For those of us in colder areas, do you leave batteries in or remove for winter? Last year in another boat, I left in and trickled once a month via generator in the back of my truck. Batteries were just too hard to remove. With the new boat I think I can get them out without killing myself.
I’m on my second boat in the mid Atlantic and I never remove my batteries. I’ve got 8 onboard so that would be quite an effort. I leave them in go to the boat once a month or so to run the chargers for a couple hours. No issues with this routine so far.
Author's Statistic:
Posts: 696
Threads: 13
Likes Given: 1
Likes Received: 92 in 84 posts
Joined: Dec 2010
Home Port: Kings Park, NY
Vessel Info: 2003 38' Open Cummin's 6CTA's (450 hp)
Posts: 696
Threads: 13
Likes Given: 1
Likes Received: 92 in 84 posts
Joined: Dec 2010
Home Port: Kings Park, NY
Vessel Info: 2003 38' Open Cummin's 6CTA's (450 hp)
10-23-2021, 07:31 AM (This post was last modified: 10-24-2021, 05:49 AM by ReelMagic.)
I winter my 2003 38 in the water, Long Island NY, where we have severe winters and leave the batteries in the boat w/charger on.. I've done it this way for the last 15 years and haven't had any issues with the batteries. As a mater of fact the batteries are GEL batteries which lasted 17 years before I changed them (they were the original ones & were starting to show there age). As a note ensure your charger is preforming correctly or you may experience a problem as a result.. So far my Charles charger is working correctly... M2C
I'm up on the Great Lakes (Erie), leave mine in the boat. My boat is stored inside and the yard just plugs them in on a regular basis to keep them charged up.
I am here in Boston. Smaller boats I used to remove. My current 40 Express has (I think) 10-12 batteries. I just make sure they are fully charged once a month. I have the cheaper flooded batteries and they are holding up fine. Being fully charged is key I think.
Good question. I've done both over the years, depending on the boat and how accessible the batteries were. Net, I haven't seen much of a difference. IMO, If you can get to the boat once per month to charge the batteries, then I would leave them in, if you don't want the hassle of goin to the boat monthly, then bring them home.