Newbie needing replacement charger advice

[daviddiscenza]

Hello,
The 13 y/o Xantrex TrueCharge 40 amp battery charger on my boat (33' Newport, 31 y/o) needs to be replaced. I have 3 flooded-type marine batteries on board. I need to replace the charger, but I'm not sure that I need a charger that puts out 40 amps. I'd appreciate any advice on how to figure out what I should buy as a replacement.

Thanks for all replies.

[crabcake]

Originally Posted by daviddiscenza

Hello,
The 13 y/o Xantrex TrueCharge 40 amp battery charger on my boat (33' Newport, 31 y/o) needs to be replaced. I have 3 flooded-type marine batteries on board. I need to replace the charger, but I'm not sure that I need a charger that puts out 40 amps. I'd appreciate any advice on how to figure out what I should buy as a replacement.

Thanks for all replies.

Sterling makes good stuff at reasonable prices

Mainsail (a regular and highly respected contributor to CF) has quite a bit about chargers on his pages.

[admiralslater]

There are lots of posts on CF regarding chargers batteries etc . However since the 40 ampcharger met your need s before I would stay with at least that size .I have just replaced a 20 amp xantrex with a 50 sterling . Partly because the 20 amp was two small for my needs and partly to take advantage of new battery tech that allows faster rates of charge ie firefly and lithium. the ability to change charging paramaters is a big feature

[a64pilot]

I second the Sterling recommendation, and chargers can only be too small, going bigger hurts nothing and allows for future growth

[ranger58sb]

I'd stay with 40 or go even bigger.

FWIW, near as I can tell, Sterling and ProMariner products are identical except for labeling.

-Chris

[Stu Jackson]

Wiring a new charger From Maine Sail:

Marine Battery Chargers - Installation Tips & Considerations | SailboatOwners.com Forums and

Installing A Marine Battery Charger Photo Gallery by Compass Marine How To at pbase.com

[boatbod]

MasterVolt ChargeMaster series are pretty good and reasonably priced. Avoid anything currently manufactured by Xantrex as they are now very unreliable in my experience. IMO most ProMariner is about same quality as Xantrex...

[brianlara 3]

My Sterling Pro 12/60 charging my 4x120ah AGM's is doing an excellent job.
Would recommend not going for a smaller charger if saving money is the reason.
Bigger really is better with charger running time reduced substantially.

[svlamorocha]

Originally Posted by daviddiscenza

I'd appreciate any advice on how to figure out what I should buy as a replacement.

Thanks for all replies.

In order to get the most useful advice we need to know:

a) type and capacity of the three batteries

b) how do you use the boat (weeks at anchor, marina-based going out for daysails, etc)

c) how will you feed the charger (genset or shorepower)

Cheers
Charlie

[a64pilot]

I believe most better chargers can be turned down.
If for example I was using a small generator to do something like make water and there was only enough power left over to run a 20 amp charger, then my 60 amp can be turned down so it doesn't overload the generator.
I believe most better chargers can handle different battery chemistries and should be able to have their voltages set in a custom profile in case your battery may not be covered by the standard profiles.
I would want at least these features

[Lepke]

You can buy the 40 amp, 3 bank, ProcCharge Ultra on Ebay for $332

Sterling ProCharge Ultra Battery Charger (same as ProNautic) - 12 Volt / 40 Amp | eBay

[chouliha]

Originally Posted by Lepke

You can buy the 40 amp, 3 bank, ProcCharge Ultra on Ebay for $332

Sterling ProCharge Ultra Battery Charger (same as ProNautic) - 12 Volt / 40 Amp | eBay

This charger is what we have been using for the past 6 years (40 amp) run using our Honda 1000. It can be custom programmed. Also works well with equalizing wet cell batteries. And after 51/2 years we are finally in a dock with 220/240. Plugged the charger into dock power and bingo works great.

Good luck with your choice

Chuck

[brianlara 3]

Been reading the Jacaranda Journey.
WOW !!
Lovely yarn and so well written.
But I digress.......been on the hook for 7 years of 24x7. 2kv genny running 2 hours every day to keep the 480ah of AGM topped up.
How envious I am of you .....just plug that lead into the socket on the dock ! Too easy !
Sleep little Honda. Zzzzzz.

[boatbod]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I believe most better chargers can be turned down.
If for example I was using a small generator to do something like make water and there was only enough power left over to run a 20 amp charger, then my 60 amp can be turned down so it doesn't overload the generator.
I believe most better chargers can handle different battery chemistries and should be able to have their voltages set in a custom profile in case your battery may not be covered by the standard profiles.
I would want at least these features

For some higher-end models this is true, but most of the middle to low end of the market are fixed and can only be configured for battery type (at best).

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by brianlara 3

Been reading the Jacaranda Journey.
WOW !!
Lovely yarn and so well written.
But I digress.......been on the hook for 7 years of 24x7. 2kv genny running 2 hours every day to keep the 480ah of AGM topped up.
How envious I am of you .....just plug that lead into the socket on the dock ! Too easy !
Sleep little Honda. Zzzzzz.

What is your daily usage? AGM's need to be topped right up. Can two hours a day on the Honda do that? I found it very difficult to get the last 15% into my 500 ah bank (flooded) when using the EU2000i and a 100 amp charger so I ended up using the band from 50% to 85%. I had AGM's and they only lasted two years because of this. My usage was under 100ah per day.