Auto booster as batter for day sailor

[dobrosailor]

I pulled most of the wiring out of my cat 22 since it was a rats nest. The basic wiring, running lights, mast head etc is still in good shape. I just use this boat for daysailing on a lake and would like to be able to do some evening cruises, possibly overnight. Thinking, rather than having a marine battery with charging system e.g. solar, just using a jump start battery that can be charged at home and carried to the boat on the occasions when I plan to be out at night, would also be handy when needing to charge a cell phone. Has anyone tried this angle? I have a separate battery operated anchor light so I only need it for night sailing and cabin lights.

I have an old outboard without charging and really don't want to pop for a new marine battery and system to charge it e.g. solar etc... The old battery mount was rotten and has been removed, I would need to rebuild the battery mount and way to secure the battery in place if I want a marine battery.

Thinking a portable booster battery might be a clean and easy answer to my simple needs, anyone tried one?

 

[woodster]

haven't try that but if you get all LED bulbs that may work for you .......

 

[Tally Ho]

I used an auto jump start battery to run some lights and radio when working on the boat over the winter when I had the main batts off the boat.

Did not last very long.

I don't think it will have the capacity you need for much more than starting the engine.

Greg

 

[Benny17441]

The average wet sealed battery in a booster pack has a capacity of 18-20 Ah. That yields a small capacity for gradual deep discharge. It is likely that such use will shorten the battery life significantly making it a poor choice from a monetary stand point.

 

[jssailem]

It is a little outside the box thinking, but what do you have to loose. As Woodster suggested, LED lights will give you light at a low power demand. You might look at one of the $14 lucy solar lights to supplement cabin/cockpit lighting. I'm suprised how well they work. Add up your power need budget and decide on the battery amp hours you need. If the portable booster does not meet your need then move up to a small footprint battery. You can still take it home to charge.
Let us know how it turns out.

 

[dziedzicmj]

On my previous boat I used one of these "electricity in a bucket" boosters. Mine had 18 Ah (if i recall correctly). If you were to buy one, get one with a 12 V accessory socket. Make a accessory plug to accessory plug connection cable with which you can connect a boat as a big "accessory". And don't buy one that is too heavy to carry (or you would remove any advantage of it).

This won't get you much light if you stay overnight, but it is plenty of charge if you need it for occasional running with navigation lights and the radio. For lighting the cabin, I found that the easier way was to use some portable, battery powered, lights.

No question, taking home a booster pack is so much easier than removing and taking with you a real battery.

mdz

 

[Leeward Rail]

Another option would be a small battery like you find in some Honda cars. It's about half the size of a "normal" car battery.
A buddy of mine uses one of those batteries on weekends, with a strap to carry it. It's easy to carry. He uses his car charger that he already owns to charge it in his garage.
When I mentioned how it would shorten the life of a car battery compared to a deep cycle battery, his reply was that it came with a 5 year, 100% free replacement, 8 year prorated warranty compared to the short warranty with marine batteries. He just gets a free new one when it dies.

That way you get a bigger battery capacity, in a fairly light size, with all the investment going into a battery alone instead of a smaller battery + charger circuit etc.
This assumes you already own a car battery charger.

You'd still need to secure a booster pack somehow. They would do some damage even just loose in a locker. At least the one I own would.

Either way, I'd calculate your expected power load and see how much capacity you need. Then analyze your options.

Definitely don't ignore the cheap led battery and solar powered light options. They make some great ones for camping etc.

 

[dobrosailor]

Thanks guys, i am also not opposed to a wick style fuel cabin loght. I used to have one on a wood boat i livedaboard in SF in another life. I have wanted a battery pack for other reasons anyway, so ithink i'll give it a try and see how it works p

 

[dobrosailor]

Well I found a small tractor lead acid battery at Wally Mart. It was only $20 and is about half the size of a normal group 27 battery. I took some duct tape and made a handle so I can carry it easily. Works great for my modest needs. Has 230 cold cranking amps.