Moving Battery

[rnln]

I plan on installing a second battery in a corner as seen in Figure 1. The second battery will be around two-inches away from a plastic panel. The second battery will be inside a plastic battery box.

The second battery will be only several inches away from the big fuel intake hose. [Something unclear] is also sitting on top of the same hose running under the floorboard, before the same hose connect to the fuel tank's neck.

Q1: is my plan safe?

Q2: is my plan a good plan?
Thanks.

Fig. 1. Photo of a corner. [This looks like the Port side of the cockpit on a REVENGE Walk-Through.]

IMG_2328.JPG (155.26 KiB) Viewed 1074 times

[Tom Hemphill]

Sorry to answer your question with a question, but where will the electrical cables attached to the battery be located? Overheating cables pose a greater risk than the battery per se.

[jimh]

Q1: is my plan safe?

Q2: is my plan a good plan?

No and No.

[rnln]

Tom and Jim: thanks for responding.

The primary battery cables will go through the drilled holes on that white panel, where the fire extinguisher is seen, and run along the top to the electrical cabinet on the right, where I have bus bars and a fuse box there. I plan on having the electrical cables around the battery positive cable.

I plan on having the second battery there. The first battery will be at the same place on right corner.

Give me another idea on where should I keep the batteries, if I want two batteries on this boat.

Thanks.

[Jefecinco]

Is there something wrong with the boats' original battery location? That is probably a pretty good battery location. Many Boston Whaler boats have ample room for two batteries in the designed space.

[rnln]

I bought the boat without battery and wiring is a mess. According to the PO, the batteries were sitting on top of the live bait well. To me, I think battery in dry area is better and since I have to redo wiring anyway, why not choose the best location for them.
There is a little "room" for the wiring below the dash. A friend of mine think it's best for batteries, but I think I rather be able to access that area freely in case I have to work on wiring while I am in the water, since everything on this boat is very old.

Is there something wrong with the boats' original battery location? That is probably a pretty good battery location. Many Boston Whaler boats have ample room for two batteries in the designed space.

[ALAN G]

rnln—installing the batteries in the forward corners of the cockpit deck is a poor choice. Here are several reasons why in order of importance :

1. the deck areas in those corners are used for standing. For the Helmsman, in rough water it is better to stand at the wheel, and a battery there would get in the way;
2. if you plan to use the storage area below the helm which has a door that opens, such a battery location would interfere with that;
3. for the passengers, a battery is also taking up space in the port cockpit corner. At times, we even had up to four people standing abreast just aft of the windshield as we cruised along. I would leave the deck as open as possible.
4. running the heavy electrical cables for engine starting so far forward is a waste of money for the extra cable lengths and adds weight, not to mention extra installation time in routing and clamping the cables.

The original location for the batteries on a Revenge 22 standard outboard (not Whaler Drive) is aft, on either side of the splash well. And this works well with the standard length power cables normally supplied with outboard engines.

On my boat, since we had mounted a transom mounted boarding ladder and platform for swimmers on the port side, it was important to have some clear deck space for the person stepping over the transom to have some deck area to stand on. I moved the port battery about one foot forward and underneath the stern seat that ran across the aft end of the cockpit, which would be just forward of where the stainless steel rail runs from gunwale to gunwale.

On the starboard the side, the battery was just aft of the cockpit sump well.

Both starboard and port batteries were enclosed in plastic battery boxes that were held with nylon straps through stainless Footman’s Loop fittings screwed into the deck. These battery boxes are sufficient to protect the batteries from rain, spray, and damage. Enclosing a boat battery in a plastic battery box especially protects against harm and real danger from dropping a metal tool which could land across the terminals and cause a short circuit.

Locate one battery at the stern on each side, as far outboard and aft as your intended use will allow.

IMPORTANT: Be sure to of retain access to the stern cleats. Those stern inboard cleats are on hull inwale in the general area of where the batteries will be mounted, and you want to have clear access to those cleats [for mooring lines that will run upward through the hawsepipes].

Al

[jimh]

When attempting to increase the distance between an engine cranking battery and the outboard engine that the battery will provide power to, the only effective solution is to DISCARD the existing six-foot-long engine primary power cables, and REPLACE those cables with new, much-larger-wire-gauge, continuous, no-splice cables using marine grade copper multi-strand and very-flexible rubber-jacked cable which will run through the engine’s rigging grommet and under the cowling to the engine’s primary power terminal post and chassis ground connections, where the original cables were connected. At today’s prices expect to spend several hundred dollars for this cable, and order a roll long enough so all runs will be continuous. And you will always need more cable than you thought you would; measure everything twice and add a foot at each end.

Then you will need to CRIMP on non-open-end ring terminal connectors, and use high-quality shrink tubing of the appropriate colors to identify the conductors.

To properly crimp ring terminals onto large gauge wire you will need a professional grade crimp tool, at least $150 or more. To properly use heat shrink tubing you need a proper heat gun, not a paint stripper heater. To properly cut large cable you need a proper cable cutter. That’s another $100 in tools, so maybe $250 subtotal for special tools.

Because these conductors run so far you need fuses at the battery terminals, and they’ll cost perhaps $50 each. And you will need spare fuses. Another $200.

Since you are going to all this bother, you will need a battery switch for each battery, another $150 or more.

The batteries will take a beating at the helm location in rough seas, and their chance of failure will be high. You need to use a premium absorbed glass mat (AGM) ultra-high-purity-lead marine battery, at about $400 each.

Anywhere you mount a battery there must be embedded reinforcement molded into the hull in order to support the weight, the shock loading, and to provide sufficient purchase for the screw fasteners. I don’t think such reinforcement exists in the areas you propose. Eventually you will crack the laminate.

You are going to spend a lot of money, and the result will be a nightmare for the cockpit space at the helm.

Of course, it is your boat, and your money, but it’s a bad idea, foremost on the concept of moving the engine cranking battery a long distance away from the engine.

[rnln]

Thanks Alan, thanks Jim.