Which Battery Charger to buy?

[Wind Chime]

Please help me decide which new battery charger to buy.

We do not want to change our system or set-up, looking for a; 12 volt / 2 bank / 20 amp charger only.

We loved our old unit that was a ProTournament-200 made by ProMariner, but it crapped out.

ProMariner now makes a Sport model as well as the ProTournament models, and I also understand there is a new name on the block called Powermania.

Suggestions please!

[NiceAft]

I do not profess to know anything about this, but I do know what I would be doing if in this situation.

I would be researching all information I could find on each product, see where difference are, and then investigate whether those differences, if any, are consequential for you.

There are some on this board who are very knowledgable about batteries. If Rich takes notice, you will receive a knowledgeable responds from him.

Ray

[yukonbob]

We've got the pro sport plus and its been great. Can add another battery if we want

[Hamin' X]

I've been quite happy with my Xantrex Truecharge2. It will charge 3 banks, but they must be of the same chemistry. AGM in my boat and still trying to wear out the old flooded cells in my pickup camper and then will convert them to AGM. I love the AGM's, because there is absolutely no out gassing and the terminals have never tried to corrode. Many other advantages over flooded cells, but you need to be careful what you charge them with.

~Rich

[Wind Chime]

One of the features I like about the ProMariner ProTournament series, is that they are completely sealed making them 100% weatherproof. Not sure about the other ones.

[RobertB]

Very interesting article in the current issue of Practical Sailor. Stresses how critical it is to fully and properly charge AGM batteries. Partial charges quickly and generally permanently degrade the capacity. Also interesting that the new Sears DieHard is made by the same company that created the Optima. Different from the WM ones.
Seems my keeping the boat in the driveway with power to the battery charger all the time is likely helping me keep my batteries in top shape (I use a ProMariner charger).

[Hibbit]

We use a Powertech Plus unit, MB3608. Charges our twin AGM"s no problem , not great at extreme hot temps above 35 deg celcius Cuts out to protect circuitry.

[Falcon6086]

Windchime,

I bought and installed this one on the boat. I cut the plug off and hardwired it into the panel. I worked great keeping the batteries charged during the winter in the garage. I can show you at the MacRendezvous on Bowen Island on June 5th.

It is a smart charger and shuts off when the batteries don't need charging, (which I currently only do on shore power for now). It is sealed and waterproof as well.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/noco- ... WXoLmD0yFw

[Wind Chime]

Windchime,

I bought and installed this one on the boat. I cut the plug off and hardwired it into the panel. I worked great keeping the batteries charged during the winter in the garage. I can show you at the MacRendezvous on Bowen Island on June 5th.

It is a smart charger and shuts off when the batteries don't need charging, (which I currently only do on shore power for now). It is sealed and waterproof as well.

http://www.canadiantire.ca/en/pdp/noco- ... WXoLmD0yFw

Thanks for the suggestion Paul,

That looks like a decent charger for only $140, and I'd love to see how you have it set up when we are at the MacRendezvous next weekend.

We went ahead and replaced ours with another Promariner product, this time a ProSport20 2-bank. We like the idea of a 20 amp charger to keep us topped up during longer trips. We have an 8 amp Promariner as a backup and sometimes it has a hard time to keep both house batteries above 12.5v (80%) when we are under full load at the dock, plus it has a few other nice bells and whistles. http://promariner.com/wp-content/upload ... Manual.pdf

Plus, the factory gave us a great discount since they could not repair our other unit we sent in for service. They paid shipping to us from the USA, but accidentally shipped it via UPS and UPS wanted $42 (USD) just for brokerage fees plus 12% tax and 6% duty. I called Promariner and they said decline the shipment and they sent us another unit via USPS which can one week later and had no duty, brokerage, or taxes to be paid. Sometimes its just luck of the draw at the border.

[RobertB]

I use the 30 amp ProMariner charger. I chose this because it was the highest power that I could reasonable accomodate and allows us to use all our accessories at dockside (shorepower mode). I also have three batteries. With our load, it would be easy to overload a smaller rated charger only type unit. I do recommend, if you not already, contacting the manufacturer for their opinion on using the small portable charger as a permanently mounted unit. They may have some good advice on limitations you should be aware of.

[Clipster]

After going through 2 failed Xantrex Truecharge 20 units in less than 4 years, I went with the Promariner 20/3 and am happy with it. Wish I would've chosen the Promariner in the beginning.