Hi all, just looking for a simple deep cycle battery charger that will indicate current charge level and will charge and shut off when battery is fully charged. Any help would be appreciated ! Tight lines !
Fishing Equipment
Deep Cycle battery chargers
For a Marine deep cycle battery it is best to use a on-board Charger. Minnkota makes very good chargers. Normally a person would use a 1 to 3 bank charger based on the number of batteries in your boat. They come in 6-10-15 amp power. They will control the rate of recharge by temperature, thus never overheating your battery. They have three lights on them that will give you the state of the charge.
You should plug them in as soon as you get home, regardless of the state of charge of the battery. When a battery discharges the electrolytes stick to the plates in a battery. If you don’t charge it right away to release the electrolytes back into the solution, the battery will become sulfated and shorten the lifespan of the battery. Some will still stick, but you want to minimize that number.
A good digital charger can be left on all the time to maintain a full charge.
if you're looking at a portable device that you plug in at home, the Noco Genius 1 , around $30 or Genius 2, around $50, is probably a good choice... the 1 will take longer at 1 amp, the 2 will charge at 2 amps, which is a sort of guideline ( 2amp max ) for deep charging a deep cycle battery
both go into maintenance mode once fully charged ... I have the Noco Genius 1 hooked up 24/7 to a vehicle that doesn't get driven a lot, so this keeps the battery at full charge
I suggest doing your own investigation on the 2amp comment about deep cycle charging... it is something I read about awhile ago, has to do with the thicker plates and how a low and slow charge works vs a quick charge
...they also make an onboard charger
I had a Schmacher ship n' shore charger that worked pretty well, but it only lasted a year. I bought another one but a newer model, to replace it. That one sometimes overcharged the batteries and didn't last a year either. It was the blue and black one. I then bought a stanley, and it has been working great for the last 4 years. Just put the clamps on the battery posts and press charge, simple as that.
Are you looking for something like an on board charger that you leave in your boat, or are you looking for something portable? Portable, go to any auto parts store, or Batteries Plus, they both have inexpensive switch selectable chargers that can can charge many different types of batteries including Deep Cycle.