wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

[smitty5555]

duz someone have a wiring diagram to hook up on board charger to my boat. it is a 2002/19 1/2 ft, Starcraft bowrider.
i purchased a MK 1 DC code # 1821031 charger.
do wires have to be added to go from home battery to trolli ng motor??
help!!
thanx
smitty
send me e mail if you can. smitty5@rogers.com
thanx again

 

[Silvertip]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

You have a single output charger. As such it connects to only one battery. Which one you choose is up to you. Troller or starting battery. No other wires are needed.

 

[smitty5555]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

You have a single output charger. As such it connects to only one battery. Which one you choose is up to you. Troller or starting battery. No other wires are needed.

thanx silvertip. but if i don.t get the power from the main motor battery, how duz it charge my trolling motor battery?
smitty.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

An on-board charger uses 120 volts AC house power at the dock to charge the battery. The charger has a regular household style plug on it does it not? The engine does not power the charger. It is simply a battery charger that you permanently install in the boat and plug in at home or at the dock.

 

[smitty5555]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

maybe that,s where i am going wrong. i thought the main battery could be used to charge an auxillary battery., with the altenator off my 90 hp. merc.
if thats the case, as you say, why by an on board at all. why not just use a battery charger and hook it up to house current 120v.??

smitty

 

[seabob4]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

maybe that,s where i am going wrong. i thought the main battery could be used to charge an auxillary battery., with the altenator off my 90 hp. merc.
if thats the case, as you say, why by an on board at all. why not just use a battery charger and hook it up to house current 120v.??

smitty

Smitty,
You can use a battery combiner/isolator to charge your starting batt and your house batt while the engine is running. But the start batt IS NOT going to charge your house batt by itself. Besides, even if you had the latest Merc 90 4-S, it's alternator output at WOT is only 50A, far less than that at idle or trolling. Chances are your alt is only putting out 35A, so you have even less charging out put to deal with...

The reason a LOT of boaters install onboard, permanant mount batt chargers is because of ease. Instead of hauling out the batt charger from the garage, opening hatches, attaching alligator clips to batt terminals that are sometimes hard to get to, etc., with an on board charger, you simply plug in an extension cord to a conveniently located charger inlet and walk away...

There are reasons we boaters do things...and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg!

 

[Silvertip]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

Just like Seabob says, on-board chargers make it convenient to charge batteries at the dock. Trolling motor batteries and house batteries tend to get deeply discharged so it takes a good sized charger or a very high alternator output to keep these batteries topped off. Therefore the ease and convenience of the on-board charger ensures they are ready to go at any time. These chargers are smart and can be left on for long periods of time without damaging the battery. My pontoon is tucked away for the winter and the charger has been on since last fall (although I do have a timer on it so it runs 1 hour each day.)

 

[fishrdan]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

The MinnKota MK DC1 is an "alternator charger". It charges the (trolling motor) battery off the main engine while the main engine is running, then cuts the connection when the engine is off, it operates like a battery isolator or ACR.

How long you run your outboard, and how much charging current the outboard can provide is the limiting factor on how well the MK DC1 will work for you. Run on plane for a few hours a day and it would probably charge OK. Run 15 minutes to your fishing hole, fishing for 8 hours, then run 15 minutes back to the dock,,, wouldn't charge the TM battery much...

I haven't seen one and don't really know how to wire it up, but MinnKota should have something on their website, or the instructions that came with the unit should tell you how to connect it. You will have to run wires from the engine to trolling motor battery and either put the MK DC1 back by the engine or by the trolling motor battery. Lots of places it could be mounted and ways it could be connected because of it's mounting location, so you will need to be more specific as to where you are going to mount the DC1 for wiring suggestions. But yes, it needs to be wired to the outboard/main battery, and the trolling motor battery,,,, and I think the ignition switch, but I'm probably wrong as I have never used 1 of those. Check MinnKota's website.

 

[seabob4]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

Looked at it, it's not a "charger", it's a combiner/isolator, been around for years. His engine alternator output, as well as the frequency he operates at high RPM are going to be the determining factors on the charge ability of this, or any other combiner/isolator...

I mean, if I'm running to a spot 35 miles offshore with twin 250 O/Bs, charging my house batt through a combiner all the way, I'm going to have plenty of juice to power my electronics for several hours. I think his situation is a bit different...

 

[smitty5555]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

To fishrdan.
thanx for your help.i now understand wat i have to do, CLEARLY, lol

smitty.

 

[smitty5555]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

The MinnKota MK DC1 is an "alternator charger". It charges the (trolling motor) battery off the main engine while the main engine is running, then cuts the connection when the engine is off, it operates like a battery isolator or ACR.

How long you run your outboard, and how much charging current the outboard can provide is the limiting factor on how well the MK DC1 will work for you. Run on plane for a few hours a day and it would probably charge OK. Run 15 minutes to your fishing hole, fishing for 8 hours, then run 15 minutes back to the dock,,, wouldn't charge the TM battery much...

I haven't seen one and don't really know how to wire it up, but MinnKota should have something on their website, or the instructions that came with the unit should tell you how to connect it. You will have to run wires from the engine to trolling motor battery and either put the MK DC1 back by the engine or by the trolling motor battery. Lots of places it could be mounted and ways it could be connected because of it's mounting location, so you will need to be more specific as to where you are going to mount the DC1 for wiring suggestions. But yes, it needs to be wired to the outboard/main battery, and the trolling motor battery,,,, and I think the ignition switch, but I'm probably wrong as I have never used 1 of those. Check MinnKota's website.

thanx again Dan. smitty

 

[reyes666]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

Hi Smitty, did you figure out how to wire it? I was looking for some infos and I just found this thread.

My first understanding is that you wire it directly to your main battery (which is being already recharged when your motor is running).

So when your motor is running, it will charge your main battery, and your trolling battery too. When motor is off, your main battery will be isolated from your trolling battery

Thats my understanding but well let me know if you figured it out ;-)

reyes

 

[Silvertip]

Re: wiring diagram to hook up MK 1 DC on board charger

On board chargers can and are very often used in conjunction with battery switches, isolators, ACR's. Boats that have trolling motors routinely deeply discharge the troller battery. The engine alternator in a short run back to the dock would not begin to fully charge that battery -- hence the onboard charger. Older outboards in the mid HP range have less than 20 amp alternators and are not intended to charge more than one battery. If you don't deeply discharge the second battery an ACR is what you need.