Marina Battery

[XCR-700]

So when it comes time to replace your batteries, what are most of you buying?

In my situation, our a Formula 270 BR lives in a valet marina and the batteries go inconsistent periods of time without a charge and its undercover so a solar charger will not work.

Worse yet, it is stored all winter with no charger,,,

Clearly this is the worst situation you can subject a battery to, so whatever I choose needs to be super resilient.

Thanks!

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

So when it comes time to replace your batteries, what are most of you buying?

In my situation, our a Formula 270 BR lives in a valet marina and the batteries go inconsistent periods of time without a charge and its undercover so a solar charger will not work.

Worse yet, it is stored all winter with no charger,,,

Clearly this is the worst situation you can subject a battery to, so whatever I choose needs to be super resilient.

Thanks!

I would be looking at a dual purpose AGM battery with the highest CCA and AH capacity. The main reason I recommend AGM is their rate of discharge is half of that of a flooded Battery at only 3% per month as compared to a flooded (lead /acid) at 6-7% per month. Since you have no way to trickle charge this would be a good benefit to you in my opinion. They can also take the pounding a boat gives better and are completely maintenance free. Optima and Duracell are two brands of AGM I have used with excellent success.

Dan

[XCR-700]

It currently has 2 giant AGM batteries, and this would be the 4th year with 3 good years behind them.

The AGMs that are in it are more than twice the cost of any good brand lead acid battery and didnt seem to last very long. Makes me winder if AGM batterys are not a good choice where you cannot keep them on a charger or dont use the vehicle regularly.

Its probably the worst situation you can subject a battery to, inconsistent use, then 7+ months of dead storage with no access to charging.

I'm guessing the valet marinas sell a lot of batterys!

And at the same time how could they possibly plug in all those boats,,, It would be an impossible task.

[thinkxingu]

A good/charged battery will last the winter without much negative effect—the golf carts here in our association last years doing just that. Obviously, we charge them full before storage and disconnect the leads (through the "tow" switch).

In terms of "which" batteries to buy, I think a lot depends on how it's/they're used. We're on our 7th season with a single Interstate that only gets charged when underway (disconnected in winter), but we also only have a single 150 OB, basic 4-speaker stereo, GPS, and, sometimes, a 12v inflator. We are rarely out at night to use lights.

I looked into a solar charging system and dual batteries, but I just couldn't bring myself to spend the moolah.

I suspect we'll replace this with a new Interstate next season and just hope for five+ years out of each.

Sent from my SM-G990U1 using Tapatalk

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

So when it comes time to replace your batteries, what are most of you buying?

IMO, the Optima Blue Tops offer the best overall price/power/performance ratio. Otherwise, a quality AGM battery would be my suggestion in any typical marine battery application.


If you are considering the newer LiFeP04 (Lithium) batteries advertised as "drop in" replacements, I would caution against that. The "drop in" lithium batteries are typically advertised this way because they have an onboard BMS (Battery management system) to allow them to be charged by common chargers or alternators. However they pose a risk as these onboard BMSes will do a full disconnect of the battery in the (rare) event of an error condition. This sudden disconnect of the battery and charging load can damage or destroy an alternator if there is not other sufficient draw. Granted it is an unlikely scenario, and on Winnipesaukee it is unlikely you would be stranded outside of communications range, but it can still ruin your weekend in a hurry. These batteries, even the marine-rated ones, are also not ABYC compliant most of the time, as their BMS does not provide an external monitoring capability, though some recent ones I have seen do have a NMEA2000 connection port.


I know you didn't ask about Lithium batteries specifically, but they usually come up in these kinds of discussions. They CAN be very viable options for a house bank setup, with an appropriate external BMS, and other batteries for your engine cranking.

[upthesaukee]

We bought our Mariah bowrider in 2011 with a single battery (wet battery). In 2012, we went with a dual battery setup and had two AGM batteries installed. Can't remember the size, but I think we went large.

