Battery Bank with Switch, help?

I have all my stereo hooked up to my battery bank which is hooked up to position 2 on my switch. My main starting battery is hooked up to position 1 on my switch, and everything else is hooked to the C terminal on the switch.

So my problem... When I start the battery and then switch it to ALL position my stereo works, but if I keep it on ALL the whole time it will kill my battery. When cove parting I switch it to Position 2, but when wakeboarding on Position 1, how am I going to get the stereo to work if it's all hooked up to the battery bank?

My last boat I had everything hooked to the C terminal and just switched between batteries, but someone told me not to do that on my new boat.

Thanks for the help!

I meant to write kill my ALTERNATOR, not battery.

so Battery 1 is the starting on the 1 post of the switch
battery or batteries in the stereo bank to 2post of the switch
if the boat is running stay on bat 1
sitting in party cove switch to the battery bank 2
you should not run in 1-2 you can damage your alt if you don't have an isolator , etc.
if you have two or more batts on the stereo bank and they get drained under 11 v the alt not going to last long trying to charge them back up
we all rely on a plug in charger for this . You can upgrade alt but very expensive.
Combining 1-2 is mainly for situations where one bank is too low to start the boat
if the boat is running you are better on bat 1 and getting increased voltage from the alt 14v compared to 12.6v of the battery bank


other option is to run the stereo off the stereo bank only. You will have to run a power wire to the deck, eq, and amps and a switched power from the same bat for the remote

Patryk, a couple questions:

What does your stereo consist of?

How many batteries do you have and are they the same battery?

How do you plan on using the boat/stereo(are you going to do a lot of "cove" partying with the boat off or are you going to be riding a large majority of the time)?

Do you keep the boat on the water and/or do you have the ability to utalize an onboard charger after each/most times you use the boat?

I see you are on Sammamish. I use to live on sammamish and my families business is located in Seattle. We sell alternators/starters/batteries among other things although our specialty is more based around heavy duty, over the road and industrial equipment. Let me know how I can help you.

Basically we need you to understand exactly how your stereo, batteries and charging systems work so you can correctly use it and maximize your time on the water instead of time in the shop or with dead batteries.

By the way good choice on board and bindings. When I lived on Sammamish it was with a some of the Ronix guys. Love the brand, company and people of Square One.

If your stereo is hooked up directly to battery bank 2, it will work regardless of what position the switch is in.

The switch controls which battery or bank of batteries is powering everything hooked up to the switch. It does nothing to the stuff hooked directly to the batteries.

So I have a PDX-5 that is running all my interior wetsound speakers and my JLw3 sub. It has a 60 amp anl fuse

I have a PDX-4.150 that is running two Rev10s and that also has a 60 amp anl fuse.

Right now I have a Interstate Group 24 as my starting battery, and I was planning to get 2 Interstate Group 27's and run them in parallel to run the stereo bank.

Right now I don't have anything hooked up to batteries. I'm working on my stereo now, and am just trying to get it set up now for spring. That's why I'm asking the best way to set up my stereo.

I did purchase a 3 bank 20amp charger that I will plug to my moorage slip.

So how should I hook up the batteries, do I need a switch, what batteries should I get?

Patryk, do you have enough height to go to batteries that are 1" taller then a 24 or 27? The reason I ask is that group 31 or Interstate group 29 batteries have the smae footprint of a 27 but are about an inch taller and has a pretty good jump up in specs. I can get you Group 24, 27 or 31 Deka Dual purpose or Deep cycle batteries and should be pretty competetive with Interstate when comparing like batteries.

You don't have a crazy huge stereo system so 2 group 27's or 31's should be fairly adequate, especially since you have an onboard charger.

Since you will have 2 dissimilar battery banks I would run all(I mean everything) related to the stereo(as well as auxillary lights is you have them) directly from the stereo bank or the #2 position on the switch. Then run everything else directly off the starting battery or #1 position on the switch. The only thing hooked to the common terminal will be the positve starter cable. At this point you have no way to disconnect all the electronics in the boat but with the switch in the off position you won't be able to start it. Here is how you will use the switch. Since your batteries will be topped off by the charger everyday you will be in a good position.

With all batteries fully charged you can just start the boat in the both position and leave it there while you are running around. When you stop to party turn the switch to position 1. This will isolate your stereo bank and stereo from the rest of the system. This will keep your starting battery fully charged and ready to start quickly(you don't have to mess with any switches to get the boat started) for whatever reason. Then once you are started you can turn the switch back to both(I would wait a couple minutes just to give the alternator enough time to fully charge the starting battery from the start(shouldn't take much if anything if the battery is in good shape and the boat starts quickly). Deeping on how long you sat with the boat off listening to music you may want to only leave in the both position for 15 minutes or so. The reason being if you jam music with the boat off for a couple hours and really discharge your stereo bank you are going to ask an awful lot of the stock alternator to try and charge that bank up. This will most likelyl shorten the life of your alternator. Since you are on sammamish you won't have much time(probably) from listening to music to cruising back to your slip you may want to just leave the switch in the battery 1 position and just use your stereo bank as a complete stand alone battery bank.

As for your Charger you only need a 2 bank. You will have 2 banks that consist of 3 batteries. Make sure when you plug in your onboard charger that you turn the battery switch to any position besides "both". You want the battery banks to be seperate while charging.

Another thing you can do is add in a smart solenoid/combiner/seperator. It is relatively inexpensive($60 or so) easy to wire in basically charges the stereo bank when possible while protecting the alternator. If you really discharge the stereo bank it might not do much but you have an onboard charger so it should be good. One of these smart solenoids used in conjunction with a battery selector swith is a great way to do. It gives a lot of flexability and control.

Anyways, let me know if you have any questions or if I can help.

