Guest Sea Jay Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 Just a quick question i have a 6 month old 4.4m aluminium boat with a 40 HP honda outboard. The battery keeps running out of charge after around 2 weeks of not being used!! Is this normaL?? If not can anyone suggest why this is happening The only things that run off the battery are the motor when starting, lights (Hardly ever used), GPS/Fishfinder and Marine Radio (Hardly ever used) and thats about it and i was under the impression that the motor had an alternator in it so while the motor is running the battery is recharging the same as a car works!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whitto Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 Do you have an isolator switch for the battery? Something could be drawing current when the boat is not in use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sea Jay Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 Do you have an isolator switch for the battery? Something could be drawing current when the boat is not in use. What exactley is an isolator switch. Sorry not sure what it is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heckendorfmortgage Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 An isolator switch is a knob in the cable that can be turned to open the circuit. It "isolates" the batery. Another thing you can do to test the battery is to disconect a cable and see if the battery still goes flat in a couple of weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bluecod Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 (edited) The last thing you want [apart from acid] in a tinny is an earth leakage from the battery - will set up electolysis and cause major issues. If in doubt get it to an autoelectrician and checked out. Edited November 30, 2005 by bluecod Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Sea Jay Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 An isolator switch is a knob in the cable that can be turned to open the circuit. It "isolates" the batery. Another thing you can do to test the battery is to disconect a cable and see if the battery still goes flat in a couple of weeks. Ok ill will do that. How should i go about re-charging the battery the last6 time that it did it i just used a trickle charger to get it charged, i dont want to do it this way if it is going to damage the battery though!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
basic_fisho Posted November 30, 2005 Share Posted November 30, 2005 Ok ill will do that. How should i go about re-charging the battery the last6 time that it did it i just used a trickle charger to get it charged, i dont want to do it this way if it is going to damage the battery though!! Sea jay.Trickel charge is the way to go.I came back from the U.K. this year after being away 4 months and the motor started first crank,without any charging,so you could have a drain some where.Try removing one of the batt.leads as suggested and that will tell you iff you have a drain,but make sure it is charged up before disconecting the batt.lead, to give it a fair chance..Ben. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REKLESS Posted December 7, 2005 Share Posted December 7, 2005 Gidday Sea jay,I might be able to help you a little.I would suggest that you go and buy a little voltmeter like the one in the picture (they cost about $15.00) at dick smith's.Then go and by a two pole isolator switch (that has a red key in it.)Make sure that it has a rubber boot that fits over it when the key is out..You will also need to do a bit of soldering to do the job properly. The first picture shows the isolator switch,all it does is interrupt the positive feed out from the battery,this will arrest any battery voltage leaks into the boat that can create wonderfull things like holes in boats.All you do is simply cut the cable at a good place and solder on some lugs that suit the switch and the cable.I have stuck my switch on a piece of plywood that was painted white . In the secound photo Using the current measuring bit on the meter will tell you if any electrity is travelling down the wire,if you see where the cables go into the voltmeter the position has changed to measure the amps travelling through the wire.If everything is good ,it should read zero.If it doesnt you should be able to use the meter to identify the source of earth leakage . In the third photo I am measuring the voltage across the battery,13.80 indicates that it is good.If your battery reads at 12 volts ,I might suggest that you get a new one. Incidentally,I also use a battery charger that is automatic.This thing charges the battery and when it has reached full charge it automatically switches to a few milli amps (trickle charge) ,It has paid for itself about 5 times so far ,well worth the investment. Also check out the charge that is coming from the engine,sometimes they do a cheap fix on the engine electrics and it only provides a pissy amount of current that will charge a dolphin battery.Take it to an engine specia;ist and ask him to check it . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebehy Posted December 7, 2005 Share Posted December 7, 2005 (edited) A solor panel trickle charger will set you back around $100. If you only use the boat every couple of months, this is a hassle free option if you find that your electricals in in order and still have this problem in the future. happy fishing - Eddie Edited December 7, 2005 by eddie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heckendorfmortgage Posted December 9, 2005 Share Posted December 9, 2005 FINAL TIP - and VERY IMPORTANT In Aluminum boats (and cars for that matter) make a habit of disconnecting the negative terminal FIRST to avoid big sparks if you accidentally place your shifter between the positive and the body of the boat/car. Sparks + petrol vapour = POOF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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