Never had a problem with no use over a period of two weeks or so. Always put the battery switch to off. Bilge pump was direct wired to batteries. Over the winter, we changed the batteries before putting the boat to bed. Disconnected the batteries. In the spring, the batteries had enough power to crank up the engine with the "ear muffs" on.

Dave

[AC2717]

I am on year 7 with the same battery, but attached to a solar charger during the season and just disconnected during the winter months when in storage at Marina. It is a Walmart Everstart Marine Battery (same as a interstate battery internals)(not deep cycle).
Without the option to keep it cycling you are kind up to whatever the battery decides it wants to do, even with the AGM and the Lithium ones (which are huge cost with no extra warranty benefit, with AGM its additional cost than traditional batteries but again no extra Warranty benefit,

One option might to pull the leads when putting it back into Valet although they might not know and try to move the boat and it not start, would be something you would have to discuss, but I have many friends in Valet and they do not seem to be talking about battery issues either. Check for Draws

[wentworthwhitbreadIII]

Originally Posted by AC2717

I am on year 7 with the same battery, but attached to a solar charger during the season and just disconnected during the winter months when in storage at Marina. It is a Walmart Everstart Marine Battery (same as a interstate battery internals)(not deep cycle).

Without the option to keep it cycling you are kind up to whatever the battery decides it wants to do, even with the AGM and the Lithium ones (which are huge cost with no extra warranty benefit, with AGM its additional cost than traditional batteries but again no extra Warranty benefit,



One option might to pull the leads when putting it back into Valet although they might not know and try to move the boat and it not start, would be something you would have to discuss, but I have many friends in Valet and they do not seem to be talking about battery issues either. Check for Draws

Formula 26 here. Two batteries and they only seem to last a couple years. Frustrating but that’s been our deal for 15 years


Sent from my iPhone using Winnipesaukee Forum mobile app

[BroadHopper]

I have a covered slip. The boat is in after ice-out until the snow flies! I had great luck with dual-purpose batteries in my 223LS. Batteries are stored with the boat in winter. Last several years.

I normally buy Interstate but the price point leads me to DieHard at Sam's. I see no difference performance-wise.

I have grandkids who would play the audio all day. No problems!

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by wentworthwhitbreadIII

Formula 26 here. Two batteries and they only seem to last a couple years. Frustrating but that’s been our deal for 15 years

You most likely have some kind of constant current draw that is dropping your batteries down below 12V frequently, which will lead to a shortened lifespan. Do you have/use battery disconnect switches when you are away from the boat?

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

It currently has 2 giant AGM batteries, and this would be the 4th year with 3 good years behind them.

The AGMs that are in it are more than twice the cost of any good brand lead acid battery and didnt seem to last very long. Makes me winder if AGM batterys are not a good choice where you cannot keep them on a charger or dont use the vehicle regularly.

Its probably the worst situation you can subject a battery to, inconsistent use, then 7+ months of dead storage with no access to charging.

I'm guessing the valet marinas sell a lot of batterys!

And at the same time how could they possibly plug in all those boats,,, It would be an impossible task.

Your should be fine. You should easily get a few more years out of your batteries. While not being continually charged, every time you run your boat you are charging them back up. At a discharge rate of 3% per month on your AGM batteries, as long as you are shutting your battery switch off when leaving it for an extended period you should be fine. Fully charge them before winter storage, pull off the negative cable and all should be OK to start in the spring even if you can’t recharge to 100%.

Dan

[Juiced06GTO]

I gave up on AGM's in my race car after going through a new optima every year. They did not like the sitting and the short burst they were run for when on the race track. The wet cell I have in there now has sat all winter long and not failed to start the car in the spring. I put a simple negative battery disconnect on it and just flip it off when the car is going to sit for a while.

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by Juiced06GTO

I gave up on AGM's in my race car after going through a new optima every year. They did not like the sitting and the short burst they were run for when on the race track. The wet cell I have in there now has sat all winter long and not failed to start the car in the spring. I put a simple negative battery disconnect on it and just flip it off when the car is going to sit for a while.

Which Optimas did you run? The red, blue, and yellow tops are all rated for different environments and use cases.