So if all my stereo stuff is hooked up to one battery, when I switch it to the other position my stereo stuff won't power up will it?

Also do you have a diagram of how to wire the combiner which decides when to charge the bank to protect the alternator?

Thanks

Originally Posted by Patryk

So if all my stereo stuff is hooked up to one battery, when I switch it to the other position my stereo stuff won't power up will it?

Also do you have a diagram of how to wire the combiner which decides when to charge the bank to protect the alternator?

Thanks

If you stereo stuff is hooked up direct to the stereo bank it will always work no matter what position the switch is in. Assuming the batteries have a high enough voltage of course. You need to reprogram your thoughts on what the switch will be doing. It will be doing nothing more then directing where the output of the alternator goes. In position 1 the alternator will charge the starting battery only, in position 2 it will be charging only the stereo batteries, in the both position it will be charging both battery banks and in the off position your boat won't run or start but your stereo will work.

Here are 2 diagrams, one with a VSR and switch, one with just the VSR.

Diagram helps, thanks.

Do I keep everything hooked up to battery 1 except the amps?

What about the was unit, keep it to battery 1 or re-hook to battery 2?

Thanks

Originally Posted by Patryk

Diagram helps, thanks.

Do I keep everything hooked up to battery 1 except the amps?

What about the was unit, keep it to battery 1 or re-hook to battery 2?

Thanks

I would put everything related to the stereo including the head unit to the stereo bank. Also, since you leave the boat in a sleep make your bilge pumps are hooked up directly to the the starting battery or to somewhere where it will get power even if the switch is in the off position. You want the bilge pumps to work all the time.

I meant head unit. Damn autocorrect on my phone.

Also so when I'm riding what position would the switch be in, and when I'm sitting and in a cove what position would I put the switch in?

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Patryk

I meant head unit. Damn autocorrect on my phone.

Also so when I'm riding what position would the switch be in, and when I'm sitting and in a cove what position would I put the switch in?

Thanks!

Everything, I mean everything, related to the stereo hook up to the stereo bank. That includes amps, EQ's, LED lights that go with the speakers, head unit, etc...

If you are only using a battery selector switch and not a VSR then while your riding it will either be in position 1(this means just the starting battery will be receiving a charge) or in both(both banks are getting charged). There could be a potential problem with putting it in both as I explained in a previous post. If you had just been sitting cove partying and you had the boat off for a long time and really discharged the stereo batteries leaving the switch in the both position could damage your alternator by making it work too hard(creating heat and heat is bad). This is why I said you would switch back and forth between position 1 and both to get some charge to your stereo batteries while protecting your alternator.

When you are sitting in a cove turn the switch to position 1 like I already mentioned. This isolated the 2 banks, leaves your starting battery fully charged and also leaves you ready to start the boat so you don't have to play with the selector switch before starting.

If you would like to call me I can try and explain it over the phone. 206*682*2981 and ask for Brett.

Would it be ok if I wired it like this? I spoke with someone at the boat shop here and this is what they said would work.

Also is 4 gauge to do all of this wiring adequate?

That looks right I think.

As for cable size, how far is the run from your alternator to starter to switch to the batteries and then back(negative) to the block? How many amps is your alternator? These cables would be sized seperate of the cables from the stereo bank to the distribution blocks for the amps.

As for using a switch and ACR like that you should just leave it in the "on" position while you are boating, the "off" position while moored and the charger is on(again, make sure your bilge pump is hooked up to the battery or a terimal that is always hot), and would only use the "combine" position to manually parallel all batteries for emergency jump start. It looks like the way your diagram is setup when the switch is in the "off" position the the acr won't see any voltage so it shouldn't try and combine while charging. That is a good thing.

Ok Thanks,

I'm going to mount the switch right by the starting battery which is where everything is hooked up now. I don't know what size wiring it is, I'll have to check later.

Should I just get 2 or 0 gauge for the wiring between the batters and switch? Then do 4 gauge to the amps?

Originally Posted by Patryk

Ok Thanks,

I'm going to mount the switch right by the starting battery which is where everything is hooked up now. I don't know what size wiring it is, I'll have to check later.

Should I just get 2 or 0 gauge for the wiring between the batters and switch? Then do 4 gauge to the amps?

I am not sure what the amps need. Maybe someone else can help there or look up the manual for the amps.

With a 100 amp alternator 2 guage should be good for a max run of about 200"(that includes the positive run from alternator to starter to batteries and back to the block). If you have longer I may jump up to 1 guage or 1/0.

Ok so I'll get 1/0 gauge from the alternator, to starter to the batteris and back to the block then. Does the gauge to the switch and ACR matter? Can I use 4 gauge for that? My amps only need 4 gauge and I have a 60amp ANL fuse for each one.

Originally Posted by Patryk

Ok so I'll get 1/0 gauge from the alternator, to starter to the batteris and back to the block then. Does the gauge to the switch and ACR matter? Can I use 4 gauge for that? My amps only need 4 gauge and I have a 60amp ANL fuse for each one.

You will not need to change the factory battery cables or the supply cable from the alt to the starter. You will just need the appropriate gauge for the additional bank, the ACR/switch and amps. The OEM cabling is probably 2/0 for the batteries and starter and 4ga from the alt.

I found this when I did a google search. It was on the Moomba Forum. Pretty much the same as what I had written up. Do you feel his gauge wiring as labeled would be recommended?

Thanks Mike and Brett for helping me out with this. I owe you guys drinks. So come to Seattle or I'll have to visit.

Yeah, not sure what I was thinking on the battery cables. Like mikeski said you don't have to touch though other then where the cable connects to the batteries/switch.

Mikeski:can you send us your new elc. boat diagram
I just buy a 2008 SAN and want to built a sound system like yours!
thanks a lot