[tiara35]

in 2 weeks I'm having a vetus bow-60 installed by fl. bow thruster, they are telling me I don't need a charger and battery with this md. and a tiara boat. can anyone tell me what unit they have, and how good it works,
and if anyone has used fl. bow thruster, thanxs

[Chris Burkard]

Hmmm. Tiaras do have robust battery banks compared to other manufactures, but an electric bow thruster will draw huge amounts of current when in use. I'd be more worried about other components on the system while the bow thruster is in operation. If you have to install a thruster, I would insist on a separate bank of batteries and an independent charging system.

I'm not a fan of bow thrusters for twin inboard vessels of this size. They are expensive, add weight, add maintenance and add complication. Unless you have a dock subject to very strong currents or wind I would forgo the thruster. With practice, nearly anyone can dock a twin engine inboard express vessel of this size in nearly all docking situations without much trouble. Bow thrusters have their place mind you; large outboard vessels don't handle worth a darn around the dock and a bow thruster is needed in many situations. Single engine inboards of course need thrusters and larger vessels susceptible to wind need thrusters. This is just my opinion and I understand if having a bow thruster makes someone more comfortable with the handling of any vessel, that translates into more enjoyment and that may be worth the added expense.

[tiara35]

hi 
I'm new to the threads, and I know this is an old post, but I have a 1996 35 tiara and had a thruster put in 2013, from florida bow thruster and they told me the same thing. to this day the unit works great without the charger,,, all my friends that had 1 installed on their boat at the same time have had dead bow thruster batteries all the time. I'm sure your doing well w/o the charger