Add a second battery

[Gthunter5]

we left something on the other weekend and completely drained the battery

Charged back up just fine but Got an alarm yesterday and didn't look but think it was the battery
Charged it back up again. The battery is in its 3rd season

We like running the radio at anchor and now I'm afraid to

While I'm messing around I gotta extra deep cycle And also an extra tray

Can I just place the tray next to the existing one and screw into the floor?

Did yall just replace the on/off switch with a perko switch and use same mounting holes?

Thanks

 

[latitudeadjuster]

yes, I got the Yamaha kit. It comes with tray and wires, pretty easy to install. I would replace the 3 yr old battery as well as a new extra deep cycle. always trickle charge battery over winter. Mine last forever now that I hook solar chargers to them over winter.

Yamaha BEP Marine Dual Battery Kit SBT-DUALB-AT-08

 

[RightStuff]

Yes, you can install the tray next to the other and screw it to the floor, just make sure you don't use too long of screws. 1-1.5" should do the trick.

As for the dual battery setup, there are a number of ways to accomplish that. Some go Perko, some go Blue Seas, all personal preference as to what you are trying to do. Do you want a starter and a house battery, do you want them run in parallel, do you plan on adding a charger (built in or portable), etc. I went with the Blue Seas add-a-battery kit for my setup to add that second battery, that seemed to be a popular setup for others and has worked really well for me so far.

So some searching here and you will see lots of topics to add to your research on what will work best for you.

 

[Gthunter5]

I ordered a blue seas switch and a couple cables

Should be easy enough

 

[Gthunter5]

Install going well

Used 3/4" sst screws to secure the tray right in front of other tray (forward)

The original mounting hardware for the on/off switch doesn't work. The machine screws are too short. Running to hardware store in the am and will button everything up. Will post pics

The blue seas 9001e has an open back so it's probably not "waterproof" but it's $37

I've got about $60 into this project since I had the tray and battery already.

 

[jlcj7]

Are you all sure that 1inch screws are not too long? I just want to make sure and triple check before I screw a hole in the bottom of my boat.

 

[Gthunter5]

Pull a screw out if the existing battery tray and compare

It's been some time but it looks like I used 3/4

 

[jlcj7]

good idea... i will do that...

 

[Rob9550]

Any pictures of your finished set up?

 

[Jwiley]

I added a second battery. I went with a size 27, i removed the original size 24 battery tray, crawled my TOO BIG of a butt into the compartment and screwed the new size 27 tray towards the back using same sized stainless screws as original. I then placed my original size 24 tray directly in front. We took it out over memorial weekend and stored it in a wet slip and i noticed it tilting towards the port side. I am going to go with the 'TRUE UTV dual battery digital isolator' but i have not purchased it yet. My thinking was to at least get the 'house' battery installed for the big weekend and carry a set of jumper cables with me if i happened to drain my 'starter' battery, (which didn't happen). I think i might relocate the 'house' battery to the starboard side and keep the 'starter' battery on the port side. Trying for better weight distribution. I wouldn't have thought that one (heavy) battery would make it tilt... but it did. I also went with the EXIDE 27 battery, i think it had 185 reserve capacity and 105 AH which was pretty dang good for the $79 bucks i paid at Tractor Supply. Back to the 'TRUE UTV' isolator. This is made with stator's in mind and its 'brain' will let you start the engine with the 'starter' battery but then it will automatically switch over to 'house' battery when it detects a draw, example radio or lights or anything else you want to put on it. I read a lot about the Yamaha switch and Blue Sea's switch... but i really didn't want to lift the seat every time i wanted to switch the battery from starter to house... sounded like a hassle. Anywhoo.... just wanted to put my two cents in the ring...

 

[txav8r]

Here is another relocation or add a battery post, and my comments close to the end of it.
https://jetboaters.net/threads/battery-relocation-help.9559/

 

[Julian]

@Jwiley On my last boat I went with the perko ON/OFF/Combine switch which separates house and starter circuits. That way you don't have to switch back and forth. All your house draw always comes off house battery and starter off the starter. So just turn it on at the start of boating and off at the end. Combine an ACR and you charge both, then add a dual bank charger to plug in at the house or dock. That Tru UTV sounds interesting....will have to look it up!

 

[Jwiley]

Thanks @txav8r... thats how i handled the listing this past weekend... shift bodies around. I might be a little OCD but it drove me nuts to see it not floating flat!

 

[ThatJeepGuy]

Here's I quick pic of my setup. AR190 with 2 group 24 deep cycle batteries and one group 31 deep cycle.... To some this might be an overkill but to me it's peace of mind. I've never noticed the list to one side and I don't plan on looking for it. I'd just like to think that a dead battery won't be my issue

 

[Jwiley]

I totally agree with the peace of mind of extra juice. Do you have pics of your distribution block? Thats my next project... hooking everything up to the house battery. I want a clean install, im curious how you ran yours. @ThatJeepGuy I too am a jeep guy, have had 6 of the years but my newest one was a 1980 model... I am an OLDjeepguy. LOL

 

[ThatJeepGuy]

No distribution block really. I'm just running a battery switch with 1 battery assigned to "battery 1" and the other two batteries assigned to "battery 2".