which automotive battery charger?

carrswood

carrswood

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evening all
I want to buy a good quality battery charger to get some juice in my batterys on the rare occasion I am on the dock and near 230v shore pwr. I understand a good so called smart charger is the one to look out for. Is this the same thing as a 3 phase charger too?

I was thinking about looking at Halfords or Clarkes tools to get one
Any advice on what to or not to plug for would be appreciated
cheers:):)
 
A car type battery charger is low powered and not suitable for marine type applications except as a trickle charge. Do the job properly and get a stage charger that is designed for the job - not expensive just because it is "marine" but because it has a different job to do.
 
If you just want to whack a bit of juice into the battery when the opportunity arises a cheap manual no frills charger from Halfrauds or any other motor accessory shop will do.

If you want to optimise the charging and be able to leave it on for prolonged periods and have a desulphation stage perhaps then yes you do need an automatic/smart multi stage charger. Halfords do usually have one or two available, (and not always the same in store as on-line.)

How about looking at the CTEK range.

Lidl and Aldi have someting similar now and then

If you want a multiple output charger that can charge two (or more) banks simultaneously then you are probably into the realms and prices of installed chargers

If a minimal shorepower installation is also of interest look at the Dolphin range from Merlin Power-store. Expensive but a neat solution
 
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What you need in my experience is a charger capable of putting in at least 14.5 volts to desulphate the plates when the batteries are low -sulphation is the process by which batteries delivery power. Best is one that self regulates to delivery this charge to start with, then eases off to a trickle charge thereafter.

So it doesn't matter whose names in on the charger, but your needs will not likely be met by the cheapest chargers around. A simple car battery charger most likely will not deliver the higher voltage, so will never completely recharge the batteries. After time, the batteries sulphate for good and die.

If your batteries are dependent on a simple regulator on the alternator on your boat engine, they will not be maintained to best advantage - the reason why so many go for advanced chargers with different phases of output. So, as you surmise, using a shore power charger with the above characteristics will give you a better outcome.

PWG
 
I will suggest 2 ways depending on what you have on board. Both will be poo poo'd by "Marine" bods ....

If you have 2 battery set-up and wish to charge both - you can nip down to Maplins and buy a simple Kemo Charge splitter. Mine cost under a tenner. It is a no-loss electronic splitter that is placed into charger output leads and then supplies each battery as needed. I have it permanently mounted on my boat. But it will not work with a smart charger - as it confuses the smart-wizardry and charger stays on charge. It will not drop back to maintenance (trickle). When visiting a dock - I have it on continuous. When at home berth or laid-up in winter - I have charger mains power via a mechanical timer set for so many hours a day with couple days rest per week. A bog standard old fashioned charger is best for this ... the cheaper the better. Cheap means no electronic gizmo inside to be confused !

Ok - so you don't want that and are happy to charge one battery at a time ... then Halfords smart auto charger at about 40 quid is an excellent buy. I have this for use on all sorts of other batterys I have ... despite various comments on threads - I have no problem, it does exactly what it's supposed to do.

You will be advised by some to get stepped chargers ... fancy bits and bobs for something that really is not so hard to satisfy a lot cheaper. If you do want a stepped charger - its not necessary to buy 'Re-badged' chargers .. re-badged to indicate they are Marine ... when in fact many are same as over counter shore stuff ... Ok - there are some genuine Marine ones ... but I am not going to mortgage wallet for them when my auto chargers have lasted many years and still working fine ....

just to give an idea ... I have pretty standard 2 battery set-up ... 1 @ 80 A/hr, second at 100 A/hr .... with above maplins splitter and standard charger - I go 1 - 2 week cruises without problem ... averaging charge from shore power each 2nd or 3rd night stop..... I run plotter, autohelm, standard cabin lights etc.
My batterys also last many years .... my last ones were over 8 yrs in service AND they were second hand when I got them !
 
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thanks guys - great advice as ever
To be honest I don't need anthing fancy. I just need to top up each battery (one at a time) whilst the yacht is on the hard. In season she is on her swinging mooring in the river and nowhere near the mains! I run 2 x 85ah batterys whch are charged by a 115ah alternator on my new Volvo D1-20
that should be satifactory for my low usage?
 
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