batteries

[lgartner]

Went back to the boat yesterday to find the batteries completely flat. The cause is probably a surge of power that knocked out the switch from the main supply to the inverter. Need to know if this has caused damage to the batteries pack. Any advice or suggestion for someone to come and have a look?

Thanks
Luigi

 

[TrueBlue]

No, no, no - it's not an esential journey - for you or anyone else...
Be self sufficient and get yourself a decent battery charger that has a conditioning cycle (Sterling do a small one that'll cope with a larger battery bank - but it takes a l o n g time...
If you've got nothing better to do have a look at Canalworld forum. There are legions of battery topics.

 

[Viking23]

No, no, no - it's not an esential journey - for you or anyone else...
Be self sufficient and get yourself a decent battery charger that has a conditioning cycle (Sterling do a small one that'll cope with a larger battery bank - but it takes a l o n g time...
If you've got nothing better to do have a look at Canalworld forum. There are legions of battery topics.

Agreed- stay at home is best! I can’t get to my boat anyway, the Marina is closed. My leisure battery should be in tip top condition, as it’s charged from solar panels. The starter battery is not charged and I hate to think what state that’s in. But better to have to replace a battery than catch or spread Covid-19! (I think even deep cycle batteries are basically shot after a complete discharge, though as True Blue says, a modern cycling charger may restore some performance).

 

[Pump-Out]

Went back to the boat yesterday to find the batteries completely flat. The cause is probably a surge of power that knocked out the switch from the main supply to the inverter. Need to know if this has caused damage to the batteries pack. Any advice or suggestion for someone to come and have a look?

Thanks
Luigi

Where is the boat?

 

[lgartner]

Yes yes yes get off your bum and do some voluntary work then if happens to drive past your marina maybe you too can stop a few minutes to check on your boat!

 

[oldgit]

Worst case .
If the batteries have been totally flattened they probably are toast.
Easy way to find out, simply recharge and if they hold their charge fine. You have been lucky.
If as I suspect they will not hold a charge , then need to start making plans to replace all of them in one go.
Best clue as to quality of battery is not what amp hours is printed on the label but the weight,the heavier the better.
Lots online about how to avoid getting stitched up with poor quality "Leisure batteries."
A look online indicates that a 130AH battery could cost you £85.00 or £190.00. !
Most ads will give you the shipping weight a good clue to how much lead is actually in the battery.
For the technical among us the voltage checked by multimeter will help to provide clues as to the state of the battery.
Similarly a specific gravity tester could do the job.
check the fluid level in each cell as well.
Problem will get be getting into the battery to check each cell.
Do not succumb to the temptation go go for the next amp hour size down to save a few coppers .
IMHO a wet battery will be best value unless money is no object.However some of the fancy expensive stuff needs special chargers.
Ebay can be your friend and its delivered to you door.
Local companies seem unable to match the prices due to not being stock item and the need to order in.

 

[Big John]

View attachment 89372 check the fluid level in each cell as well.

There is the first problem a lot of batteries these days are sealed and you cannot check the fluid with a battery hydrometer. Non sealed are available but they are slightly more expensive. Check the spec. and ask the question.

 

[oldgit]

There is the first problem a lot of batteries these days are sealed and you cannot check the fluid with a battery hydrometer. Non sealed are available but they are slightly more expensive. Check the spec. and ask the question.

Wet Cell.
"100% MAINTENANCE FREE " !
Possibly a sticky label concealing a plastic moulding hiding all the caps to the cells. ?

 

[Actionmat]

Are all you batteries flat?
Leisure or starter or both?

 

[CJL]

I recently bought some monster AGM batteries from Tayna Batteries (www.tayna.co.uk) for our boat after a set of Optima ones died. They were the cheapest and arrived the following day with a lot of packaging - the courier was less pleased with the delivery!!

In the end I went for Bosch as they come with a 5 year warranty.

A Ctek charger did recover the dead Optima batteries in the end after a period of charging a reconditioning. I use this one - CTEK MXS 5.0 12V Charger and Conditioner MULTI XS 5.0 (56-975)

Good luck with them.

CJL