[Juiced06GTO]

I was running yellows. Think I tried a red top once as well with the same outcome. They may have changed some too in the more recent years, this was going back probably 10+ years ago before kids, when I could go race my car for entire weekends at a time without my wife sending out the hit team on me.....lol

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by Juiced06GTO

I was running yellows. Think I tried a red top once as well with the same outcome. They may have changed some too in the more recent years, this was going back probably 10+ years ago before kids, when I could go race my car for entire weekends at a time without my wife sending out the hit team on me.....lol

Same experience! and similar time frame using the Optimas, I was not at all impressed with them. Always had good long reliable service out of Interstate, Exide, and Diehard batterys over the years. This is the 3rd vehicle where I have used and AGM and not once have I gotten anything extra out of them for the much greater expense. Possibly my usage just doesnt fit the model for these batterys.

Was working on the boat yesterday, and figured out one battery has recovered pretty well, the other will not start the boat but will run it at idle so long as you dont use any high current electrical devices. As soon as you touch the power trim for example, it shuts the engine down. Switch to both batterys and it restarts and you can do anything you want on both batteries.

So my plan is to replace the weaker of the two batteries now, and at the beginning of next season I'll replace the other one.

Shopping to a classic lead/acid Marine battery now. Group 31 are a bit harder to find. Stopper at BJ's in Tilton and Manchester on the way home last night and Bass Pro Shop and no luck except for a $1000.00 super fancy bass boat battery at Bass Pro,,, Yup/nope, not interested in that if they promised it would last as long as the boat!

Might try to recover the weak battery at home on the BatteryMinder "5 stage" desulfater - charger they claim miracles,,, In truth its a really good charger, but we will see if it can in fact bring back a weak battery ;-)

[BroadHopper]

There is a risk of batteries not being fully charged if you use a machine-sensed alternator. For instance, a new battery can be fully charged and the old battery may not.

When I have two different batteries, either age or brand, I would switch batteries underway. #1 on odd days or #2 on even days. Both batteries will be fully charged.

Of course, you can always add an ACR to the battery circuit.

[XCR-700]

Looking at my Formula "bible" (all 3"+ of it,,,) in the schematic it looks like i have ACR and and circuit beaker and isolator on the second battery.

My battery master switch only has "off - 1 - combined" no "1 or 2 or combined" option, so no way to select the Aux battery by itself that I can see.

[Blue Thunder]

I might be an outlier here but I’ve had the best luck with Walmart Maxx Start marine batteries. My boat is 22 years old. Came new with an Interstate. When that went, I went through 2 Optimas very quickly. Bought the Walmart battery in 2013 and it’s still in there today. I use my boat very little, it can sit for weeks. I disconnect the cables in the winter and reconnect in the Spring.

As someone said earlier you might want to check for a parasitic draw on your battery system.

BT

[Dave R]

My guess is that you are slowly running them down. I don't know what size batteries you have, but lets say they are a pair of 100AH group 27s. If you run them down to 60% state of charge by hanging out at anchor with the fridge and stereo on for a few hours, you have to make up 80 amp hours of charging to bring them up to 100%. Lets say your OEM Mercruiser alternator produces 70 amps max (probably 50 amps at cruising speed). The fridge and stereo probably stay on while you are underway, so there's at least 10 amps used, the engine probably absorbs another 10 amps to run, now you have 30 amps to spare for charging. If everything was perfect and batteries charged at 100% efficiency all the way to 100% state of charge, you would need to cruise for 2 hours and 40 minutes to recharge the batteries. However, the batteries will not charge at 100% efficiency and after 2 hours and 40 minutes, they won't even be to 90% charged. Realistically, who's really going to drive around on plane for nearly 3 hours after a day spent anchored? A bigger alternator would help and AGM batteries are a better choice then flooded lead acid (they charge more efficiently than flooded lead acid) but the best solution with what you have now is something you already know, you need to charge them while the boat is parked.

