How long does your battery last?

[NHarp1]

I have owned 3 Tige boats. I have bad luck with batteries.
Usually, I have one battery go bad after 2 1/2 years of use. I always keep them charged in the winter and make sure they do not freeze in OHIO.
Yesterday, I took the boat out one last time before winterization. (It has only been 2 weeks since previous usage.) When it came time to boot up the Tige Touch, no power!
No signs of life at all.
So, I fired up the engine (with cranking battery) and drove around the lake for 10 min. Tige Touch finally booted but it was acting crazy (not responding to the buttons, cycling between the screens erratically. So, I powered off the TT to not do anymore damage. After 20 min of running the engine, TT finally acted normal. (I should have put my volt meter on the batter when I first discovered the TT was dead to see how low the battery really was. I imagine is was below 12 volts.) I believe I was also running the stereo when the TT was going CRAZY; not realizing the battery was probably below operating range.
Anyway, after I winterized the boat and put her back in the garage, I hooked up the trickle charger for 6 hours. The battery is having a hard time holding a charge. The volts went from 12.8 when I shut it off before bed to 12.2 this morning. I will continue to observe if the volts continue to drop over the next few days of non use.
Yes, I have the master power switch to the OFF position to rule out anything drawing from the battery.
I expect I have a bad cell and will have to invest in a new DEEP Cycle battery.

Anyone have problems with batteries lasting?

[chpthril]

A bad cell would put the voltage around 10.5 give or take a few tenths.

What kind of charger are you using? Have you checked the fluid level in the battery.

Was the suspect battery charged out of the boat or still in the boat wired up? Are you sure there are no loads wired direct to the battery?

Is the ACR working properly?

[NHarp1]

I will keep an eye on the battery to see if it drops below 11 or 12 volts.
I am using a Battery Tender (maybe it is not intended for Marine Deep Cycle batteries)
I charge with the battery in the boat. Getting the battery out of the boat is not exactly an enjoyable task.
I believe the original batteries Tige uses are sealed batteries. I will take a better look tonight. Tonight, I plan on removing the panels and 20 screws to gain access to the batteries.
I am not sure how to determine if there are any load wires directly to the battery or if the ACR is working properly.

Battery Tender.jpg

[KoolAid]

Are you shutting the battery switch off when not in use? Being a 2016 I would check the ACR and see if the lights are on with the battery switch turned off. If so, let us know and we can go over how to fix it.

[NHarp1]

Yes, it is standard practice I shut off the power at the ARC at the end of every day.
With the ARC off, how do you check the "lights" ? Are you referring to the tower lights, push button ring light, or some other light?

[freeheel4life]

https://www.bluesea.com/products/761...12_24V_DC_120A

^^^This is the ACR. Should be mounted at transom above the batteries. It has an LED light built into the face of it that Koolaid is wondering if it stays lit with master switch in OFF position.

[NHarp1]

Nice. I will look for it! With the power OFF, I should see no LED?
Blue Sea.jpg

[chpthril]

A volt/ohm meter can help with determining if the ACR is operating and if the alternator is supplying sufficient charge.

I think Tige wires the ACR to the battery side of the switch, rather then the more ideal manor, wired to the boat side of the switch. If it is indeed the blue seas, there is likely a small parasitic draw. The blue light indicates that the batteries are combined, which is normal if their voltage level is about the same and in the range of the combine threshold. I would not expect that small draw to run down a good battery in a few weeks of sitting. If the battery did reach 12.8 (not the charger's output), this is nearly 100% and rules out a dead cell, but it still could be just a bad battery.

That charger may also be too small, as in not enough output, to recharge a dead battery. Thsi leads to sulfation, preventing a battery from having a good recovery to 100% or near 100%.

If its the other relay tige used for a season or two, yank it out and toss it in the lake. im not sure I would even waste my time testing it Just toss it and go with the blue sea 7610 and a minor rewire.

[KoolAid]

If its the other relay tige used for a season or two, yank it out and toss it in the lake. im not sure I would even waste my time testing it Just toss it and go with the blue sea 7610 and a minor rewire.

His is the other one. Really looking to see if the light is still on when the switch is off. If so, he has two items I would say that need to be resolved. Swapping the ACR with the 7610 and adding the wire from the alternator to starter if his is an early model 2016 (which will require wiring the 7610 to the battery switch and not the batteries).

[NHarp1]

Funny, I do not see a Blu Sea device.
I do have this.
image.jpg

Pulled both batteries out and charging up. I guess I will see if the deep cycle house battery holds a charge over the next week.

[chpthril]

Thats not the one I thought your boat had. We've seen some issues with that distribute on demand pro mariner unit as well. if you cant get a replacement under warranty, id replace it with the blue sea 7610.

[NHarp1]

The only time this ProMar Isocharge lights turn on is when the ignition key is turned 1/4 turned ( and the fuel pump pressurizes). This system does not light up when I first turn on the Master Power switch or when I turn on Tige Touch push button.
So could this unit be draining my house battery? I guess I do not know if this is the culprit. After charging both my House Battery and Cranking Battery for 6 hrs each, both hold a charge at 12.8 and 12.6 with nothing connected to the posts. The batteries appear to be good. Maybe something was left accidently on (stereo head unit in the glove box still on Bluetooth) and ran down the battery in 2 weeks.
Thanks

[chpthril]

How long after the charger was removed, did you test the at rest battery voltage. Those numbers look good if that was a few hours after the charger was removed.

Nothing but the auto bilge should be connected directly to a battery. So if the switch was off, EVERYTHING should be disconnected from the batteries.

Yes, a faulty isolator can be the issue, in a number of ways. It may be preventing proper charge while engine is running, preventing proper isolation while engine off, or presenting a parasitic draw while the boat is not in use.

[freeheel4life]

^^as usual Mike is correct. I would lastly make sure the isolator is charging both batteries while running. That purple wire is what turns on the isolator and come all the way from the IGN post of your key switch.

[NHarp1]

Both batteries were tested after 6 hours of rest. Thank you for all your help! Always appreciated.
It sounds like I will keep my volt meter handy:
1. Monitor both batteries voltage for significant loss this winter (not connected to any cables)
2. Ensure both batteries are being "charged" when the engine is running next spring
3. Ensure the batteries are not being drained while not in use after I hook up the cables next spring!