Battery Charger

[RiffraffWillie]

Double check that in the manual.......CCA....... or MCA ?

I dissreguard MCA. It's because all my life my head has bee wrapped around CCA.

Then the Marine industry decides to throw a new designation of MCA.

CCA =measured @ 0 deg F.

MCA = measured @ 32 deg F.

I also find a 800CCA is pretty damn close to a 1000MCA

Going farther...Obviously 1000 sounds better than 800 and I guess they figure no one will be boating @ 0deg F.

While that is probably true.....I go back to CCA and reject MCA so the playing field is Apples to Apples and not Apples to Oranges.....Just helps me keep battery rating straight in my head.

Perfect, great information. I had not heard of MCA but very good to know

 

[pelagic2530]

Double check that in the manual.......CCA....... or MCA ?

I dissreguard MCA. It's because all my life my head has bee wrapped around CCA.

Then the Marine industry decides to throw a new designation of MCA.

CCA =measured @ 0 deg F.

MCA = measured @ 32 deg F.

I also find a 800CCA is pretty damn close to a 1000MCA

Going farther...Obviously 1000 sounds better than 800 and I guess they figure no one will be boating @ 0deg F.

While that is probably true.....I go back to CCA and reject MCA so the playing field is Apples to Apples and not Apples to Oranges.....Just helps me keep battery rating straight in my head.

SO… After you mentioned it, I did a deeper dive. Turns out, the Yamaha manual only calls for 512 CCA/675 MCA. The requirement for the 1000 CCA battery came from the DEALER’s requirement on the repower spec sheet- as in, if you don’t have 1000 CCA batteries installed, they’ll need to replace them.

No idea where they came up with that. Just another way they screwed me, I guess.

 

[RiffraffWillie]

I tend to disagree with Warthog on brand preference, but agree in concept.

You’re going to need two chargers. Do yourself a favor, install a two bank charger now for your start/house batteries (or port/stbd batteries if you haven’t yet upgraded to a switch that separates your start and house circuits) and install another one later when you decide to do your TM install. A 21’ is going to need a 36v system, so you’ll either need to charge three traditional batteries or one lithium ion battery. Either way, the same charger that charges your normal batteries won’t work to charge the TM batteries, either because it’s too many batteries or because it needs a dedicated lithium battery charger.

I prefer to use the ProMariner ProSport HD series of chargers.

So in reading up on this more, it makes more sense and aligns with my assumptions as "what made sense to me" as an electrician working with UPS batteries often throughout my career. I think this article does a great job of explaining what I had assumed based on my knowledge. In as much as what I saw was that the term House and Engine or Cranking battery in a system with a 1/2/both/off switch like my Guest or a Preko is a misconception. The selector Sw simply selects one battery or the other, or both. Either way when a setting is selected the battery selected, let's say battery #1, that battery is performing house power function AND engine starter and alternator functions. Or both batteries are paralleled when both is selected and both perform these functions simultaneously. You don't "really" have an Engine Battery and a House Battery, per se, they both perform these functions when either is selected or both together. You only need one battery to perform these and you are able to use either... or both. The article talks about how much power is requred to start an engine and how much a batter will be drained in terms of Amp Hours. The caution mentioned here and that I would add is the need to ensure at some point you must use both batteries or risk one battery being undercharged as it is never getting charged unless you have an ACR, like the the one make by Blue Sea. Suggested to make this change with engine not running or ensure that you transfer via the both setting. Even then, one should ensure good connections selecting through the both setting, especially as the switch ages.

This article does a great job if you scroll down to the section, "

In most cases your engine can easily be cranked by the house bank. Keep It Simple.."​

​

https://marinehowto.com/1-2-both-battery-switch-considerations/​

 

[pelagic2530]

