Maintaining the battery in my rz2

[zippCarlson]

Hi folks,

I have a 2009 rz2 with two batteries and a cutoff switch that cuts out the starting battery only. There is a big yellow warning plate that states I need to disconnect the battery before charging or there will be damage to the electronics. I am curious if anyone knows what they are concerned about damaging and how I can easily go about charging my accessories battery. Since the stereo and pretty much everything else run from that battery it frequently gets run down . I have a charger and power at my dock that I could easily use to keep it maintained. I'm just concerned about doing some kind of damage.

Thanks !!

[chpthril]

Zipp,

The main concern here is that some large shop type chargers can easily exceed 16V's while charging. This high voltage can be a danger to some electronics.So depending on your charger, you may or may not need to go the extra lengths of disconnecting the battery(s).

[zippCarlson]

Mike,

Thanks for that. Do I need to use a two bank charger if I am only concerned about charging the accessory battery? Just wondering because the two batteries are connected.

Also, I'm interested in the shadow caster lights for my Rz2 . Can you give me an idea how difficult the install is? I just finished installing my ballasts and I'm not keen on drilling too many more holes in the boat!! I was hoping to tie them into the nav lights so when that's on the rear is on. If you could pm me pricing that would be great.

Thanks!

[chpthril]

During the normal season of a boat, the primary starting battery rarely gets run down, so a dual-bank charger is not needed. But, for maintaining the starting battery during the off-season, having a dual-bank is a huge plus. If some is going to spend the money and time to install an on-board charger, the going with a dual-bank is worth the investment.

For those that its convenient to just plug up a regular portable charger from time to time, then there's nothing wrong with that. The huge advantage of an on-board is that they are made for the marine environment and are smart chargers. They run through the 3 main battery charging cycles, finishing with the float/maintain stage and can be left plugged in. Some portable chargers are not "Smart" chargers, you plug them in and they charge a a constant rate unless manually changed. Some do reduce the charge as the battery is returned to full charge, but its not the same as the maintaining stage of an on-board.

Installing the transom lights is pretty straight forward, even if your boat has the current factory under water light. I'll PM you some price and insight into the install.

Mike.