Battery Drainage?

[COUNTRYGURL26]

HI everyone..im new about boats,I just bought 1978 160ss thundercraft Johnson 70 hp boat and restored some of the interior. So far, I have made a success. I am thinking about putting CD player but I am worried that it may drain the battery. Can anybody with experience tell me about this stuffs? I will use the boat for fishing and I love music and will be using for tubing once in a while.

Thanks everyone and have a great safe summer!

 

[JB]

Re: Battery Drainage?

The only time your CD player is going to use power from your battery is when it is playing, CG. As long as you don't go overboard on hi power speakers, etc. you should be okay.

 

[boat1010]

Re: Battery Drainage?

Like JB said, as long as you don't over do it. But to be safe I would have a second battery. Sometimes it is hard to walk back from fishing. If ya find a good spot and the fish are biting and you sort of lose track of time, Not a good senerio. Better to be safe, not sorry.

 

[JB]

Re: Battery Drainage?

I think we need to move this to the electrics forum.

 

[ebry710]

Re: Battery Drainage?

Like JB said, as long as you don't over do it. But to be safe I would have a second battery. Sometimes it is hard to walk back from fishing. If ya find a good spot and the fish are biting and you sort of lose track of time, Not a good senerio. Better to be safe, not sorry.

I am a second battery guy, but a radio in a boat, like a radio in a car is not a second battery issue. They don't use much in power, unless you are running a wake board tower or a gigawatt mega system. Now if your battery is old or not to full charge, that is a difference story.

Again I like my second battery because there is not a AAA on a lake so I like redundancy.

 

[drewpster]

Re: Battery Drainage?

Having a second battery on board is always a good idea but not always practical. If you have the room to stow a backup then by all means carry one.

Cd players/ stereos and the like can use power when they are turned off. Some draw power to keep the clock in time or power a remote circuit. Still other radios need power to keep memory settings like radio stations and the like. I wired mine in my little boat with a main power switch so that I can kill all power to it when it is not in use. I can scan for radio stations, and I don't really want to know what time it is on the lake anyway.

Since you are going to be using your boat for day trips it is unlikely that you run the battery down to a point that the engine won't start, but it is possible. If you want tunes all day and you are in to big amps and lots of speakers, then you should get a second battery. If you just want some light Beethoven or Vivaldi with your fishing, you should be fine. By the way, keep it down your scaring the fish.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Battery Drainage?

Rather than go through the bother of wiring a second battery -- portable jump start units are available these days for $35 - $45. They are handy and will start the engine should you kill the battery. Just make sure the battery you do have is a good quality marine starting or dual-purpose style.