Just acquired a 170 Horizon. Assembly required.

chevymaher

Commander
Joined
Mar 29, 2017
Messages
2,932
Well I was just checking ion on my boat. I keep it on a maint charger. I was going to put a ground loop isolator on it. Look the charger is blinking which means 3 amp charge. It been on it all winter so that wasnt a good sign.

I checked it and it was only at 7 volts. Took it out it said 7 year battery on the case. Well it has ben 7 years so I guess it thought it did its time.

New battery has 30 more MCA than the old one. 750 MCA.

Got the battery in and the ground loop isolator on. Was cranking the 780Watt kenwood amp and wifey called. Guess she is afraid the neighbors be upset.

It gonna snow tomorrow. Flood has come and gone. It is almost splash time.
 

cyclops222

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Mar 21, 2024
Messages
1,801
Maintenance chargers kill LOTS of good batteries. Most people never use them on their 8 year old batteries.
Over charging can cause water to leave the battery.
 

Lou C

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 10, 2002
Messages
12,916
The way I figure it, I charge the batteries fully when I winterize it, then shut off the battery switch, I might charge them again once or 2x during the winter but if they are low in the spring, they are no good. Keeping it on a maintenance charger even a good one can mask a bad battery. After 4-5 months storage with no load it should be at least 75% charged still. Then when you charge them they should come back up fairly quickly, if not, get new batteries. Still on the fence with flooded vs AGM. I have AGM in 2 of our vehicles but flooded in the other 2 vehicles and the boat.
 

cyclops222

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Mar 21, 2024
Messages
1,801
Flooded allows checking the water levels in ALL CELLS. That is a constant check of all cells. 1 cell becomes different ? Death is coming.
 

chevymaher

Commander
Joined
Mar 29, 2017
Messages
2,932
My stereo and amp are the originals to the boat. The amp is a 780 watt kenwood. It is a constant drain on the battery. 3 weeks it is really low. I found out the first time I let it sit over winter. It needs the charger on it. The battery lasted as long as it was supposed to. I had a starter go out it cranked the motor over 10 minutes before I finally unhooked the battery with no tools. It was a good battery and I have no complaints. 7 years from now I will gladly buy a new one. It started every single time and never had a issue till the starter went out. It still lasted the rest of the summer. I will check and add water every spring from now on. If it needs it. It wasn't even low.
 

cyclops222

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Mar 21, 2024
Messages
1,801
You make a great point about having a tiny plastic tool box with basic tools. A simple big ON/ OFF battery switch would be nice to have. It will disconnect everything that takes some electric power. Even when they are turned off.
 

chevymaher

Commander
Joined
Mar 29, 2017
Messages
2,932
Yep thinking I need something more than the bilge plug wrench. Loosening bolts with your fingers was a challenging ordeal. Hell even the chevelle has a adjustable wrench in it.
 

Reserector_

Chief Petty Officer" & 2021 Splash of the Year Win
Joined
Oct 15, 2019
Messages
617
USB ports typically have a small parasitic draw. That's where the battery switch saves the day. Disconnect the ground.
Of course, if it's in the water, you have to leave the battery on, but most of us store our boats on land.
 

chevymaher

Commander
Joined
Mar 29, 2017
Messages
2,932
My amp has a jumper cable sized wire. It sparks when you connect it. I built a boat house for my boat it is indoors. There is a outlet directly next to where the boat needs it. I made a charge port. I don't even need to open the cover to test and charge. Like I said before battery says 7 year battery on the case it made it 7. I got no complaints. It Has been run completely dead 3x and the starter incident. 95 bucks is worth it every 7 years. Alternator is a little hot charging. But all in all I am very happy with things as it is.
 

Reserector_

Chief Petty Officer" & 2021 Splash of the Year Win
Joined
Oct 15, 2019
Messages
617
It says 1 year warranty. If you got 7 years out of a Never Start, you did great, IMHO. I call them that because their car batteries only last a few year at best. I stopped buying them.
(I didn't see the "robot or human" thing.)
 
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