.  Didn't happen
> yesterday.  By the time I unscrewed everything to get to the flywheel I was
> dangerously close to running into the causeway rip-rap.
>
> Easy answer would be to replace the battery with the one Stan put in.
> Wasn't sure if there was something better out there now.  I've got the
> electric motor winch which I assume uses a ridiculous amount of juice.  I
> have one battery hardwired to the motor which is linked to a second house
> battery.  Both batteries are linked to two solar panels.
>
> I've taken zero care of the batteries since I bought the boat seven years
> ago.
>
> Should I be concerned about the solar panels overcharging the batteries?
>
> Should I periodically charge the batteries to full capacity?
>
> Any advice on what battery would be best and what care it needs?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Lee
> 1986 Rhodes22  AT EASE
> Kent Island, MD
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