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Batteries

WJM

By WJM
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WJM Veteran

WJM

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My boat is almost four years old and still has it's original set of batteries from when it was new, two domestics and a starter. I am not a live-aboard but a fairly high usage leisure boater, so the batteries have always been charged regularly and have certainly never been left for any length of time without a top-up. I am having absolutely no problems with them, they seem to hold charge well and do their job fine. The boat is a fairly ordinary Liverpool so I expect they are just very regular ordinary batteries.

 

My questions; I don't want them to let me down during my long summer trips. Do these batteries suddenly fail, thus ruining a holiday, or do they fade away gradually? If it is gradual I could live with that, we do fairly long hours cruising. Is there a simple test I could do to establish their likely remaining useful life?

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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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Posted (edited)
My boat is almost four years old and still has it's original set of batteries from when it was new, two domestics and a starter. I am not a live-aboard but a fairly high usage leisure boater, so the batteries have always been charged regularly and have certainly never been left for any length of time without a top-up. I am having absolutely no problems with them, they seem to hold charge well and do their job fine. The boat is a fairly ordinary Liverpool so I expect they are just very regular ordinary batteries.

 

My questions; I don't want them to let me down during my long summer trips. Do these batteries suddenly fail, thus ruining a holiday, or do they fade away gradually? If it is gradual I could live with that, we do fairly long hours cruising. Is there a simple test I could do to establish their likely remaining useful life?

 

Anything can break, including batteries, and that obviously leads to a sudden complete loss of performance. But the chances of them all breaking at the same time leaving you with no power are slim to say the least.

 

Batteries usually decline in performance which is easily noticeable thus giving you time to sort out replacements.

 

I'd carry on using them until their (lack of) performance starts to cause you problems.

 

Gibbo

 

PS. After charging up fully, taking an SG reading will give a decent idea of their condition.

Edited by Gibbo
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granddad Contributor

granddad

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My boat is almost four years old and still has it's original set of batteries from when it was new, two domestics and a starter. I am not a live-aboard but a fairly high usage leisure boater, so the batteries have always been charged regularly and have certainly never been left for any length of time without a top-up. I am having absolutely no problems with them, they seem to hold charge well and do their job fine. The boat is a fairly ordinary Liverpool so I expect they are just very regular ordinary batteries.

 

My questions; I don't want them to let me down during my long summer trips. Do these batteries suddenly fail, thus ruining a holiday, or do they fade away gradually? If it is gradual I could live with that, we do fairly long hours cruising. Is there a simple test I could do to establish their likely remaining useful life?

The batteries will die of old age eventually so replace thm regularly with the cheapest wet batteries and reckon on 4 to 6 years and budget for them. I pay £110 for 3off 110 amp hour batteries. to test the leisure battery bank you could fully charge them and leave a light on until the voltage is say 11.8 v then work out what theyve had in them. If it doesnt seem much change them all as a job lot. The starter battery is more difficult as the test is how long it will operate a high load. If in doubt change it. So sorry oh there is no test to deduce their remaining useful life.

Batteries are the black art on narrowboats. One thing that I found fairly useful was that 11.8 is empty and 12.8 is full in a non loaded battery. Most heaters - inverters require 12.2 volts no load.

Granddad

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Charlie Breakfast Engager

Charlie Breakfast

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Unless I have badly mistreated a battery I have always found failure to be gradual over a period of months. As an example after an overnight stop the battery might be 12.1 volts instead of a normal 12.2 or 12.3. and this gradualy gets worse.If there is no sign of declining performance at the moment I dont think you will wake up one morning and find your batteries have failed. Keep going ; replacing during your trip wont be too difficult in the unlikely event that they fail.

 

chas

 

sorry gibbo...was typing slowly ...didnt realise i was about to apparently copy you!

Edited by Charlie Breakfast
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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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Thanks folks!

 

What is an SG reading?

 

 

 

"PS. After charging up fully, taking an SG reading will give a decent idea of their condition."

 

Specific Gravity.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specific_gravity

 

Measured with one of thse............