So in reading up on this more, it makes more sense and aligns with my assumptions as "what made sense to me" as an electrician working with UPS batteries often throughout my career. I think this article does a great job of explaining what I had assumed based on my knowledge. In as much as what I saw was that the term House and Engine or Cranking battery in a system with a 1/2/both/off switch like my Guest or a Preko is a misconception. The selector Sw simply selects one battery or the other, or both. Either way when a setting is selected the battery selected, let's say battery #1, that battery is performing house power function AND engine starter and alternator functions. Or both batteries are paralleled when both is selected and both perform these functions simultaneously. You don't "really" have an Engine Battery and a House Battery, per se, they both perform these functions when either is selected or both together. You only need one battery to perform these and you are able to use either... or both. The article talks about how much power is requred to start an engine and how much a batter will be drained in terms of Amp Hours. The caution mentioned here and that I would add is the need to ensure at some point you must use both batteries or risk one battery being undercharged as it is never getting charged unless you have an ACR, like the the one make by Blue Sea. Suggested to make this change with engine not running or ensure that you transfer via the both setting. Even then, one should ensure good connections selecting through the both setting, especially as the switch ages.

This article does a great job if you scroll down to the section, "

In most cases your engine can easily be cranked by the house bank. Keep It Simple.."​

​

https://marinehowto.com/1-2-both-battery-switch-considerations/​

Or… upgrade to the BEP switch, which includes a VSR (akin to the Blue Sea ACR mentioned in the article) and call it a day. The difference between swapping out the existing battery switch for a BEP, and installing an ACR, is minimal.

This still does nothing to address the fact that you still run the risk of voltage spikes to your electronics during engine cranking, or reduce the complexity of the system and the chance for user error (in fact, in several of their “improved” diagrams, it appears to increase both). The BEP switch completely isolates the two systems, unless the emergency parallel switch is engaged. It is also almost completely error-proof: turn two switches on at the beginning of the day, turn two switches off at the end of the day. Pretty tough to mess up.

Sure, the 1-2-B-O switches can work just fine, and have for many years, if you use them properly and understand what they do. But even this article advocating their use suggests adding upgrades, which means ACRs, fuses, new cables, etc… in most cases the BEP switch is essentially plug and play. Why not go the route that is just as easy (if not easier), and offers a better result?

 

[RiffraffWillie]

Or… upgrade to the BEP switch, which includes a VSR (akin to the Blue Sea ACR mentioned in the article) and call it a day. The difference between swapping out the existing battery switch for a BEP, and installing an ACR, is minimal.

This still does nothing to address the fact that you still run the risk of voltage spikes to your electronics during engine cranking, or reduce the complexity of the system and the chance for user error (in fact, in several of their “improved” diagrams, it appears to increase both). The BEP switch completely isolates the two systems, unless the emergency parallel switch is engaged. It is also almost completely error-proof: turn two switches on at the beginning of the day, turn two switches off at the end of the day. Pretty tough to mess up.

Sure, the 1-2-B-O switches can work just fine, and have for many years, if you use them properly and understand what they do. But even this article advocating their use suggests adding upgrades, which means ACRs, fuses, new cables, etc… in most cases the BEP switch is essentially plug and play. Why not go the route that is just as easy (if not easier), and offers a better result?

Great input, thanks.!! I'll look into the VSRs.

 

[warthog5]

RiffrafWillie....What Peligac said above is what I've preached for a LONG time.

I have installed 1 Blue Seas Add a Battery....and installed 57 BEP Clusters in single & Twin engine configurations.

The Blue Seas system takes up a Lot more surface area. Due to the radius that you can bend large cables and mount them....It also still leaves a mystery as to which battery your actually controlling with the switch....

The single engine BEP Cluster is Only slightly larger than a Perko Switch [like 3/8in]

Blue Seas Add-A- Battery [Not my install]

 

[warthog5]

BEP Single & Twin

 

[RiffraffWillie]

RiffrafWillie....What Peligac said above is what I've preached for a LONG time.

I have installed 1 Blue Seas Add a Battery....and installed 57 BEP Clusters in single & Twin engine configurations.

The Blue Seas system takes up a Lot more surface area. Due to the radius that you can bend large cables and mount them....It also still leaves a mystery as to which battery your actually controlling with the switch....

The single engine BEP Cluster is Only slightly larger than a Perko Switch [like 3/8in]

Blue Seas Add-A- Battery [Not my install]

I need a heart emoji for this reply and Peligac. Thank you both for the information (as well as all comments). Very much appreciated !