Trojan Boat Forum

I just installed two new 8D batteries (D is for damn these are heavy). They came with the boat and the stickers show I got 5 years out of them.
I have the original battery charger on the boat. I want to switch to a smart charger but I'm overwhelmed with the amount of options out there.
Anyone have a good charger recommendation. I want to save my recent investment and my back. Boat is plugged in at the marina and plugged into the house during the winter. I don't think what I have is a smart charger. Here are two really bad pictures of it. I can't find any identification on it to see what it is. It just has a gauge on the face with a fuse holder next to it.

We really like our Mastervolt 12/40-3


We also added the remote monitoring for it.

I tracked down what was in there. Made by Newmar HDM-50.

I replaced the factory "cooker" in 2002 with a TRUE CHARGE 3 bank 20 amp charger with remote panel

It lasted till last year and cost me a set of batteries.

If you do your research, and want those expensive batteries to have a long life, I suggest you check out the Blue Seas 3 bank charger with a remote panel.

Heres the link:

https://www.bluesea.com/products/7531/P ... 12V_DC_25A



RWS

I've installed dozens of ProMariner ProNautic P chargers. They have some beneficial features and in my experience a pretty low failure rate. I've installed several different brands but the ProMariner seems to be my most popular. They have digital displays and LED indicators for different functions on the unit itself but I really like the optional remote display. It allows you to monitor what the unit is doing without having to go into the engine compartment.

http://www.promariner.com/en/63150

Given the vintage of your current unit, before you purchase a new one, determine your charge wire size and calculate what it's maximum current carrying capacity is or you may have to replace your wiring as well. These units can deliver ALL of their rated output to one bank if needed so this must be taken into consideration when calculating wire size. The wire must be able to carry full output to each bank. You'll also have additional wiring to install such as chassis ground and a temperature probe.

Thanks all. I liked Blue Sea until I read you can't get units due to a warehouse fire. I wasn't sure what that meant for customer service etc..
https://shop.pkys.com/Blue-Sea-Systems- ... b_114.html

Xantrex True Charge had lots of negative reviews in several locations, so I steered clear of that.

MasterVolt looked good, but they are focused on selling their new chargers that can connect with NMEA 2000, expensive, but I like the concept.

I opted for a ProNautic 1240P. It was about $400 and comes with a 5 year warranty. It's also the same unit marketed under Sterling.
I have Flooded 8D batteries. This has a feature called Equalization mode aka Desulfation mode that will help these batteries if you opt to put it in this mode for 4 hours.
One full day to tear out the old and install the new.

The old charger had terminals bank1, bank2 and bank3. Only one bank went to the batteries, they are in parallel.
There were two other wires that were on bank1 and bank2 that appeared to head back to the main 12V panel in the galley.
I'm not sure what to do with those yet.
It seems that it's duplication. If the old charger went to the batteries, and the batteries feed the panel, why would there be an extra set of wires going to the panel directly from the charger?

I can only guess that if the batteries were removed, you could still have 12 volt power. Thoughts?