 

http://www.knighton-tools.co.uk/acatalog/Battery_Tools.html (fourth one down)

 

Gibbo

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pwl Collaborator

pwl

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I have a small number of 4.8W solar panels (Maplins) attached by small rare earth magnets (eBay) that I connect when we leave the boat. The gentle trickle charge should stop the natural discharge of the batteries when not on the boat which should improve their life expectancy. Gibbo or Chris W can probably give you more exact calculations but I use 1 4.8 W panel per 110AH battery.

 

P

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Justme Experienced

Justme

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Thats about 1/3 of a % of an amp charge MAX for a maximum of 4 hours per day. In real terms thats 1 ah per day per bat or about 1% float. In summer a 1/4 of that in winter when its needed most. Cant see that actualy helping much.

 

Justme

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RobinJ Experienced

RobinJ

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Unless I have badly mistreated a battery I have always found failure to be gradual over a period of months. As an example after an overnight stop the battery might be 12.1 volts instead of a normal 12.2 or 12.3. and this gradualy gets worse.If there is no sign of declining performance at the moment I dont think you will wake up one morning and find your batteries have failed. Keep going ; replacing during your trip wont be too difficult in the unlikely event that they fail.

Because my battery bank started small and built up, I tend to have 'pairs' of batteries that were installed at the same time.

With new fully fitted boats presumably the whole bank is installed at the same time, do they only get replaced as and when they fail?

 

Of the two original batteries, only one has failed in 10 years and that went suddenly (shorted out in a lock four years ago - which was a problem since it was the starter, I had stopped the engine and there was a queue!), however from friends and colleagues experience, the majority fail slowly and noticably (only one other I know off went with a wallop).

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pwl Collaborator

pwl

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... Cant see that actualy helping much.

 

Justme

Well every little helps and as a holiday boat it sits a long time not doing anything. Long term plan is 2 x 180W but not today - painting, gas, new floor first.

 

P

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WJM Veteran

WJM

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Thanks all for the feedback,

 

 

So I am safe in assuming they batteries will fade away slowly giving me some warning. A narrowboat with three females onboard, life-support hair-dryers dysfunctional! - not a happy place!!!

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alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

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A narrowboat with three females onboard, life-support hair-dryers dysfunctional!

How did those working boatwomen ever manage, hey ?

 

A miracle that important cargoes ever got delivered, given that working boats were generally hair drier free zones.....

 

OK, before I get shouted at, that's tongue in cheek...... I'd not be without my fridge, running hot water, shower, loo, etc. We do rub along with no hair driers though.

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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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A narrowboat with three females onboard, life-support hair-dryers dysfunctional! - not a happy place!!!

 

The "females" bit isn't so relevant these days. We have 17 year twin boys at home. Every morning involves a 1 hour ritual with hair dryers and (get this!) hair straighteners. For boys!

 

Gibbo

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Gibbo Veteran II

Gibbo

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Well my wife is so paranoid about saving battery power that she insists on sharing the shower with me everytime. :lol:

 

It's true.

 

She did the same thing when she stayed on Lionheart.

 

Giboo

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alan_fincher Veteran II

alan_fincher

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Well my wife is so paranoid about saving battery power that she insists on sharing the shower with me everytime. :lol:

Yes, I agree with Steve.

 

And even if you are both anorexic, your shower cubicle must be a lot bigger than ours.

 

Isn't this a pleasure you'll miss once your paralleled alternators are fully developed, and your wife realises electricity is plentiful ? (Or will you just not tell her?).

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chris w Veteran II

chris w

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It's true.

 

She did the same thing when she stayed on Lionheart.

 

Giboo

Yes, but she didn't appreciate your inviting your friends round. She had real trouble getting all the invoices correct. :lol:

 

Yes, I agree with Steve.

 

And even if you are both anorexic, your shower cubicle must be a lot bigger than ours.

 

Isn't this a pleasure you'll miss once your paralleled alternators are fully developed, and your wife realises electricity is plentiful ? (Or will you just not tell her?).

What parallel alternators???????????? :lol:

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