Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

[Expidia]

Anyone know where I can buy a good dual battery gauge? And not the ones for $200

I've searched all over and all the ones listed are the same cheap china ones for around $39 same package but different name like Sterns, Panther, Goldeneye . . . These are all exactly the same and are pretty much . . . crap!

I just received one and it's going back because it looks like a toy you'd buy at the dollar store.

I plan to use it also in a future boat so I want the in-dash type and for this boat I'll mount it on a board screwed onto the frame under the battery hatch door since my dash space is mostly used up already. Both battery connections are right there anyway.

I'm looking for the dual type with the momentary on switch so I can monitor the starter and my trolling motor battery.

Needle OK or digital might even be a better way to go too, instead of the needle that will eventually hang up anyway.

I did see the type that you just plug into the cig. lighter as another alternative. It has a small digital screen that hangs off it for about $17. But they look pretty cheap too and it would only be reading my starter battery anyway.

I was surprised not to see other battery gauges listed on iBoat's site. They show only that same one as noted above under the Panther name.

Thx

 

[drewpster]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

This meter is the one I used. The meter is a little pricey, but very high quality. Use your own two way momentary switch. I liked the idea of making my own panel to match the one I made for my gauges.

http://www.jackrabbitmarine.com/blue-sea-dc-analog-micro-voltmeters-2363

Blue Sea also makes a ready made battery gauge panel.

http://www.jackrabbitmarine.com/blue-sea-8015-dc-analog-voltmeter-panel-2365

The ready made panel is larger. That why I went with a gauge alone and my own switch and panel. I needed a smaller panel than the one Blue Sea makes. Top quality stuff.

 

[DRIFTER_016]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

You can purchase any voltmeter you like (Teleflex, Faria, etc.) and hook it up like the diagram below. This is how the voltmeter in the front of my boat is hooked up to monitor my 2 deep cycles that run my trolling motor.

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

This meter is the one I used. The meter is a little pricey, but very high quality. Use your own two way momentary switch. I liked the idea of making my own panel to match the one I made for my gauges.

http://www.jackrabbitmarine.com/blue-sea-dc-analog-micro-voltmeters-2363

Blue Sea also makes a ready made battery gauge panel.

http://www.jackrabbitmarine.com/blue-sea-8015-dc-analog-voltmeter-panel-2365

The ready made panel is larger. That why I went with a gauge alone and my own switch and panel. I needed a smaller panel than the one Blue Sea makes. Top quality stuff.

Thx Drewpster, Those gauges would be perfect and price wise they are the same price as the junky ones that everyone is selling. Problem is I need a gauge that shows from 0 to 12 volts.

I want to monitor how much I'm running the starter battery down while I'm running electronics while I'm sitting in a bay.

And how much juice I have left in my trolling motor's deep cycle battery when I have that one on board. Too bad those gauges only go down to 8 volts.

 

[Splat]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

8 Volts? You shouldn't be running any deep cycle below 10.5 or you will begin to destroy it.

Bill

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

You can purchase any voltmeter you like (Teleflex, Faria, etc.) and hook it up like the diagram below. This is how the voltmeter in the front of my boat is hooked up to monitor my 2 deep cycles that run my trolling motor.

Thx drifter, the Faria brand is perfect. A nice battery gauge is shown for $25 at Boaters Land.

I'll go with that one with the switch setup you suggested (I thought I would have needed a DPDT switch?)

I wonder why I couldn't find those brands with a Google search?

The Teleflex are nice too but the volts only go down to 10.

At least I'm buying a gauge made by a 40 year old company. Don't know if they farm their assembly to China yet.

I'ts really sad to see the crap accessories Overton's, Gander (same co. now) Cabelas trys to dump on boaters and it's getting worse, a lot worse each year. Most boaters don't know any better or they wouldn't be able to keep moving this stuff. Especially when your life may depend on equipment working correctly. What good is an inaccurate gas gauge or one that goes bad after you buy it?

Buying from a quality company like Faria might allow me to add more gauges that match up to the one I'm buying now on my next rig if I wind up moving all my accessories to the new rig. But I'll probably keep this current boat too so I try to buy quality long lasting stuff, the first time around.

I just had a big ski type mirror that I mounted on my right side, so I can see traffic sneaking up on me. Paid $39 at Overton's last year. A few weeks ago I found the glass popped out in my locker. Wasn't even glued in. So I popped it back in. Several days ago it popped out, this time while underway, now now more mirror. Even from the start when tightening down the screw on the pole so it doesn't turn. It scratches the black pole up all up cause there was no plastic protector piece just the end of a screw on against a painted metal surface (total junk).
Overton's won't do anything for me now since it's 13 mos old.
I've probably given them 2k in accessories over past year. So for $39 . . . I'm done with them now. Good customer service, huh?

Thx for pointing me to Faria!

