E27 batteries
- Thread starter Drewrt
- Start date
Starting out, when your boat was new, most builders were installing a simple battery system. They would put in two 12 volt batteries, and the skipper would, with a selector switch, choose battery 1, or battery 2. The idea was that boat would use one at a time, keep the other one charged up for a spare. As late as 1988, our 34 footer had this scheme, with two group 24, 12 volt batteries.
Soon after we acquired the boat I added a separate "reserve" 12 volt battery. And then changed the former pair of small 12 volt batteries over to a pair of 6 volt 'golf cart' batteries wired in series to give us a large amp-hour House Bank that runs everything and also starts the inboard engine.
This has served us well, and once when the main bank lost power while spending a weekend aboard I switched over to the 'reserve battery' for the trip home.
Regarding the question about 6 volt vs 12 volt : The six volt batteries are only there to be wired together in series to create 12 volts. So one pair of 6 volts batteries equals a large capacity 12 volt battery bank.
***It just happens that the golf cart industry has created a huge market for high capacity -deep cycle - 6 volt batteries for their electric carts, and this has benefited us boaters. (If golfers still carried their clubs around in a bag slung over their strong shoulders we would not have this great power source!)
And, welcome to the Ericson group!
Trivia: I once did some crewing on an E-27 with a Yanmar diesel in Portland, named "Reality Check". Loads of fun to sail, and a good performing boat that the owner took up the WA coast to Vancouver Island BC on vacations.
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Drewrt
Member I
Thanks that helpsHi Drew, it's standard in many boats to have two 6v batteries joined together to create one 12v house battery in addition to the single 12v backup battery.
Starting out, when your boat was new, most builders were installing a simple battery system. They would put in two 12 volt batteries, and the skipper would, with a selector switch, choose battery 1, or battery 2. The idea was that boat would use one at a time, keep the other one charged up for a spare. As late as 1988, our 34 footer had this scheme, with two group 24, 12 volt batteries.
Soon after we acquired the boat I added a separate "reserve" 12 volt battery. And then changed the former pair of small 12 volt batteries over to a pair of 6 volt 'golf cart' batteries wired in series to give us a large amp-hour House Bank that runs everything and also starts the inboard engine.
This has served us well, and once when the main bank lost power while spending a weekend aboard I switched over to the 'reserve battery' for the trip home.
Regarding the question about 6 volt vs 12 volt : The six volt batteries are only there to be wired together in series to create 12 volts. So one pair of 6 volts batteries equals a large capacity 12 volt battery bank.
***It just happens that the golf cart industry has created a huge market for high capacity 6 volt batteries for their electric carts, and this has benefited us boaters. (If golfers still carried their clubs around in a bag slung over their strong shoulders we would not have this great power source!)
And, welcome to the Ericson group!
Trivia: I once did some crewing on an E-27 with a Yanmar diesel in Portland, named "Reality Check". Loads of fun to sail, and a good performing boat that the owner took up the WA coast to Vancouver Island BC on
So I shouldn’t put the selector switch to ALL then?
I just brought her down from Tacoma , Her name is Toyot. It’s my first boat and I’m very happy with her.
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Typically, the selector switch directly affects how the batteries get charged by the alternator. For the AC battery charger, it depends on how your charger is hooked up.
Have you read any articles from Maine Sail at Marine How To? Good article here on different approaches:
1/2/BOTH Switch Considerations
1/2/BOTH Battery Switch Considerations - Ever wonder how to make the 1/2/BOTH switch easier to use, let this article explain how to do that.
marinehowto.com
I forgot add, she's very pretty. Welcome!
Almost never. This was, IMHO, a practice more favored by owners of smaller powerboats who believed that if one battery was dead when they wanted to start up their Evenrude after fishing all day they could just have oodles of power by combining the discharged battery with the other one. Actually this just lets the dead battery soak up the power from the good one.... If you read some of Maine Sail's articles about batteries he explains this very well.
I agree that your boat shows very well.
Edit: a LOT of good basic info in this thread: https://ericsonyachts.org/ie/threads/installing-a-dedicated-starter-battery.10446/
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Dave G.
1984 E30+ Ludington, MI
Welcome Drew ! I've had my boat about a year and still not sure I have the battery/charging system totally figured out, I too have 2 6v's for "house" battery(Bank 1) and 1 12v for "engine/backup battery(Bank 2). I decided to install 2 separate chargers(10a) one for each bank. So that if a charger fails it provides a little redundancy. Not sure how your system is wired up but until you figure it out the one thing I would caution you about is do not switch the battery selector to another position or to off while the engine is running. Yours may have a fail safe device but until you know you don't want to blow the alternator. I tend to use the house(bank 1) majority of the time but about once or twice a week I use bank 2 just to keep it active.
Drewrt
Member I
What a resource! Thank youTypically, the selector switch directly affects how the batteries get charged by the alternator. For the AC battery charger, it depends on how your charger is hooked up.
Have you read any articles from Maine Sail at Marine How To? Good article here on different approaches:
1/2/BOTH Switch Considerations
1/2/BOTH Battery Switch Considerations - Ever wonder how to make the 1/2/BOTH switch easier to use, let this article explain how to do that.marinehowto.com
Speaking of resources, this is kind of required reading for any boat owner interested in how their systems are supposed to work. I believe Sextons Chandlery just down the road from you may have it. Great little shop, Scott and Marty and Joe can find you nearly anything boat related you might need and they have a lot of great consignment gear too.
Boatowners Mechanical and Electrical Manual 4/E: Calder, Nigel: 9780071790338: Amazon.com: Books
Boatowners Mechanical and Electrical Manual 4/E [Calder, Nigel] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Boatowners Mechanical and Electrical Manual 4/E
www.amazon.com
I have a similar setup to this, Drew, except my charger has two separate outputs. So, one is hooked up to each battery (I have 2x 12V 65AH "dual purpose" batteries). You might check your charger to see if it has two outputs.
Very important!
Maine Sail mentions the alternator protection device in that article I posted earlier. Since my batteries are identical, I usually run the selector on "both". YMMV.
At temps most folks do recreational boating in even a lawn tractor battery should be able to start the small diesel or gas engine in an E-27.
I am somewhat of an odd bird and will take my boat out for a run in January, so I sometimes need the extra power of 2 batteries to start in the dead of a NYC winter. Batteries do not like being cold. They sort of go into hibernation.
Fine looking E-27. Wish mine were that pretty! Welcome.
I am somewhat of an odd bird and will take my boat out for a run in January, so I sometimes need the extra power of 2 batteries to start in the dead of a NYC winter. Batteries do not like being cold. They sort of go into hibernation.
Fine looking E-27. Wish mine were that pretty! Welcome.