Triple Battery Set Ups

[Corry]

Currently running dual batteries, and have them set up with a Redarc dual battery smart solenoid joining them. I'm considering funning a fridge in the boat for our upcoming trip, but not sure if I should just hook it up to the same battery that the electric is on.
What have people done for a third battery? Is it as easy as just connecting the second and third together and letting them equal out? All they would be running is the electric and the fridge (and backup for starting if required). They'd be charged while the outboard is running, and topped up of a night with 240/Genny via CTek charger.

Thoughts....

[FITZY]

If it is just for one trip I would buy a ark battery pack so you can use it for camping also

[mickkk]

Few questions. Are you camping in the boat or on land. Generator is a lotto take on the boat.
But if you are charging each night, plus being charged from motor it should be fine. What size battery and what fridge are you running and how much do you use your electric. Also what size 240 volt charger are you using and what size dcdc? Your fridge will most likely draw about 3 amps. So say you are on the water for 10 hrs then that’s 30 amp hrs. Your electric, depending on usage would use around 50 to 60 amp. If your red arc is a 25 amp and you drive for 2 hrs you will probably get about 30 to 40 amp hrs put back into your 2nd battery (depending what accessories you are running. If you have a 100 amp hr or bigger battery you should be fine. If you have a 10 amp ctec then you will probably need to charge for 5 or do hrs a night to top back up to 100%.
If you give me actual figures can do the math a bit better for you.

[Corry]

Thanks guys...

Fitzy, yeah, it would be more than one trip, looking at a long term set up.

Mick, Camping is on the land, so nah, not going to overload the boat, and yeah, charging each night, or when travelling as I've got Anderson plugs hooked up to connect the boat to the car while on the run.
Fridge is a new Engel, clamp tests show it draws around 2.5-3amps (cycling). I run a 120Ah Battery for the Electric. I find up north I don't use the electric as much as I do down here (Sthn NSW), depends on how fast the tides are moving.
Charger is a C-Tek, but only the 4 amp version, and battery isolator is the Redarc SBI12, 100amp.
I'm thinking that for a normal day, all should be good, especially if I run another 100+Ah battery, really wasn't sure if it's OK to 'piggy back' batteries together, or should I be putting another solenoid between them.

[mickkk]

Reckon it will be ok. If you are looking at fishing everyday for quite a few days in a row, then you could look at either getting another battery and swap them out. when one gets low put it on charge for a few days and put the charged one in ya boat. Or look at getting a bigger ctec, 4 amp is pretty small / slow to recharge. You will be running ya generator all night for it to try to keep up. Far about the same price as a battery then you could get a 20 amp charger, or even a 40 amp charger (depending on what type of battery you run, it might not like 40 amps being smashed in and others like that)
Will be a lot quiter to sleep at night

[maxpower]

Corry, I run my fridge and Minnkota on the same battery. My fridge uses around 10% of my battery (10ah) over about 14 hr period. Still doing a few tests with it all, but the only time I've run in to trouble was doing overnight trips and using the minnkota too hard. Two batteries would be better but its manageable on the one. Putting a few litres of frozen water bottles in the fridge makes a big difference in power consumption for mine (evakool).

[Blinky]

I run a VSR between batt 1 and batt 2 and another between batt 2 and batt 3. Ensures batt 1 is the first to be charged, then batt 2 and lastly batt 3.

[trent]

Same as Blinky except between battery 2 & 3 installed onboard battery charger that keeps the AGM deep cycle charged and works on the same principal when the voltage in the battery draws down from using the electric it isolates itself from the system.

[Corry]

Thanks guys, I'll see if I got room for another isolator between 2&3, but I don't think so without some surgery

MaxPower, yeah, I'm going to have frozen bottles in the fridge while out, two reasons, one to help the fridge, and two, to help the live bait tank.

I wasn't really convinced to get a third fridge for this trip, but I'm pretty settled on it now. Should make the days easier in the boat, and I can cut down on esky size so not to clutter deck space up too much.

Thanks again all, love the forums much better the bookface.