Another solution would be to use a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery for house (everything but engine starting and running) loads. Install a Blue Sea Systems ML ACR that is connected to prioritize the starting battery first and a single 100AH LFP and you will have vastly improved your situation. One big caveat though is that the LFP cannot reside in the engine space, they cannot handle the heat, so it will need to be moved somewhere cooler. LFPs recharge at about 99% efficiency from dead to 100% SOC and they are not bothered by being stored partially charged. Another caveat is that the LFP should never be used to start the engine, so you lose a some redundancy but if you never run house loads from the start battery, it'll always be fresh.

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by Dave R

My guess is that you are slowly running them down. I don't know what size batteries you have, but lets say they are a pair of 100AH group 27s. If you run them down to 60% state of charge by hanging out at anchor with the fridge and stereo on for a few hours, you have to make up 80 amp hours of charging to bring them up to 100%. Lets say your OEM Mercruiser alternator produces 70 amps max (probably 50 amps at cruising speed). The fridge and stereo probably stay on while you are underway, so there's at least 10 amps used, the engine probably absorbs another 10 amps to run, now you have 30 amps to spare for charging. If everything was perfect and batteries charged at 100% efficiency all the way to 100% state of charge, you would need to cruise for 2 hours and 40 minutes to recharge the batteries. However, the batteries will not charge at 100% efficiency and after 2 hours and 40 minutes, they won't even be to 90% charged. Realistically, who's really going to drive around on plane for nearly 3 hours after a day spent anchored? A bigger alternator would help and AGM batteries are a better choice then flooded lead acid (they charge more efficiently than flooded lead acid) but the best solution with what you have now is something you already know, you need to charge them while the boat is parked.

Another solution would be to use a Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) battery for house (everything but engine starting and running) loads. Install a Blue Sea Systems ML ACR that is connected to prioritize the starting battery first and a single 100AH LFP and you will have vastly improved your situation. One big caveat though is that the LFP cannot reside in the engine space, they cannot handle the heat, so it will need to be moved somewhere cooler. LFPs recharge at about 99% efficiency from dead to 100% SOC and they are not bothered by being stored partially charged. Another caveat is that the LFP should never be used to start the engine, so you lose a some redundancy but if you never run house loads from the start battery, it'll always be fresh.

In my case, we run no accessories at the dock or sand bar, I actually turn the battery switch to off every time the engine is off and we are docked/anchored anywhere.

Turns out one of the 2 batterys has recovered sufficiently to start the engine. The other is 100% dead ZERO voltage. So I replaced the dead one with a Excide Marine 31 series battery from Home Depot at a truly bargain price of $139.00 and was thrilled to get it for that. I shopped around and mostly got prices from about ~$180.00 to well over over $1000.00 at Bass Pro for their top of the line model!

Interestingly the dead battery is 1 year older than the boat, not sure if it got swapped out at the dealer/marina by mistake or Formula installed a leftover in it. The other one is one year newer than the boat,,, Both were the same maker so now I have gauge as to what to expect out of the other AGM. Assuming Home Depot still sells the Excide Marine Batterys for a similar price next year, I will probably swap out the other AGM and then have the comfort of knowing I have several good years ahead and with a season in between them, hopefully they wont both need replacing at the same time. Not even so much about the cost, the group 31 batteries are just a beast of a battery to haul in and out of the engine compartment and down the docks to the boat! ;-)

[LIforrelaxin]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

Looking at my Formula "bible" (all 3"+ of it,,,) in the schematic it looks like i have ACR and and circuit beaker and isolator on the second battery.

My battery master switch only has "off - 1 - combined" no "1 or 2 or combined" option, so no way to select the Aux battery by itself that I can see.

Interesting switch set up... I have never seen one that didn't have the option of selecting the second battery.... That might be something to look into.... so that you can isolate either battery for charging while underway...

update:
So after a bit of research I now understand this setup with the ACR, and the and switch, with only off - 1 - combined option...... Not sure that I see it as the most optimal option, and honestly crates additional fail points in the system.... Also after some research it is not surprising to see this setup in a higher end boat like a Formula.... I think from my stand point, having this simple approach of the standard 1 - 2 - combined - off switch is much more simplistic....

