Project Description
A battery switch to control power to the boat is considered a “must have” on any boat with an electric-start capability. Toy Boat 2 did not come with a battery switch, so we installed a standard Perko marine battery switch. This, along with our 24V trolling motor, and a Battery Combiner, necessitated some additional gymnastics inside the console.
The Battery Combiner, (the small black plastic box on the right) was a gadget that addressed a long-standing problem for powerboats:
- Most offshore power boats carry two batteries – one is a primary battery and is the battery used to start the engine. The second battery is a backup, which the boater can switch to (using the battery switch) if the primary fails.
- The problem is how to use the engine to charge both batteries. If you set the switch to “All”, you can charge both batteries at the same time, but if you forget to switch back to a single battery setting after the batteries are charged, you could accidentally drain both batteries.
- The Battery Combiner intelligently combines two isolated batteries for charging, but isolates them when they are fully charged.
