Need advice for onboard charger...

[CodyPomeroy]

I am thinking it is time to upgrade my charger and had thought about going with an onboard charger. At this time I only have one battery, and need only one bank. I would be open to getting something with 2 banks in case I do ever get a boat large enough for 2 batteries. My boat is small, so I want something small and light. I appreciate your thoughts and experiences...

Thanks

 

[fender66]

I really like my minn kota onboard charger. It is a 3 bank charger though.

 

[Jonboat Jerry]

I have a prosport 12, 2 bank, 12 volt charger that is also trouble free. While small, it weighs around 3-4lbs.
The outputs can be combined for a single 24volt output for the bigger trolling motors out there.

 

[jojo]

It's made my charging experience much better ever since I've had my onboard charger. Well worth the money.

 

[CajunCanuck]

I have nothing but excellent performance my all of my Guest Chargers......And the new Minn Kota Didgital series are nice as well.......

 

[russ010]

These are on sale... and these are the best I've ever used - and trust me, I've used them all.

https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-GEN2-On-Board-Battery-Charger/dp/B003JSJS5I/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

 

[muffin]

**stupid question warning**

is the purpose of the on board charger so that all you have to do is plug it in when you get home, in that its always attached to the batteries?

 

[jojo]

**stupid question warning**

is the purpose of the on board charger so that all you have to do is plug it in when you get home, in that its always attached to the batteries?

You are correct.

 

[muffin]

**stupid question warning**

is the purpose of the on board charger so that all you have to do is plug it in when you get home, in that its always attached to the batteries?

You are correct.

learn something new everyday. sorry for stealing the thread

 

[russ010]

**stupid question warning**

is the purpose of the on board charger so that all you have to do is plug it in when you get home, in that its always attached to the batteries?

yes.. and trust me - no question is a stupid question!

I leave mine plugged up all the time. The main thing to look for with on-board chargers are the following:

1. What type of batteries does it work with? - Find one that works with Wet Cell, Gel, or AGM. And don't get one that says you can change settings. IF they are truely a "smart" charger, why should you have to tell it what kind it is. NOCO automatically figures out what battery you're working with. I don't know how, but it works.

2. Does it float charge when fully charged, or does it actually cut off (stops charging), then comes back on a a maintenance charge? I like chargers that actually cut off when it's fully charged... hence the reason I was pushed to either all AGM or Gel batteries. An overflowing Wet Cell will do wonders to aluminum if it boils over.

3. PRICE. I've tried the following and still like NOCO the most (especially for the price you can get them for when Amazon runs specials on them)...
Minn Kota (maybe one of the worst I've used in an enclosed compartment - these suckers get hot.
Dual Pro - I liked these most out of all others tried, but if you read the fine print, their chargers work for Wet Cell or AGM - BUT you have to get a different model or variation for Gel batteries... not to mention how proud they are of them $$$
Guest chargers (bought from Cabela's) - these were my first chargers and I have 3 sets of 2 banks. The extras are in the garage on batteries that I keep for backup. These chargers are good, but after a while (2 years in my case), they start charging at different voltages. One side will go to 13.2, the other 13.6. I thought it might have been my batteries only needing so much voltage, but when I took them off the batteries and checked the voltage - that's when I saw what was going on.

 

[muffin]

when you say "banks" what is that referring to

 

[russ010]

each bank refers to the number of leads coming out of the charger that will go to a battery... a one bank charger will charge 1 battery, a 2 bank charger for 2 batteries, 3 bank for 3 batteries and so on

 

[muffin]

seems i should have been able to figure that one out. thanks for the knowledge

 

[redbug]

These are on sale... and these are the best I've ever used - and trust me, I've used them all.

https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-GEN2-On-Board-Battery-Charger/dp/B003JSJS5I/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

I have been waiting to post about my new charger I kept reading about how much Russ likes his and went for it
I bought a 4 bank noco gen4 and love it is so much smaller and lighter than my dual pro and it chargers much faster.
I was able to get a great price from amazon I paid $170 for the 4 bank charger the dual pro would have set me back over $400.
i would highly recommend the NOCO

 

[DaveInGA]

Russ and Redbug, thanks for posting. I've been looking for a good single bank charger for my starter combo battery that I'm using to start along with all non-trolling motor electronics. This should fit the bill perfectly. Placed one on order.

 

[KRS62]

I am late to the game here, but I would have been very happy with my Guest (Marinco) dual bank on board charger. The boat came with one when I bought it and eventually one bank failed. During the trouble shooting process, their customer support was very helpful, here in the US and easy/quick to get a hold of. Even thought one failed on me for unknown reasons (thought it was quite old), I purchased the same unit to replace it. It certainly made it easier to swap to the same one version mounting a different one.

The new one has been going strong for over a year now. So, I can highly recommend the Guest brand.

KRS