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by LIforrelaxin

Interesting switch set up... I have never seen one that didn't have the option of selecting the second battery.... That might be something to look into.... so that you can isolate either battery for charging while underway...

This boat is a 2018 and I think its all part of a "better" high-tech design,,,

The truly disappointing part of the whole situation is that the boat has and factory installed ProSport super fancy battery charger that I can never make use of because the boat is in a rack valet program. Guess you take the good (high and dry and out of the sun all the time) with the bad (no access to power)

Still no complaints, best boat I have ever owned (Formula 270 BR) and best choice (to rack valet store it) I have ever made about caring for a boat.

Super happy to be at PBM! So if the worst down side to it is a $139.00 battery after 3 years, I'm happy ;-)

[BroadHopper]

Interesting about 2018. I have the 1-both-2 off combiner with no ACR on board. Originally #1 was the starter & #2 was the deep cycle. #2 is connected independent of the 1-2 switch to the bilge switch and the Mercathode. Mercathode runs all the time, thus draining the #2 battery.

Because the batteries were different, the starter will fully charge first and the generator will continue to charge the deep cycle thus shortening the life span of the starter battery. In fact one year, the positive battery post on the starter actually fried! Lucky it did not catch fire. So I would have it charged on both for about 15 minutes and switch to 2 to fully charge the deep cycle.

When I heard of dual-purpose batteries, I switched both to dual purpose and leave the combiner switch to both at all times. Seems the batteries last longer and charge evenly.

If you have the Mercathode option, you should turn it off if you valet.

[VitaBene]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

This boat is a 2018 and I think its all part of a "better" high-tech design,,,

The truly disappointing part of the whole situation is that the boat has and factory installed ProSport super fancy battery charger that I can never make use of because the boat is in a rack valet program. Guess you take the good (high and dry and out of the sun all the time) with the bad (no access to power)

Still no complaints, best boat I have ever owned (Formula 270 BR) and best choice (to rack valet store it) I have ever made about caring for a boat.

Super happy to be at PBM! So if the worst down side to it is a $139.00 battery after 3 years, I'm happy ;-)

Perfect!! Great boats

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

This boat is a 2018 and I think its all part of a "better" high-tech design,,,

Correct. ACRs are the standard approach in modern marine electrical systems to keep a house battery topped up without having to fiddle around with selector switches. The standard scenario lets your starting battery get priority charging, ensuring you are never likely to be left in a situation where you cannot start the engine and return home safely.

If you want to keep a closer eye on things, the Veratron Linkup battery monitor is easy to install and supports NMEA2000 connectivity to an MFD along with Bluetooth for your phone:

https://www.defender.com/product.jsp?id=7317232

I have these on all my battery banks, it shows state of charge, voltage, current draw, etc.

[LIforrelaxin]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

This boat is a 2018 and I think its all part of a "better" high-tech design,,,

The truly disappointing part of the whole situation is that the boat has and factory installed ProSport super fancy battery charger that I can never make use of because the boat is in a rack valet program. Guess you take the good (high and dry and out of the sun all the time) with the bad (no access to power)

Still no complaints, best boat I have ever owned (Formula 270 BR) and best choice (to rack valet store it) I have ever made about caring for a boat.

Super happy to be at PBM! So if the worst down side to it is a $139.00 battery after 3 years, I'm happy ;-)

The key is that your are happy.... Have seen more then one boat with the super fancy battery Chargers... How many of them get use is another question all together... the good news is that it is there.... Just like the switch.... I grew up never having a switch or a onboard charger.... spent many countless mornings pulling an extension cord, and the battery charger to the boat, because something had been left on draining the battery... Even with a single battery I love having a switch, and need to get one installed on my pontoon... turn it off and you simply don't have to worry about a drain... with the pontoon I will not even have to worry about making sure the bilge pump bypasses the switch...

