Sterling 10 amp charger ?

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Matt341

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I am looking for a decent charger that will charge 2 standard batteries. They are never left to go flat as we have a solar panel. I was looking for a charger like this - http://www.piplers.co.uk/index.php?/Ster...amp;prodid=1306

It is rated at 10amp with 2 outputs, as the batteries are connected in parallel with shared domestic/start I will only need to use one of the possible 2 outputs.

It will be used when in the marina, especially this time of year when there isn't much sun. We will also use it in the summer with 12volt lights/tv etc. so it will need to be able to cope well with high drain.

It seems a good price and has a good amount of features.

Will this be suitable?

Thanks
Ian
 
Thanks for the reply Vic, I forgot to mention, that when I have more time on my hands and most of the work is done that I might fit an isolator for 1 start battery and 1 domestic battery.

So then the 2 outputs will be needed.

My thoughts are, will the 10amp be enough as there are some with bigger outputs but then they have provision for 4 batteries.

Also if I only connect one of the two outputs, it won't damage the charger ?

Thanks
Ian
 
Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought there was a charger output recommendation for a permanent battery charger, something like charger output should be 25% or 30% (or there about) of total amp/hr for battery bank it would be charging? It may be worth checking this out before purchasing.

Ken
 
Hi Both, I honestly can't remember what the batteries are, I know though that they aren't above 90 so expect they may be the standard 85?

So the 10 amp charger would have to charge 170ah battery. Is this ok??

Thanks
Ian
 
Just been going through everything that will be drawing off the batteries when on shorepower. The fridge is the main item but that is rarely on 12 volt as we use it on mains 240 and ice blocks when out.

It will just be 5x10watt spotlights, 3 strip lights, possibly phone charger, 12volt tv and heating at 1.3 amps.

SO, as I am not good with these sort of calculations, is the 10amp sterling upto this ??

Thank you
Ian
 
It has been covered above but do separate your batteries a.s.a.p - or didn't you see BigNick's cri du coeur when all three batteries died?
I have a Sterling charger which is A1 but best to oversize at the start.
 
Ian

Have a read of this article, http://www.smartgauge.co.uk/chargesize.html it covers just about everything. Don't take too much notice of the comment re overcharging precautions, as your Sterling unit would electronically control this and protects batteries against this.

I would not dis-agree with former posting re approx 30 amp unit requirement.

Ken
 
Thank you for the information. What happened with the 3 batteries dying ?

I am still unsure about seperating the batteries, we have had them in parallel for 20+ years and never had problems.

I had a trickle charger on my caravan battery which lasted 7+ years. I put a heavy rated charger on it a few months back which charged it up immediately but the following week it was holding charge for max 3 days!

This is why I don't want a heavy charger on the boat batteries.

Also the batteries are located in a really awkward position, the wiring is also difficult, this being another reason why I have never split the batteries.

So am I right in thinking that the Sterling charger will take longer to charge but will get there. Also as the batteries are never left to go flat the charger will just be compensating for lighting so not having to charge flat batteries as well.

Thanks
Ian
 
Ian

An "intelligent" charger such as the Sterling would charge the battery quickly, as quickly as it was capable of, (back to size of charger and battery question again). The bigger the charger output the faster the charge, but only if the battery(s) need it. A 200 amp battery bank which was about 70% charged would with a 30amp charger probably whack close to 30amps into the battery for a very short period and then back down slowly as the battery charges up. When the battery reached near to full, it would charge very slowly for the last 5% - 10%. When batteries reach 100% full charge, charger would go into idle, and monitor the charge, topping up when and as required, sometimes only putting milliamps in. You can leave such an intelligent charger connected 24/7 it will look after your battery better than you could by only occasionally connecting up a charger. Intelligent chargers are not cheap, but are worth it. It sounds as though you cooked the batteries on your caravan by overcharging for too long, intelligent chargers were developed and introduced exactly for that reason.
My yacht is on charge 24/7 while in a marina or ashore, winter and summer, been like this permanently since 2005.
 
Hi Ken, Thank you for the reply. The sterling sounds a good buy then.

You leave the boat plugged in 24/7 which brings me onto my next question.
I would like to do this and possibly leave a frost heater on.

Do you have a galvanic isolator ? If so, are they easy to fit?

Also are they really necessary ?

Thanks
Ian
 
If you leave your boat with the shorepower connected even if not in use then a Galvanic isolator is all but vital, assuming your boat is wired with the shorepower earth connected to the ships earth ie to conform with EN ISO 13297 , adopted by most boat-builders complying with CE or ABYC standards. Perhaps even if not.