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

8 Volts? You shouldn't be running any deep cycle below 10.5 or you will begin to destroy it.

Bill

I don't know about the voltage thing. What I want of a gauge is to tell me how much "power or juice" the trolling battery has left.

I don't want to run it down below 20% because I read that a deep cycle batteries lasts longer when you don't run them down flat before you recharge them and to recharge them ASAP.

Without some type of gauge I can't judge that 20% left level!

 

[Splat]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

I don't know about the voltage thing. What I want of a gauge is to tell me how much "power or juice" the trolling battery has left.

I don't want to run it down below 20% because I read that a deep cycle batteries lasts longer when you don't run them down flat before you recharge them and to recharge them ASAP.

Without some type of gauge I can't judge that 20% left level!

ok I get that, however. That battery gauge will only give you voltage. Which is totally useless if you don't know what your looking at.

Looking at a standard deep cycle battery 20% DOD is somewhere around 11.57 volts.And totally discharged is anything under 10.5 volts. NOT 2.5 like if you figured it out with a calculator. Dropping voltage below that will start to immediatly damage the battery.

State of Charge 12 Volt battery
100% 12.7
90% 12.5
80% 12.42
70% 12.32
60% 12.20
50% 12.06
40% 11.9
30% 11.75
20% 11.58
10% 11.31
00% 10.5

You never really want that gauge to read below 11.9 (40% left) and defiantly never below 11.58.

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

ok I get that, however. That battery gauge will only give you voltage. Which is totally useless if you don't know what your looking at.

Looking at a standard deep cycle battery 20% DOD is somewhere around 11.57 volts.And totally discharged is anything under 10.5 volts. NOT 2.5 like if you figured it out with a calculator. Dropping voltage below that will start to immediatly damage the battery.

State of Charge 12 Volt battery
100% 12.7
90% 12.5
80% 12.42
70% 12.32
60% 12.20
50% 12.06
40% 11.9
30% 11.75
20% 11.58
10% 11.31
00% 10.5

You never really want that gauge to read below 11.9 (40% left) and defiantly never below 11.58.

and thx for your response. . . here is a pic of the gauge I bought. I was hoping that if it falls below that 25% mark it would tell me that it's time to switch to my 40 hp rather than tax the starter battery and finish any trolling I have left to do in order to prolong the life of the trolling battery.

I also have a 9.9 Merc 4 stroke, but it's about 87 lbs and a little too much for a 15 footer with the 40 four stroke too. With the Minnkota I can put the trolling motor battery in it's own hatch which is towards the bow and the minnkota is a transom mount which evens the weight out a little better.

So what I thought I was buying was a gauge that shows the power left in the trolling battery and the starter battery (hooking both up like in the diagram above). I think I may be running the starter motor down to far too when I'm anchored for a few hours listening to the stereo especially near dusk with my lights on.

Do you think this gauge will do what I want it for?

I think see what you mean by voltage now. I was getting that term confused with the batteries state of charge. Makes sense cause the trolling motor is designed to run off a certain voltage even if there is not much juice left it will still be putting out a certain voltage.

If a voltage gauge shows a drop or too high it would mean there is a problem within the electrical system.

http://www.boatersland.com/far-12823.html

 

[Splat]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

Yea that gauge will work great! Actually looking at it I may order one for myself. No need to remember what voltages are safe, just know when your in the red it's time to head back in.

I guess I thought we were only talking about voltage gauges, not state of charge.

Bill

 

[DRIFTER_016]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

Thx drifter, the Faria brand is perfect. A nice battery gauge is shown for $25 at Boaters Land.

I'll go with that one with the switch setup you suggested (I thought I would have needed a DPDT switch?)


Thx for pointing me to Faria!

No problem.

Make sure the switch is a center off so that you can turn the guage off when not needed.

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

I guess I thought we were only talking about voltage gauges, not state of charge.

Bill

Ya, I was originally . . . until I was corrected. Digital ones show the voltage and I thought mistakenly that when it went down to 0 it was discharged. Some of these like the one that hangs out of the lighter also have 3 led lights that show the state of charge. But reviews said these are made real cheaply and not very accurate.

 

[Expidia]

Re: Decent Battery Gauge In-Dash?

No problem.

Make sure the switch is a center off so that you can turn the guage off when not needed.

Ya, thx, I did read that in the instructions that came with the first two cheap gauges I received, the ones I am sending back showed that you have to hook up to a momentary on SPDTcenter off switch. I didn't think of that until I read it because the lighted face will eventually run the battery down and I don't have the trolling battery hooked to the Perco that shuts everything down when I'm done with the boat.

Once I turn the key all my guages go on anyway day or night. All the electronics I added are not on the key circuit so I can run them when trolling with the minnkota. If I forget to shut most off as soon as I anchor I know there is going to be a draw whle anchored in a bay.

I don't want to turn the Perco off in case some jerk is heading towards me I might need to hit the key and move quickly.