to leave on charger or not?

[alldodge]

My marina (like many) doesn't allow boats to be plugged in unattended.

Wow, does not allow boats to be plugged in unattended. If a boat sprung a leak and was bad enough, the bilge pump would pump until the battery dies and then the boat sinks.

 

[Illinoid]

I plug the charger into the barn lights and leave it hooked up to battery, when I go I the barn and turn on the lights it charges.

 

[DonHof]

My batteries been on the charger all winter, for about 6 years never had any problems.

 

[shrew]

Wow, does not allow boats to be plugged in unattended. If a boat sprung a leak and was bad enough, the bilge pump would pump until the battery dies and then the boat sinks.

OP stated that his "Boat was up for the winter". Most boats in the northern half of the country are hauled and stored on land. Few marinas allow extension cords and boats drawing from an outlet in the parking lot unattended. Many, if not most, people leave their battery charger on while wet slipped.

I didn't catch that it was being stored in the water. Not sure how winter would be any different than summer in that case.

 

[bruceb58]

OP stated that his "Boat was up for the winter". Most boats in the northern half of the country are hauled and stored on land. Few marinas allow extension cords and boats drawing from an outlet in the parking lot unattended. Many, if not most, people leave their battery charger on while wet slipped.

OP was asking if he should keep his charger plugged in 24/7. Since he asked that question, he obviously has a place to plug it in.

 

[Gyrene]

Likewise 24/7.

With that charger, it's the best thing you can do for your battery. A discharged battery, even one that is slightly discharged, starts to sulfate.

If you have a smart charger, like the OP has, the float charge will do no harm to the battery. If you have a dumb charger, yes, you shouldn't leave it on. As expensive as batteries are, especially the AGMs I use, getting a smart charger is cheap in comparison to having you battery sulfate up by leaving it off a charger all winter.

Agree - and the price for a smart charger is way down from what it used to be.

 

[Jarcher3]

The boat is winterized and on the lift in my slip at the marina, we have a plug used for the lift pump that is next to the boat and accessible for charging,

i would need to ask the marina i guess if it would be okay to leave it constantly plugged in.

 

[wrvond]

If the boat is winterized and on a lift, I doubt you are accessing it regularly. Under these circumstances, I would fully charge the battery then disconnect it until spring.

 

[Grub54891]

Wow, does not allow boats to be plugged in unattended. If a boat sprung a leak and was bad enough, the bilge pump would pump until the battery dies and then the boat sinks.

​The Boats can not be left plugged in while in storage, as if there is a problem, it could burn down the entire building, and all the boats with it, And you might be found liable for damages, Have a few million or more to spare? That's how it works by our marina. Now while at the dock, do as you want.

 

[JimS123]

For me, the most important thing is that the battery last all Summer long, not go dead just when I NEED to go fishing.

Having it on a constant charger all Winter means that the battery is at 100% all the time. It doesn't tell me what the condition or remaining service life is.

I charge monthly. Before I hook it up I check the voltage. If after a month of no use its still at 95%, I know it will last the full next season. If it drops below XX%, I don't bother wasting the energy to charge it any more, but plan on replacing it the first of May. Yeah, I could probably get another year or 2 by charging during the Summer, but life is just too short to be bothered with it. Hassle elimination is the name of the game.

If the car dies and i can't go to work, so sad so sorry. But if the boat won't start on my day off its a major catastrophe.

 

[shaw520]

​The Boats can not be left plugged in while in storage, as if there is a problem, it could burn down the entire building, and all the boats with it, And you might be found liable for damages, Have a few million or more to spare? That's how it works by our marina. Now while at the dock, do as you want.

I dont see the logistics in that,... same thing can occur while slipped or stored no ? In fact it could be more harmful if it ocured in the water,..enviromentaly speaking.

 

[Grub54891]

I dont see the logistics in that,... same thing can occur while slipped or stored no ? In fact it could be more harmful if it ocured in the water,..enviromentaly speaking.

​Well yes, The thing is, in the heated storage units, there is no one around quite often. If a fire started, no one would see it till it was consuming more than just itself. There are fire systems in place in there and security alarms, but it would be pretty ugly inside the building. The fire department would not be able to enter very well, as the smoke/fumes from burning glass, diesel, and gasoline would be pretty bad. Now outside, at least someone would see it sooner, and the fire dept. would have half a chance of saving other boats. If in the slip, we can at least put out the booms and capture the debris if needed, yeah it would be a mess.

 

[shaw520]

Point taken.

 

[H20Rat]

​The Boats can not be left plugged in while in storage, as if there is a problem, it could burn down the entire building, and all the boats with it, And you might be found liable for damages, Have a few million or more to spare? That's how it works by our marina. Now while at the dock, do as you want.

That is the same reason that I make sure my battery negative terminal (and every battery of every other vehicle in the storage shed) is disconnected over winter! I used to work in insurance, and the # of claims from a stored vehicle starting on fire and burning the building down would surprise you. Even if it isn't connected to a charger, you have mice with teeth that can chew on battery cables. Just takes the right one to short out.

 

[WIMUSKY]

Boat batteries, etc, I store in the garage and charge periodically. My hotrod, I use a Battery Tender and leave it connected 24/7..... But, I live in the frozen north.....

 

[shrew]

OP was asking if he should keep his charger plugged in 24/7. Since he asked that question, he obviously has a place to plug it in.

My boat sits right next to an outlet on a light post when on the hard. Having a place to plug it in and being allowed to plug it in unattended are mutually exclusive.

 

[garbageguy]

Who makes them?

Whatever you do, don't use something like this:
http://www.harborfreight.com/automat...ger-42292.html
This puts too much voltage out to leave on all the time and will eventually cook your battery. It is not a float charger. You want a charger that charges the battery and then converts to a float voltage To see if your charger is putting out the proper voltage for float, charge your battery fully and measure the voltage. Should be 13.5V +/- 0.2V

Someone gave me that HF charger. I have been wary of leaving it connected all winter for my boat batteries. I connect it to a flooded lead-acid battery for a day or so every few weeks. Is that OK?

What is the difference between a maintainer, float charger, smart charger?

 

[bruceb58]

What is the difference between a maintainer, float charger, smart charger?

A float charger only puts out a float voltage. A 12V flooded lead acid battery can be kept on a float charger forever. It may not charge your battery much at all if it starts out discharged.

A smart charger charges a battery in stages, usually 3 or 4 with the last stage being the float stage which will have the exact voltage as the float charger and you can keep the battery hooked up forever.

A maintainer may be a float charger or it may be a trickle charger. You have to look at the voltage specs.


Personally, I wouldn't use a cheap battery charger from HF and rely on it at all. You can buy fairly inexpensive smart chargers. The cost of a battery is too high to rely on a Harbor Freight battery charger to work properly left on 24/7

 

[bruceb58]

My boat sits right next to an outlet on a light post when on the hard. Having a place to plug it in and being allowed to plug it in unattended are mutually exclusive.

Thought we were talking about the OP! If he asked the question, the assumption is he is allowed to plug it in. Is that not the case?

His boat is in his slip on a lift. It's not on land. It's not next to a poll. It's not in a barn.

Thought we were answering this question

I guess my question is, is it safe to leave plugged in for that long? or should i go up to the dock and charge it every so often?