Battery Maintainer

[whem2fish]

this a question on a boat I have 2-31 series deep cycle ans 1-29 series starting battery. All are ney thet read about 12.76-12.79 it has 3 harbor freight maintainer that put out 044mv they show just over 13 volts they have been plugged in 3 days and are still charging. Shoud I worry>
thanks dave

[Mark_K5LXP]

"just over 13V" might be OK depending on how long you expect to float these batteries.

Not sure if the HF chargers are constant current, constant voltage, or neither. Years ago I had a HF trickle charger but discovered it was unregulated, and it took out a motorcycle battery I had on it.

For "short term" use I'd be OK with a "warm fuzzy" on the batteries to keep up with self discharge and generally speaking the larger the battery (like a group 31) the better it can deal with that. But if I were to want a long term storage solution I'd go with a more sophisticated battery maintainer along with disconnecting the bank to eliminate parasitic or inadvertent loads.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

[whem2fish]

thanks with such a cut in pay with whats going on trying to move on

[Gary RVRoamer]

"Just over 13" is fine for float charging voltage. Even the top quality chargers maintain 13.3-13.6v in "float charge" mode and that is designed to run indefinitely. The low amperage is the key - it's just enough to replace what is lost through normal self-discharge.

[AFChap]

Originally Posted by Gary RVRoamer

"Just over 13" is fine for float charging voltage. Even the top quality chargers maintain 13.3-13.6v in "float charge" mode and that is designed to run indefinitely. The low amperage is the key - it's just enough to replace what is lost through normal self-discharge.

Yep, exactly what I would expect from a battery maintainer. I use several small maintainers on classic cars, mowers, etc.

[whem2fish]

thanks all the 3 show 13.04-13.06