Battery level low

Decision · **Posted:** Tue Sep 21, 2010 9:50 am

A good friend purchased his first express style cruiser boat (270 Doral SC) this spring.

It has two batteries and the charger is left on when he is not at the boat.

This past weekend, while out on the hook for about 2 hours he noticed his house battery didn't have enough juice to power his accessories.

Back at the dock I suggested he check his batteries water levels. The house battery was real low. He purchased a big jug of distilled water and toped the house battery back up. The battery had to have lost a good half of its water level judging by how much water he added to bring it back up.

If the battery was half empty, is there any hope that this battery is any good at all, or should it just be replaced A.S.A.P?

Thanks,

Mike.

Cap'n Morgan · **Posted:** Tue Sep 21, 2010 10:03 am

Charge it up, and have it load tested. That way you know it is either good or bad. If it's bad , it will eventually
discharge his other battery when on the charger, then he will need 2 new batteries.

carloswith47 · **Joined:** Tue Nov 30, 2010 5:55 pm **Posts:** 3

Battery level low is the very common problem at this time. When the battery is show low just recharge it. In the vista the system is given for this battery low show. It is good that recharge battery when it do as very low.

Paul I. · **Posted:** Wed Dec 01, 2010 11:48 am

Hi

My feelings are, first how old is the battery??? Most wet cells are only good for 3 yrs. It maybe time for a new one!! 2nd, I would check the output voltage of the charger. Off the top of my head, it should be around 14.1 volts. Check the specs first, I know I am close. As other people have already stated, try charging it up since it was been refilled with water.

I would do these steps first, it should only take a few minuets.

As far as a bad battery bring down another, yes that can happen. BUT all batterers should not be connected to each other as a norm. You're battery switch, combiner or isolator should keep them separated just for that reason.

Good luck
Paul

planealternative · **Posted:** Sun Aug 14, 2011 5:47 pm

Hi all,
I have to resurrect this thread as I'm having a problem with my charger.... I think.

Two weeks ago we noticed a drastic drop in the life of a full charge on our 2 house batteries. I checked the water levels and discovered that both house batteries were well on their way to boiling dry... starting batteries were ok. Perhaps 50% of the water had boiled off exposing the plates. We refilled both 3 weeks ago, have only run engines for approx. 4 hours and its been plugged into shore power since. Checked again today and all cells in the house batteries were down approximately 1 cup each.

Is it the charger thats causing this?

wkearney99 · **Posted:** Sun Aug 14, 2011 6:46 pm

It sure sounds like your charger isn't backing off properly. I'm no charger expert so I really don't have an ideas on how to test it. All I do know is I lost 3 new batteries to a defective charger when the boat was new (warranty covered new batteries and new charger). The batteries were HOT to the touch and there was a bit of a sulphur smell (which is dangerous because it usually indicates hydrogen is likely present too (aka ka-BOOM!).

I'd start by figuring out what make/model charger you have installed (listed on the device itself). And then give a call to that vendor inquiring about how to troubleshoot that one.

230 Mike · **Posted:** Sun Aug 14, 2011 11:29 pm

Batteries hold a charge of current which is usable to power many useful appliance. But you must either run the engine or apply some other charging device periodically in order to restore it to fullest functionality.

Sorry, couldn't resist. :wink:

wkearney99 · **Posted:** Mon Aug 15, 2011 8:20 am

230 Mike wrote:

Batteries hold a charge of current which is usable to power many useful appliance. But you must either run the engine or apply some other charging device periodically in order to restore it to fullest functionality.

And I almost brought the spam hammer down on that post. Heh.

Paul I. · **Posted:** Mon Aug 15, 2011 8:42 am

Forgive me, but have you checked the volage of the charger. If that voltage is too high, that would be the cause it it boiling over. It should be about 14.1 to 14.4 volts, do look up the specs on this. You will find that most chargers have 3 stages, each with there own voltabe settings. In other word, a float chage would be less than a charger, charging a battery that was at 50%.

planealternative · **Posted:** Wed Aug 17, 2011 9:29 am

Thanks all for their useful posts...(one of which was quite educational Mike)

We've determined that my charger is 'stuck' between the 1st and 2nd stages of the charge cycle, putting out a constant 13.5 volts and boiling them dry. Have a new Xantrex charger ordered which should solve the problem.

Cheers.

Pete

planealternative · **Posted:** Fri Sep 09, 2011 5:35 am

jonymac001 wrote:

A battery is nothing more than a chemical storage device for holding electrons until they're needed to crank the engine or run the lights or other electrical accessories on your vehicle. Checking the battery's state of charge will tell you how much juice the battery has available for such purposes.

If your battery is low, it needs to be recharged, not only to restore full power, but also to prevent possible damage to the battery. Ordinary automotive lead-acid storage batteries must be kept at or near full charge to keep the cell plates from becoming "sulfated" (a condition that occurs if the battery is run down and left in a discharged condition for more than a few days). As sulfate builds up, it reduces the battery's ability to hold a charge and supply voltage. Eventually the battery becomes useless and must be replaced.

Ummm................... thanks!
I think I remember learning that in grade 9 shop class.

Rhojo · **Posted:** Fri Sep 09, 2011 9:49 am

Anybody see ShipShape recently (within the last month or so) where the Gman advertised a battery rejunivation product? I'm blanking on the name here, I'm sorry. Something simple like "Rejuvit" or something equally stupid. He took a battery with low voltage (i forget the exact before and after voltages) and applied this product and retested the battery and it was back within acceptable output.

I wish the ShipShape site had an archive of episodes or products they have endorsed.

ric · **Posted:** Fri Sep 09, 2011 10:08 am

Check what kind of charger you have. If it's a charger that doesn't shut off or float automatically, it will kill batteries.

Technologic80 · **Posted:** Fri Sep 09, 2011 1:50 pm

Make sure that if its a deep cell battery, that the battery has enough electrolyte. I topped off my two batteries last week and between the two batteries - they took about 1/2 gallon of distilled water :shock:

Took care of my batteries running low on power.

To answer the OP's question: My house battery was so low, that the plates were exposed. I topped it off and its been good ever since. So I dont think just because the water level was low that your friend murdered their battery. I say top it off and if its fine after that, life is good

planealternative · **Posted:** Tue Aug 21, 2012 7:29 am

trying to be a comedian?

www.iFourWinns.com

Battery level low

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