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

Interesting about 2018. I have the 1-both-2 off combiner with no ACR on board. Originally #1 was the starter & #2 was the deep cycle. #2 is connected independent of the 1-2 switch to the bilge switch and the Mercathode. Mercathode runs all the time, thus draining the #2 battery.

Because the batteries were different, the starter will fully charge first and the generator will continue to charge the deep cycle thus shortening the life span of the starter battery. In fact one year, the positive battery post on the starter actually fried! Lucky it did not catch fire. So I would have it charged on both for about 15 minutes and switch to 2 to fully charge the deep cycle.

When I heard of dual-purpose batteries, I switched both to dual purpose and leave the combiner switch to both at all times. Seems the batteries last longer and charge evenly.

If you have the Mercathode option, you should turn it off if you valet.

Many Thanks for the tip, next trip up I will make sure to look at it!

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by LIforrelaxin

The key is that your are happy.... Have seen more then one boat with the super fancy battery Chargers... How many of them get use is another question all together... the good news is that it is there.... Just like the switch.... I grew up never having a switch or a onboard charger.... spent many countless mornings pulling an extension cord, and the battery charger to the boat, because something had been left on draining the battery... Even with a single battery I love having a switch, and need to get one installed on my pontoon... turn it off and you simply don't have to worry about a drain... with the pontoon I will not even have to worry about making sure the bilge pump bypasses the switch...

Well said! Thanks.

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by VitaBene

Perfect!! Great boats

I thought I was very happy with our last boat, a 2007 Caravelle Interceptor, never had a problem with it, it had no structural wood, ran strong and was really miserly on fuel and had a well thought out layout.

After having had several older Glastrons and the joy of wood floor and stringer replacement, the Caravelle was a godsend.

But then we got the Formula and I was quite surprised how much better quality it offered.

Funny how doubling the value of a boat has an actual impact on its quality ;-)

One can only imagine how amazing the newest Chris-Crafts are! Unfortunately that is above my pay grade, so I simply enjoy them at the docks and boat shows, and I'm thoroughly happy with being able to afford the Formula and the value it has offered.

But then I think about my Father who went through a series of boats over the years. He was a really good water skier and had me drag him up around until I would get tired from driving! The best best boat we had back then was a really nice Wellcraft that we all loved. Then in his final years he had dropped back to a smaller and more modest aluminum boat to allow him to get in closed to the islands in and around the rocks for fishing with the trolling motor, and I think that was as happy as he ever was. Fishing for bass was his true vice and joy. Off he would go before sun up and out the mouth of Alton Bay to whatever island he wanted to fish around, and that was just perfect for him.

Just goes to show there is a boat option for every budget and use, you just need to shop for your best fit/choice.

[BroadHopper]

Originally Posted by XCR-700

But then I think about my Father who went through a series of boats over the years. He was a really good water skier and had me drag him up around until I would get tired from driving! The best best boat we had back then was a really nice Wellcraft that we all loved. Then in his final years he had dropped back to a smaller and more modest aluminum boat to allow him to get in closed to the islands in and around the rocks for fishing with the trolling motor, and I think that was as happy as he ever was. Fishing for bass was his true vice and joy. Off he would go before sun up and out the mouth of Alton Bay to whatever island he wanted to fish around, and that was just perfect for him.

Just goes to show there is a boat option for every budget and use, you just need to shop for your best fit/choice.

Our fathers have like minds! LOL! Dad had Century and Crissies most of his life. Trailering and maintaining those woodies were a PITA. But they were great cruising boats! The Resorter was surprisingly a great ski boat!

Dad's last boat was a Wellcraft. First glass boat he had. It was a beautiful boat! Great ski boat but not as good as the woodies in rough water.

He ended up fishing after decades of water skiing. All these years of waking up to take him skiing at sunrise, I ended up fishing with him before sunrise! My daughter took over fishing with him before he passed!

Before Dad passed, I bought a Liberator. He was a funny guy. He would do a full throttle then slow down to idle, speed up and repeat! LOL! Never comment but he had a smile! Got the Formula on eBay auction from a marina on the Potomac River in Maryland. Best boat ever. Still have it! I wish my Dad had seen this boat before passing! Talk about quality! Second to none!

