Battery Power / Charging

[mtaylor819]

Hi there,

I am very new to boating and have a small day boat, with an old outboard that doesn't have electric charging / start, so I am looking for a some ideas of providing power to the boat.

All i have for power is some nav lights, GPS / Radio and cabin lights. I was thinking of solar charging, but for a decent charger and panel looks like a minefield.

Wind turbines seem very expensive currently.

Is there anyways of adding a water driven alternator or such ?

Thanks

Mark

 

[the_wanderer]

Leisure battery?

Hi and welcome to the forum.

Probably your best bet is to buy a good high capacity leisure battery and take it home to recharge after every trip. A small portable solar power unit is available from Maplins which may give you an amp or so to keep the battery topped up but they are not cheap.

I once hired a beaten up old outboard powered boat on the canals which had no charging and it was fitted with a car battery, fully charged when I left the boatyard. It lasted with no problem for cabin lighting and the tunnel headlight (three tunnels, timescale, one and a half hours with a fifty watt headlight) The battery lasted for two weeks with no problem.

Have fun with your little dayboat, I have a 14 ft boat on which I have lots of fun on the Thames, Broads etc.

Regards.

Alan.

 

[Fantasie 19]

It kind of depends - I have a boat with the same requirements/setup as you, but in reality

1. I'm very rarely on the boat at night
2. I sail once, maybe twice a week

..so my actual power requirements are pretty minimal - just VHF for 6 hours a week..

I power the whole lot off of a basic car battery, and I can keep that topped up for the whole summer from two of these - one in each side window...

..they're about £8 each - from here and many other places....

http://prodigytek.co.uk/product_info.php?products_id=399&c=node&i=B002V9JEF0

 

[mtaylor819]

Hi Guys,

Many thanks for the quick replies.

It is just a 14ft mayland and will be mainly used in the day, but just in case, I want to make sure I can power up Nav lights / cubby lights if needed. I will probably just carry a portable gas stove for cups of tea etc.

I spoke to a solar company today, and they said they could provide a panel and charge controller as a full kit but it was £100 so I think I will go with two independent batteries being charged off the panels you have suggested.

I am sure I will be back with lots of questions and hopefully some pics of my new little toy !