Re: voltage gauge
Longhomer,<br /><br />I agree with 18Rabbit that fluxuation of the voltage is normal, but extreme fluxuation is not desirable. Here is a bit of a hint for you though, the greater the amount it varies, or maybe more importantly how quickly it goes from low to high voltage when you crank the engine way up, the more it points to a battery that of too low a capacity or one that is loosing its ability to hold charge. Quite basically large battery banks that are holding lots of energy in reserve do not drop voltage very quickly but older batterys that no longer have the capacity they did when new will pop up and down the scale very rapidly. Of course having an undersized battery, relative to the loads placed on it, will have the same effect.<br /><br />That said there is more though. You hinted that the boat is new to you and so I presume its a used boat. It usually makes good sense to get yourself a good start on a new-to-you boat by taking a day to go through the electrical system from stem to stern, so to speak, beginning at the battery(s) and following the lines all the way up to the last connection to each device on the boat. What you should have in hand are a couple of wrenches, a pair of screw drivers, and some sand paper. Clean everything starting at the battery's connections and the cable connectors and just keep on going. Its also a good idea at the same time to check all of the wire connectors for obvious problems. Give each of them a nice little tug and see if the wire pulls out for instance, look for corrosion. Now and then cut a connector off and replace it just to get a look at the underlieing wire (hunting for the dreaded black wire). Its not difficult work and it can save tons of headaches later, besides that it really does help you become a little more familiar with your boat, which is never a bad thing.<br /><br />Thom
It depends on how low the voltage is.