[TiltonBB]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

Interesting about 2018. I have the 1-both-2 off combiner with no ACR on board. Originally #1 was the starter & #2 was the deep cycle. #2 is connected independent of the 1-2 switch to the bilge switch and the Mercathode. Mercathode runs all the time, thus draining the #2 battery.

Because the batteries were different, the starter will fully charge first and the generator will continue to charge the deep cycle thus shortening the life span of the starter battery. In fact one year, the positive battery post on the starter actually fried! Lucky it did not catch fire. So I would have it charged on both for about 15 minutes and switch to 2 to fully charge the deep cycle.

When I heard of dual-purpose batteries, I switched both to dual purpose and leave the combiner switch to both at all times. Seems the batteries last longer and charge evenly.

If you have the Mercathode option, you should turn it off if you valet.

The problem with leaving the switch on "both" all the time is when you have a problem, like a short circuit, or anything that kills the battery, you have killed both batteries. That eliminates the option of switching batteries when one is dead.

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by BroadHopper

Our fathers have like minds! LOL! Dad had Century and Crissies most of his life. Trailering and maintaining those woodies were a PITA. But they were great cruising boats! The Resorter was surprisingly a great ski boat!

Dad's last boat was a Wellcraft. First glass boat he had. It was a beautiful boat! Great ski boat but not as good as the woodies in rough water.

He ended up fishing after decades of water skiing. All these years of waking up to take him skiing at sunrise, I ended up fishing with him before sunrise! My daughter took over fishing with him before he passed!

Before Dad passed, I bought a Liberator. He was a funny guy. He would do a full throttle then slow down to idle, speed up and repeat! LOL! Never comment but he had a smile! Got the Formula on eBay auction from a marina on the Potomac River in Maryland. Best boat ever. Still have it! I wish my Dad had seen this boat before passing! Talk about quality! Second to none!

Great memories!

I sometimes wonder of this newest generation of boaters/families are creating the same kind of memories we have as their "way" seems different and appears not so much memory worthy, but in a Jersey Shore world maybe they are enjoying themselves in their way and will be happy with what they have experienced.

I think many or "our" generation have similar memories and are happy we were able to live in that period. I for one would gladly step back in time about 50 years if I could ;-)

[XCR-700]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

The problem with leaving the switch on "both" all the time is when you have a problem, like a short circuit, or anything that kills the battery, you have killed both batteries. That eliminates the option of switching batteries when one is dead.

Unfortunately every option seems to have its compromise ;-)

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by TiltonBB

The problem with leaving the switch on "both" all the time is when you have a problem, like a short circuit, or anything that kills the battery, you have killed both batteries. That eliminates the option of switching batteries when one is dead.

That it one of the problems an ACR will address:


https://www.bluesea.com/support/arti...R%5D_Explained


In a proper modern marine electrical setup about the only thing that could really draw the batteries down excessively would be a bilge pump circuit, and if that is the case, you have some more serious issues to deal with anyway.

[ishoot308]

So after 9 years of daily spring, summer and fall use, it was finally time to change my 9 year old Interstate batteries in my Eastern. Need I say that I replaced them with the same! Nine years is pretty darn good for boat batteries to last and while they were not dead, they were only showing 12.3 volts after charging which is low and I didn’t want to take a chance by trying to go through another season.

As an fyi…I do religiously keep them on a battery tender / maintainer when not in use during the season. They are fully charged when put away in the winter but not kept on a charger over the winter. In the spring they go back on the tender for a day or two till fully charged.

Dan

[tummyman]

Use NAPA Marine batteries....never had a problem. Last many years. Boat has battery switch that we turn on and off each time boat is used. For winter storage, just pull off the negative leads on both batteries. All good to go in spring.

[DesertDweller]

I am a big fan of Interstate batteries as well. They just seem to last the longest.

Napa batteries are made for them by East Penn which also sells them directly as Deka. I have had mixed results with Deka.