battery charger

[erice]

two days ago, i spent the better part of the morning cleaning out the bilge. yesterday, i checked the batteries, found voltage low. checked charger, no signs of life. circuit breaker ok, power to charger so i checked the batteries themselves. all appeared ok, except one negative cable feels weak, like it has partially broken. obviously i will correct the cable issue, but do you think this could cause a no charging condition? none of the indicator lights on the charger are lit.

[DougSea]

Is your 12v panel ok? Lights work, etc? If so, sounds like your charger is dead. If not, you may have a bad cable. What model do you have? Did you get hit with the lightning storms we had here in NY this week? You may have taken a hit.

[jcollins]

Is your 12v panel ok? Lights work, etc? If so, sounds like your charger is dead. If not, you may have a bad cable. What model do you have? Did you get hit with the lightning storms we had here in NY this week? You may have taken a hit.

I was thinking the same thing. Mine got hit a few years ago. The only thing it damaged was the charger. I replaced it with a Xantrex unit. But, before you replace, did you check the large fuse? (assuming you have one) I don't know exactly what it's called. Mine is just before the charger/inverter on the AC side. That fuse blew once and I thought the charger was dead.


John

[erice]

thanks for the replys. i've gone online to get an owners manual, and in trouble shooting, they refer to checking the glass fuse; if it's blown, replace it. if it blows again, the board is toast & time to replace charger. i'm going down today to check, i'll let you know.

[tbnolin]

Just got the boat wet last weekend and come to find out my batteries would not hold a charge any longer. Checked all systems, battery charger, cables, etc. and came to the conclusion that my original 8D deep cycle batteries had crapped out. After last years experience with wet batteries (my first), I realized the water needs to be checked periodically. I had to add about three gallons of distilled water to the 4 batteries in order to crank over the engines. I've been told that once that happens the life of the batteries are diminished considerably. 4 new batteries were installed Saturday and things are looking good. Heavy things they are....about 160 pounds a piece!

[erice]

well, i went to the boat, fuse was ok; cables to batteries fine, a/c power to unit ok. i pulled the charger and hope to have it checked soon, but my gut tells me it's time to pony up for a new charger.

[erice]

well, it looks like the charger is toast. sorta expected that. i'm wondering if there was an issue with lightning as my heart inverter also seems to be inop. both items are connected to shore power. hmmmmmm, i wonder.

[DougSea]

well, it looks like the charger is toast. sorta expected that. i'm wondering if there was an issue with lightning as my heart inverter also seems to be inop. both items are connected to shore power. hmmmmmm, i wonder.

Quite possible. It doesn't even have to be a direct hit.

Check out this video from last Thursday. You can make out Sonny IV back behind the boat that gets hit.

http://www.boatingonthehudson.com/fishi ... youtubecom

I think the guy taking the video must have just about had a heart attack! No damage to me but I hear the guy who took the hit had ALL of his eletronics fried.

[RobS]

Check out this video from last Thursday.
....I hear the guy who took the hit had ALL of his electronics fried.

Actually I think the videographer faired rather well considering the close proximity of that strike.
Shocking that boat didn't go up in flames. I have handled quite a few building fires from direct hits.
Just what I needed to see a couple nights before spending the weekend on the hook - thanks Doug!