![]() Batteries, especially the flooded type, must also be easy to get to for service. If there is insufficient natural ventilation you may have to add a sparkproof exhaust fan to eliminate gas buildup and to lower the temperature. This presents a dilemma for many battery installations since you want short runs of battery cable to your engine’s starter or alternator to prevent a loss of voltage, but your battery won’t last long in a hot engine room and must be ventilated.īatteries, especially the flooded type, give off lighter-than-air explosive hydrogen gas when charging, so they must be vented from the top directly to the outside of the boat. If the proposed battery location is too hot for you, it is also too hot for your battery. Batteries are temperature sensitive, needing a temperature that is comfortable for a person, and high temperatures dramatically shorten their life. This credo works as well for batteries as it does for real estate. Be very careful with uninsulated tools that might short across the battery terminals. Be careful of using unshielded droplights or any open sources of heat or flame around the batteries. Be sure to wear safety glasses when working on batteries and have a water hose or other available method of flushing battery acid out of the eyes and off the face.For inboard engine applications, you should use clamp-on battery terminals connected to the correct gauge of battery cable. For outboard engine applications we recommend replacing wingnuts on the tops of the battery with nylock nuts or hex nuts and lock washers that are tightened to at least 10-foot-pounds of torque.This means having clean metal-to-metal connections, the right size terminals which are properly crimped and waterproofed and secure mechanical fasteners. Since the connections made in the battery circuits can conduct hundreds of amps, it is imperative that you have low resistance connections.The complete text of these standards is available in reprints from the ABYC. Where appropriate, we have provided information on circuit breakers and wire sizes, which are in accordance with these guidelines. The American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) publishes safety standards for circuit protection, wire sizes and other related issues in electrical systems.Whenever you are working on your electrical system, remove the positive battery cables from the battery terminals to eliminate the chance of a short circuit and/or possible electrocution. Batteries contain a tremendous, and potentially dangerous, amount of stored energy.Since they have lower storage capacity than comparably-sized deep cycles, we recommend them for boats with two identical batteries used interchangeably for starting and house electrical loads.ĭo-it-Yourself: Installing a Battery Charger Most boats with dual-battery systems use one starting battery and one deep cycle battery.ĭual-purpose batteries work well in some applications and are a good compromise because they tolerate deep discharges that would ruin a typical starting battery. Any battery used to power onboard DC loads such as lighting, trolling motors, inverters and other systems should be a quality deep-cycle battery, like our West Marine brand. They are appropriate for sailboats, fishing boats and all other boats with larger DC power requirements. ![]() They are appropriate as the single battery for wakeboard boats, runabouts, personal watercraft and other boats with minimal DC loads where the engine is always running.ĭeep-cycle batteries can endure repeated deep discharging and recharging without damage. They can supply lots of current for a short period of time, but like to be recharged almost immediately and are not tolerant of deep discharges. Starting batteries are similar to automotive batteries. Dual-purpose flooded batteries combine the ability to withstand deep discharges with cranking power to start your engine
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