batteries in winter??

[gfishn]

I'm back in boating after 20 years with 2008 1850 Fisherman, 150Hp Merc Optimax. I have a 24volt W75 Motorguide trolling motor and a Dual-Pro onboard charging system and of course a 3rd cranking battery. I'm in an area that could see below freezing temps anytime in the winter. Boat is stored in my pole barn which at this point has NO electricity. I've seen several suggestions on what to do with the batteries in this scenario. What are you guys doing in the frozen north ???? Unhooking batteries and storing in your heated garages ? Topping off and leaving in the boats in the cold unhooked??
Any help would be apreciated.

Jerry

 

[trendsetter240]

Re: batteries in winter??

Hey there Jerry, Welcome to Iboats!

Topping off and leaving in the boats in the cold unhooked??

This is not the best for your batteries. They will self discharge over the months they are in storage and when spring comes you might find they are all dead. Simply recharging the batteries after storing them for so long may bring them back to life but the usefull lifespan of the batteries will be shortened.

You have a couple of options:

1. Charge them fully once per month in your cold storage.
2. Bring them into your garage and leave them on a trickle charger while in storage.

Option 2 is the best choice and will help your batteries to last longer. Option 1 is still good but would be more of an inconvenience to you.

Heated or un-heated storage, the most important thing is keeping the batteries charged.

Cheers!

 

[Navy Jr.]

Re: batteries in winter??

We also have an '08 Fisherman, Jerry. Last year we stored the boat in an unheated shed with all three batteries (main and both trolling batts) unhooked. When put back in service after six months of storage, all batteries were still almost fully charged. I plugged in the onboard charger and the trolling motor batts were fully charged in a matter of minutes. The main was recharged after running the boat around the lake for a few minutes.

This year I decided to remove the main battery because I did a bonehead thing and caused it to discharge overnight last summer, so I bought a charger and keep the battery in our tuckunder garage and recharge it every couple of months. -Ken