[C320-list] FW: Re: Battery Selector Switch

[Karl Mielenhausen _/)]

Marilyn & Charles,



As others have suggested, your answer will depend on the type of sailing/cruising you do, or want to do. My feeling with the 2 4D's was that I really only had a battery and a half of discharge capacity, as I always wanted to have enough left in one of the 4D's to start the engine. Add that to the fact that one of my 4D's was dying (PO took the easy way out and only replaced one of them earlier), and the fact that the 4D's are a combo battery (not true deep cycle), and I felt I was lucky to have 100 AH available.

For me, the best solution was a dedicated starting battery (Walmart Maxx 1N) wired into battery selector position 2, and 4 golf car batteries (Sams Energizer EGC2), which give me 440 AH @12VDC, wired into battery selector position 1. 

I rarely run the house bank down below 50%, so I generally start the engine with it anyway. But if I do run the house bank down (like this past week with 3 days on the hook w/o running the engine), I have the confidence that the starting battery will get the engine fired up!!

More info: http://www.catalina320.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=album86

Just another point of view to consider...



Karl Mielenhausen

2000 C320 Hull#690 "Silver Lining"

New Bern, NC

http://pages.suddenlink.net/kmielen/

From: CDickhut2 at aol.com [mailto: CDickhut2 at aol.com]

To: c320-list at catalina320.com

Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 09:36:38 EDT

Subject: Re: [C320-list] Battery Selector Switch



Is everyone using 4D batteries? Mine need to be replaced but the 4D seems  like a lot of Battery.  Fair  winds,Marilyn & Charles DickhutS/V ObsessionCatalina 320  #114************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.

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