Battery Upgrade

[Chris & Dale]

Steel Hers came w/1 4D and 1 Gp 31, both AGM's and a little over 7 years old. Having experienced the "my truck started yesterday and is dead as a doornail today" I decided time would drive a replacement now. In conjunction with this project is another to add a 2000 watt inverter vs. a generator, which I was comfortable would meet our needs of minimal anchoring.

Old Batteries.JPG

I therefore set off on a research project starting w/this site, reading a 2 part article on battery banks in Passage Maker, and then talking extensively w/2 friends who've done the Great Loop. 1 of these friends recommended replacing the 4D w/2 Gp 31's. Again, wanting to use the inverter, I decided to upgrade to 1 Gp 31 for Bank 1 and 3 Gp 31's for Bank 2 for the house.

New Batt Layout.JPG

My friend also referred me to a battery shop that took in Gp 31 AGM's that had been in backup emergency systems (e.g., hospitals, etc.) for 6-24 months that were very cheap. In fact, I bought 4 that were between 8-12 months old, load tested strong, and after fuel costs to Charlotte and back to Southport, were less than 1 Gp 31 AGM new. I'd also taken a preliminary measurement between the stringers that indicated I could put 4 in-line. I built a new battery tray w/2 tied down straps (wanted the additional reinforcement), later finding out I was slightly off and had to cut the end 2 x 2" 's off, which then fit perfect, and also gave me a little working room between the batteries and switch.

Modified Batt Tray.JPG

Being very inexperienced in electrical stuff I did do a lot of reading and 1 of my friends was an I&C technician in another life. One thing I picked up on in the Passage Maker article on battery banks was placing the + at one end of the bank and the Grnd at the other end. For my house bank, that was 2A + and 2C Grnd. This is supposed to help levelize battery use (made sense to me). I did just the opposite for the inverter connections, going 2C + and 2A Grnd. To further improve my battery management, I added a Yandina 100 Combiner. I then labeled everthing.

Combiner 100.JPG

Labeled.JPG

All that being done, we set about testing everything, including the inverter. All went well with one exception...we found that the Battery 1 and 2 switches were reversed, as indicated by the amperage drop when starting the engine. That was easily corrected at the battery posts, so they're aligned properly. It works perfect and I'm confident we'll have many years of cruising and being on the hook from our new setup.

I will tell you that at 6'3" and 270 lbs, spending about 10 days in and out of that bilge area and the fridge cavity has put a hurtin' on this 62 year old, but as I've indicated in other project posts, the knowledge gain from taking your boat apart, making improvements, and putting it back together is worth the Naproxen! I hope my project posts help and maybe inspire others to take it on. Next post will be on the inverter and the next project will be installing pantographic wipers. I Love "Steel Hers"

[jcollins]

Nice job. Very informative for those thinking about this.

Thanks for sharing.

[kirley]

Heavy duty, looks great, nice job!

[lawrento]

A very good motivation for me !
Cheers !
Lawrento
Albin 31TE
RSYC
Singapore.