You'll find an explanation on the Sterling website under the heading "Why Galvanic isolators"

Going back to the choice of charger, you say your typical consumption is 5 10watt spot lights ( a touch over 4 amps), 3 strip-lights (about the same again), the heater (another 1.3 amps ) and a television (say 2 amps if is a smallish flat panel screen).

That makes a total of a bit over 11 amps** but you surely dont need all those lights on all the time, you wont have the telly on all the time so perhaps the 10 amp charger will just do. It'll recharge the battery again fairly quickly anyway if you do take a bit from there. A larger one will do no harm though.

The potential trouble with both batteries in parallel all the time is that if one failed it could drain the other. Apart from ease of handling there is little advantage over one battery twice the size. If you separate them you over come the snag and you can then reserve one for engine starting, even if not dedicated to that purpose, and use the other for domestics. If there is space then a larger battery for domestics will be an advantage especially if you must have all those lights on.

** but the TV may take more than I have allowed.
 
I do not see the problem / worry with a 10 amp charger.

For many years we supplied Sealine with an 18 amp charger, this was used on all boats upto 36 foot. These were fitted with 2 x 95 / 105 amphr service batteries, and 1 x 95 / 105 amphr for each engine. This worked on the principle that it would supply the boats domestic power during the evening. At night when the owner went to sleep, it charged the service bank upto 14.2 volt, then put each engine battery on charge to 14.2 volt, then went onto 13.6 volt float mode.

We never had problems with charge levels, some boats were running 30 / 40 amp service loading, so splitting the banks into two, and a 10 amp charger on a small boat should be no problem.

Brian
 
Yikes!

Being a long time fan of Mr. Sterling's products, I thought I'd look at his current offerings and prices.

He hasn't yet updated his catalogue - but then he never does, but he does have an online price - which I assume is current.
<span style="color:blue">ProCharge 10amp is now £199.....</span>

Piplers price is £109 - so just over half price - get one quickly at that price.

Now one can see how the collapse of the £ is beginning to hit.

I just can't get my head around why folks fit large battery charges (OK, clever alternator regulators are a good idea as you want to put lots of charge in during the limited time in the day that you are cruising)

However, if you visit your boat for weekends, then you have the whole week to charge the batteries. Even overnight is long enough to recharge with a small charger.

So, you have a telly and lights - how long are they on for daily? five hours?
Fridge - well its on 24/7 - average current draw? 3 amps?
I won't do lots of calculations, but you can see from the above that if there is a deficit when you have all lights / TV / fridge etc, you might get a shortage of 5 amps per hour, so in theory your 10amp charger recovers that in 2.5 hours.

You're asleep for 8 hours? Batteries well charged when you wake up.

Even so the 20amp version is available from Piplers for £155, so if it gives you peace of mind.

I'm agreeing with VicS who has been more analytical than I, but I suppose my real point is you should check prices soonest and possibly grab a bargain now!
 
Re: Yikes!

[ QUOTE ]
Piplers price is £109 - so just over half price - get one quickly at that price.

[/ QUOTE ]If he really wants that charger, it's a tenner cheaper here!
 
Re: Yikes!

Thank you all for the replies. We tend not to use all the lights at once and when in the marina we use lamps. Also the heating, we have an oil filled that we use instead of the boat heater to save gas.

We are heading down to Poole in a few weeks, so I am making a shopping list. The sterling seems reasonable there at £109 but there is also a Force 4 in Cardiff where I get my antifouls from so there are some good buys around.

The sterling seems to have quite a lot of features so I have shortlisted to it now.

Thank you all again for your helpful input.

Ian
 
Re: Yikes!

Bit of a thread hijack but we have a 210 Ah domestic and 85Ah engine start battery banks, either charged of the engine or a 1997 vintage Sterling 4 step charger.

It stopped working prior to xmas so I removed it yesterday and opened it up. I have removed a T6.3AH250V fuse which has blown and am hoping that the replacement fuse sorts it out. While open a small switch type fitting on the curcuit board looked loose so I have tried to secure it.

If the replacement fuse works then ok I will continue using the charger, my only concern is that over the 10 years we have replaced probably 3 sets of batteried that were boiled. I was under the impression that Sterling Products stopped charging when the batteires were full up, but there is no thermal sensor so is the unit broken? Should I by another either via sterling with a 30% discount or get on of these http://www.force4.co.uk/1006/-Sterling---12V-20-Amp-Battery-Charger.html The batteries are Delphi Sealed batteries can these be refilled?

Any help or advice welcome.
 
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