I have a 1982 37' Hunter Cutter & need to replace the batteries. Which Brand & type would be the best also, I have 2 right now but would like more to run the 12v stuff without re-starting the engine all the time..............Could someone give me some advise? Thanks.....bob
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this is simple...
Buy three big new batteries (the largest you can fit and afford) Hook two of them up in parallel ( + to + and - to -) call these your house battery and call them your house battery. Take the third battery (your starting battery) and hook it up to the other position on your battery switch. Simple.
Buy three big new batteries (the largest you can fit and afford) Hook two of them up in parallel ( + to + and - to -) call these your house battery and call them your house battery. Take the third battery (your starting battery) and hook it up to the other position on your battery switch. Simple.
do you play golf Bob?
Go to any of the local courses in Tarpon Springs and tell the pro shop guys you want to talk to whoever manages the carts. That person is an expert in battery local knowledge and will probably convince you to get a couple of 6V golf cart batteries from the cheapest local distributor. Two of these will give you 220ah capacity connected in series for your house bank. You be be confident whoever that person is there knows which batteries last longest. Any car battery will do fine as a starting battery if you isolate it from the house bank
Go to any of the local courses in Tarpon Springs and tell the pro shop guys you want to talk to whoever manages the carts. That person is an expert in battery local knowledge and will probably convince you to get a couple of 6V golf cart batteries from the cheapest local distributor. Two of these will give you 220ah capacity connected in series for your house bank. You be be confident whoever that person is there knows which batteries last longest. Any car battery will do fine as a starting battery if you isolate it from the house bank
AGMs fit nicely.
My H37C has a starter AGM in the original location, starboard locker on the hull against the bulkhead(under the icebox). There are three(300Ah) more in that locker with room for a fourth. Two are on the hull behind the starter AGM. One is on the shelf behind the icebox with mounts for another. Those house batteries are seven year old Gels. When they quit they will be replaced with AGMs. Because of where they are you want them to be maintenance free. Those batteries have never been off the boat, lived through seven winters on the hard. If you had them in the bilge or somewhere else accessible you might choose a wet cell. The wets are cheaper and for less money provide a lot more amp-hours. My house and starter are isolated. I always run the boat on switch #2(house) and never use the starter battery. A West combiner keeps the starter AGM charged. Simple and foolproof.
My H37C has a starter AGM in the original location, starboard locker on the hull against the bulkhead(under the icebox). There are three(300Ah) more in that locker with room for a fourth. Two are on the hull behind the starter AGM. One is on the shelf behind the icebox with mounts for another. Those house batteries are seven year old Gels. When they quit they will be replaced with AGMs. Because of where they are you want them to be maintenance free. Those batteries have never been off the boat, lived through seven winters on the hard. If you had them in the bilge or somewhere else accessible you might choose a wet cell. The wets are cheaper and for less money provide a lot more amp-hours. My house and starter are isolated. I always run the boat on switch #2(house) and never use the starter battery. A West combiner keeps the starter AGM charged. Simple and foolproof.
Get deep cycles.
Without knowing your usage and charging capacity I would not try to size your batteries. I do recommend deep cycles as they will last longer and perform better for house bank duties. They can also be used as a starter battery with insignificant damage. What Don says is true two 6V golf car batteries connected in series will give you serious storage capacity at a very reasonable cost. The downside would be size and weight. Check the information on this web page;(copy and paste) http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm#Major%20Battery%20Types
Without knowing your usage and charging capacity I would not try to size your batteries. I do recommend deep cycles as they will last longer and perform better for house bank duties. They can also be used as a starter battery with insignificant damage. What Don says is true two 6V golf car batteries connected in series will give you serious storage capacity at a very reasonable cost. The downside would be size and weight. Check the information on this web page;(copy and paste) http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm#Major%20Battery%20Types
remember the boat specific part of this
Good thoughts here but.. On a 37c its a bitch to check the batterys unless you are a 95 pound gymnastic major. the maint free gels or agms are the way to go. I know no one with a 37c checks the batteries any where near as often as you should! and thats my view.
Good thoughts here but.. On a 37c its a bitch to check the batterys unless you are a 95 pound gymnastic major. the maint free gels or agms are the way to go. I know no one with a 37c checks the batteries any where near as often as you should! and thats my view.
It is all about power usage and production
Hi Bob. I have a 37 hunter Legend with refer and inverter (and lots of other small stuff) and I use 2-100ish AH deepcycle batteries for the house bank and 1-100ish AH deepcycle for the start battery. Yes I know about the "you shouldn't use deepcycles for starting but it is only a 35 HP engine and the starter only draws about 75 amps when the engine is cold. The inverter draws more than that!! I use it mostly for weekend reft ups where there is no shore power and have never even had to tie in the starting battery to get the engine started on Sunday morning. (I usually forget to switch and just start the motor) Not knowing what major electrical items you have and how (frequency) you use them makes it real hard to advise you. I can tell you that you most likely have a 55 Amp alternator so you will be getting around 45 AH of charge for each hour the engine runs. Having a big battery bank is all cool and such but if you can't replenish it in some fashion (shore power for 5 days, or an hour a day running the engine, wind, solar....) that is reasonable, it does not matter how big the bank is you will eventually run out of power. It is all about knowing how you intend to use the boat.
Hi Bob. I have a 37 hunter Legend with refer and inverter (and lots of other small stuff) and I use 2-100ish AH deepcycle batteries for the house bank and 1-100ish AH deepcycle for the start battery. Yes I know about the "you shouldn't use deepcycles for starting but it is only a 35 HP engine and the starter only draws about 75 amps when the engine is cold. The inverter draws more than that!! I use it mostly for weekend reft ups where there is no shore power and have never even had to tie in the starting battery to get the engine started on Sunday morning. (I usually forget to switch and just start the motor) Not knowing what major electrical items you have and how (frequency) you use them makes it real hard to advise you. I can tell you that you most likely have a 55 Amp alternator so you will be getting around 45 AH of charge for each hour the engine runs. Having a big battery bank is all cool and such but if you can't replenish it in some fashion (shore power for 5 days, or an hour a day running the engine, wind, solar....) that is reasonable, it does not matter how big the bank is you will eventually run out of power. It is all about knowing how you intend to use the boat.
Battery sources.
You have read lots of advice so far, all good. The Related Link is another source of information. Now go find the cheapest three AGMs. One with low Ah and 900+CCA for the starter. Two group 27s with 90-100 Amp-hours each. You will be maintenance free for at least six years. And as your requirements change you know that you can add at least two more AGMs in the starboard locker. They nicely balance out the diesel tank. As for adding new batteries to old. I would not worry about that until the existing were at least three years old. This assumes good batteries and a good charging system. One caveat. Do not upgrade your alternator unless you install an external regulator. The AGMs and GELs cannot handle extended high charge voltages. Your 55 Amp Hitachi won't hurt the AGM.
You have read lots of advice so far, all good. The Related Link is another source of information. Now go find the cheapest three AGMs. One with low Ah and 900+CCA for the starter. Two group 27s with 90-100 Amp-hours each. You will be maintenance free for at least six years. And as your requirements change you know that you can add at least two more AGMs in the starboard locker. They nicely balance out the diesel tank. As for adding new batteries to old. I would not worry about that until the existing were at least three years old. This assumes good batteries and a good charging system. One caveat. Do not upgrade your alternator unless you install an external regulator. The AGMs and GELs cannot handle extended high charge voltages. Your 55 Amp Hitachi won't hurt the AGM.
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