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Thread: alternator help

  1. #1
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    i'm running two blue tops and two deep cycles that get worked out pretty hard with the stereo. four 12's and eight highs and mids and about 4thousand watts. what size alternator do you suggest to keep the batts charged when running.
    thank you
    chuck

  2. #2
    OnlyMoney
    you stole my name!!! :rollside: :rollside: :rollside:

  3. #3
    Jesster
    i'm running two blue tops and two deep cycles that get worked out pretty hard with the stereo. four 12's and eight highs and mids and about 4thousand watts. what size alternator do you suggest to keep the batts charged when running.
    thank you
    chuck
    If you want any significant play time you should run a generator. That depends on the amount of room you have though. If you do't have enough room there are a number of places that sell high output Alternators though here is one alternators (http://www.alternatorparts.com/marin...ors.htm#201602) Wait a little while you will get a number of responses on this one.

  4. #4
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    you stole my name!!! :rollside: :rollside: :rollside:
    i like to think of it as sharing a good thing right

  5. #5
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    If you want any significant play time you should run a generator. That depends on the amount of room you have though. If you do't have enough room there are a number of places that sell high output Alternators though here is one alternators (http://www.alternatorparts.com/marin...ors.htm#201602) Wait a little while you will get a number of responses on this one.
    thought about the gen. but just bought the system so i need to wait until next year to spring that one on the wife. it's about 14hundred for the set up. there was a really good thread on here not to long ago and some guys sent me some really cool picts. have the room and would love to drop some weight in batts with the gen. i only have a 454 and she is just made for cruzing and with a full load she takes a minute to plane out so the more weight gone the better.
    thanks again
    chuck

  6. #6
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    The stock alternator is probably fine. Most people misunderstand how an alternator charges, or how a battery takes a charge rather. The internal resistance of a battery is what regulates how much current it will accept, the closer it is to being fully charged, the less current it will accept. A bigger alternator will provide full output to the fully depleted batteries for a little while, but as soon as the batteries are charged up a bit, they will self regulate their input, taking much less than an alternator can provide. The only time high output alternators make sense is when you will be using the system while the motor is running.
    i did notice that when running it wasn't charging at the 14 amps that is normal. it was around 12 or 13. would one of those boxes that connect to the alternator and then to each seperate battery, only charging the batt that need it work. i'm at lost for what it is called right now.

  7. #7
    sigepmock
    I think your best bet is a good battery charger that you can plug in at night. Like these:
    http://www.pmariner.com/Chargers.php
    They have the power and electronics to properly charge your batteries. As said above, running a high output altenator is only good for when the motor is running and most boat owners don't really run their motors long enough to properly charge their batteries...it takes times and the correct current and voltage...and different types of batteries take different types of power and time to charge.
    The generator is a good set-up but very complicated and there's always the risk with the fumes and the fact that they are not approved for marine use and could possibly void your insurance if something ever went wrong. I've seen some very nice gen set-ups and they work well but for the money and ease of use I've always gone with an on-board charger/battery maintainer, but I have the luxury of power where we park the boat overnight and where we store it.
    Just my $.02,
    Chris

  8. #8
    Beer-30
    i did notice that when running it wasn't charging at the 14 amps that is normal. it was around 12 or 13. would one of those boxes that connect to the alternator and then to each seperate battery, only charging the batt that need it work. i'm at lost for what it is called right now.
    I am sure you are probably fine for the rest of the season. Play with it and see how it does the remainder of the year.
    You are only showing 12-13 volts because all alternator regulators in the last decade are temperature sensitive. If it senses the engine area and batteries are fairly warm, it will not blast them with more volts than they need. When cold, you will see the full 14+. Don't sweat it.

  9. #9
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    I think your best bet is a good battery charger that you can plug in at night. Like these:
    http://www.pmariner.com/Chargers.php
    They have the power and electronics to properly charge your batteries. As said above, running a high output altenator is only good for when the motor is running and most boat owners don't really run their motors long enough to properly charge their batteries...it takes times and the correct current and voltage...and different types of batteries take different types of power and time to charge.
    The generator is a good set-up but very complicated and there's always the risk with the fumes and the fact that they are not approved for marine use and could possibly void your insurance if something ever went wrong. I've seen some very nice gen set-ups and they work well but for the money and ease of use I've always gone with an on-board charger/battery maintainer, but I have the luxury of power where we park the boat overnight and where we store it.
    Just my $.02,
    Chris
    thank you very much. i bought the prosport12 charging system for her with the external plug in. i'm hoping this will help. very good info i didn't know that about the gens and insurance.
    really appreciate all the help.
    chuck

  10. #10
    IT'SONLYMONEY
    Again, the battery that "needs" it will take the proper amount of current from the charging system. A dead battery has less internal resistance than a fully charged battery, so eletricity will flow to the path of least resistance. Believe me, there's very little you can do to influence the way it works. It's electricity, you're not baking a cake.
    are battery isolators worth the money?

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