www.iFourWinns.com

I don't know if this is the proper place to post a question like this, but I am hoping someone can answer. Shouldn't the battery stay charged if it's plugged in to the shore power? I turned the battery select to "Both" and by morning, my boat was dead. Also, anyone know why my radio is always dead when I arrive at the boat, then turning the battery select to "Both" will make it work? Thanks for any assistance.

How old are the batteries?

Does the radio turn on with the switch on 1 of either of the 2 batteries?

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Walter

2003 248 Vista - VP 5.0 GXi
2009 Toyota Tundra SR5 5.7L 4x4

might sound like a silly question, but is your battery charger ciruit breaker turned on overnight whilst your shore power is turned on and the mains switch on the panel reads 110v?
Robbi

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2008 V288 with twin 5 litre Seacores
http://www.galwayhouse.com.au

What model/year Vista is this?

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

Don't know how old the batteries are because I just bought the boat two mths ago. He had it on "1" and the radio didn't work. Then we switched it to "Both" and the radio worked. Didn't try "2". I know I sound silly but I'm a new boat owner... This morning when I got up, the boat wouldn't start. I had it on "Both" all night. I think that might be the problem. When I am hooked up to shore power, and have it on "2", does that mean that battery #1 is charging? And if it's on "Both" does that mean I'm not charging anything?

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Lee
1998 Four Winns Vista 238

The battery charger if wired correctly will work independent of your battery switch meaning you can have it in the off,1,2 or both position and it will charge.

Now if your running the boat and using the alternator to charge the battery then it will charge the battery you have selected on the switch.

For us to help you further it would be great to know year, model of the boat and engine and in this particular case I am interested in knowing your battery setup meaning if you have cranking, dual purpose, deep cycle batteries.

I suggest you try the radio in the "2" position and see if it yields the same result as in the both. If this is the case it sounds like battery 1 is done.

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Walter

2003 248 Vista - VP 5.0 GXi
2009 Toyota Tundra SR5 5.7L 4x4

I have a 1998 Vista 238. My first boat, and no boating experience. I have deep cycle batteries and a Volvo Penta engine. The boat was bought from a consignment marina who were very helpful until the purchase was made and they went out of business. I called the owner with the question of why the radio wasn't working, and he said swith battery to "both" since we were connected to shore power. Which worked fine, my wife and I stayed up till 2 am, crashed, woke up and the boat was dead except for the fridge, microwave, and electrical outlet. I assume they are direct connect to shore power, I just assumed all lights, radio, etc. would run off shore power when connected.

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Lee
1998 Four Winns Vista 238

Lee,

We are all new boaters at some point and your in the right place with that boat to get your answers. There are some really smart people on here who can help you.

The radio, fresh water pump, cabin/cockpit lights all run on DC power (batteries)
The outlets, microwave, range, water heater, battery charger and air condtioner run on AC power (shore power / generator).
The fridge will use AC if available and then DC when not on the shore power.


If your boat is properly wired you should be able to listen to the radio in any of the battery positions. If the radio works in the both position try it on battery 2. If it works on both and 2 and assuming the batteries are correctly wired to switch bank 1 is dead.

Furthermore I strongly suggest you look closely to see if the batteries have evidence of how old they are. If they are older than a couple year I recommend you replace them. If one of the 2 is bad you need to replace both. You can take the batteries to any autozone and they will let u know if they are any good.

One more thing about the batteries. What engine do you have? If it is fuel injected I would recommend you switch to dual purpose or cranking. Fuel Injected Engines require a higher rpm to start and therefore are much more of a burden to your batteries.

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Walter

2003 248 Vista - VP 5.0 GXi
2009 Toyota Tundra SR5 5.7L 4x4

First step, if you haven't already, find a local chapter of the US Power Squadron and take their Boat Safety course. http://usps.org/

You'll accomplish several things. One being a safer boater, which is good for you AND everyone else on the water. Second, you'll have a chance to meet other local boaters. This will be handy for learning local conditions and possibly boat help.

I make this suggestion to all boaters, but especially to new ones. But in your case it's probably even more important to make friends with someone that can actually take a look at your setup. Used boats (like anything else) have the potential for all sorts of aftermarket accessories and add-ons. Some may not be done to factory standards. Someone that knows what they're looking at can often readily establish what's what.

The battery switch should, in general, have NOTHING to do with the shore power based charger. But this assumes it's all set up that way from the factory according to ABYC standards. If it was added after the fact then, who knows? Boat fridges generally can run off both AC and DC power (that's 110v shore power or genset, or 12v from the batteries). But, again, this depends on the particular units involved and how they've been wired. It's very difficult to diagnose this from online just based on text. And it's even more difficult when someone's new to both (not to cast criticisms here though).

The radio always works off 12v. If you're connected to shore power then the battery charger should be doing enough of a job to keep them charged (and thus run the radio). Batteries do wear out and chargers do fail.

Having someone actually LOOK at it all works wonders. Hire a local captain to give you some training on the boat. Most can take you through all of the systems on a boat and show you how it all works. You may also want to consider hiring a local marine surveyor and paying them to give the boat a complete inspection survey. This will warn you ahead of time if there's any lurking issues that need attention.

Sorry if this seems like a hassle, but when you're new to something it can be an uphill climb to get enough experience to be confident in how it all works.

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

I would like to thank everyone for all your helpful comments. I have hired a captain to learn the ends and outs of the boat and boating safety. I have hired a surveyor to fully inspect the boat. I think I have two dead batteries and a bad charger because after 24 hours of charging, I have nothing. Tommorrow I have a service person checking out the boat at the Marina that I have the boat in a wet slip. Again thank you for all your advice. I will let you know what happens.
Lee

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Lee
1998 Four Winns Vista 238

Excellent news Lee! Hope it's not to painful to the pocketbook to get it all sorted out. But boat ownership wouldn't be such "fun" if it weren't for the unexpected expenses...

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-Bill Kearney, 2005 348 Vista

One more thing. On my 200 268 there is a switch above the battery switch that turns on/off the ship system. I know my radio will not work unless that switch is turned on. The switch is not easy to see when standing but is directly above the battery switch.

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2000 268 Vista
Flying Dutchman
"Howl with me boys"

is that ships system independent of the battery switch? or does that work in conjunction with the battery switch?

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Walter

2003 248 Vista - VP 5.0 GXi
2009 Toyota Tundra SR5 5.7L 4x4

It was a bad charger... Cost us $600 to replace...

Now the beeping is going off that we have no gas when we just had 3/4 tank so we thought we were robbed; upon pulling the boat around to put in $100 of gas, it clicked to say it was FULL, yet the gas gauge keeps beeping and it says we're on empty. So... now that we have a brand new charger, we still can't take our boat out cuz of the annoying beeping. Service guys at the marina will be checking that out on Monday. Definitely didn't expect all these expenses when I bought this boat.

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Lee
1998 Four Winns Vista 238

Ships system is independent of the battery switch(engin battery). It is only for haus battery. When you turn the switch Ship system off only work:

-bilge pump
-CO2 detectors
-foot switch for windllas (on the anchor)