How Long Will A Boat Battery Stay Charged?

Last Updated on October 1, 2022

Batteries are the life of every piece of equipment and if you love your boat, you should take care of them. Chargers are the second most important thing for your boat. How does it feel to remain stranded in the ocean all by yourself because your boat battery went out?

Worst of all, you don’t have your charger with you. We hope you’ve imagined all the sharks, the cold and loneliness you would feel unless another boat owner comes to your rescue. This kind of situation is what you should avoid.

You should charge your boat battery every 30 days and make sure to keep it in a charged condition so you can get the best out of it. If you’ve left the boat for a while without use, it can last for about 2-3 weeks or even a month if you’re lucky. But your charger must be your best friend, always beside you like your shadow.

How Long Should You Recharge Boat Batteries?

Batteries that your boat uses are quite different from car batteries or other types of batteries. First, you must purchase a quality battery for your boat before you start charging it in any way.

• Your battery would take between 4-6 hours to charge properly. However, the timeframe is majorly determined by the quality of the charger that you get. If you get an efficient charger, you have better chances of getting your boat charged fast.
• The external temperature within the time you’re charging your boat is a major determinant of how much time it would take. At room temperature, your battery would take up to 4-6 hours. If you’re charging the batteries during cold temperatures, you would have to minimise the amount of current that is being used. Choosing to charge your batteries indoors is the best way to go about it.
• Every battery has its peculiarity that you must take into consideration. If your battery was built to reduce internal resistance, you would have the charging time reduced. Batteries with high quality are more likely to charge faster than others.

How To Make Your Boat Batteries Last Longer

Getting a battery for your boat is one that would cost you more bucks than you imagined. So you can enjoy your battery for between 5-7 years, you would need to know how to maintain it better.

●    Study The State Of The Battery

Managing your battery well would increase its length of years. Discharging your battery below 50 per cent would reduce its lifespan and flatten the battery. You can use a battery monitor system to get the job done or use a cheap digital voltmeter as an alternative if you cannot afford a monitor system. These devices would help you measure the level of charge that was put into the battery and the one that was removed. This way, you would be able to prevent yourself from discharging the battery beyond 50 per cent which can ultimately damage it.

●    Know Your Daily Power Use

This is an important factor that would help your battery life. You can estimate your daily power use by multiplying the current in Amps of every device on board with the length of time that you use it. Make sure that the rating of an amp per hour is times three of the boat’s consumption.

●    Minimise Power Requirements

If you need a cheap and easy way to increase your battery life, this is the perfect technique to use. Make sure you don’t leave lights on when it is not necessary. You can also use low-energy LED bulbs so you can reduce the power requirements. Also, make sure that the fridge has enough insulation for efficiency sake. Replacing any electrical device that consumes power with another less demanding one would help you reduce the general power consumption and load on your battery.

●    Use A Solar Panel

A solar panel comes in handy so your battery won’t die out especially when not in use. Getting a large solar panel would help you prevent your boat from overcharging. Even when the boat is left on a mooring, the solar panel would help in keeping the batteries fully topped every weekend.

●    Include An Alternator Smart Charger

When you use a smart charging regulator on your boat, it helps to prevent the rate of charging to reduce drastically. It helps to keep the charging rate near the initial figure which would aid the alternator in recharging the batteries within a short time. A standard alternator regulator can only charge batteries to 65-70 per cent, however, an alternator smart charger makes all the difference by charging your batteries to 95 per cent.

●    Use A Wind Turbine Or Hydro generator

Wind turbines have been useful for years especially for adding an extra charge to boat batteries. However, this device is noisy when it comes in contact with strong wind. If you can handle this drawback, then a wind turbine is for you. Hydro generators help in generating all the power that a boat needs when it is on passage. If you sail longer distances, a hydro generator is ideal for you. But you need to keep in mind that a hydro generator plays no role in charging the batteries when the boat is on the port.

Final Words

Boat batteries determine how far you would go on your recreational journey and if you care for them properly, you would enjoy your exercise better. When your boat battery dies out, it can be frustrating and discouraging for you especially if the boat is new. This is why you need to take the necessary precautions to ensure that you save yourself from hassle.

Also, getting a new battery would cost you money, time and energy. Like we’ve established earlier, you don’t want your boat battery embarrassing you by dying out in the middle of nowhere. Use your boat battery well and keep the charger close. The steps in this article must have helped you with the right information to extend the life of your boat.