where is your windlass battery?

[sailorchic34]

I put a group 27 battery (one of my two start batteries) under the v-berth and wired the 2 amp 3stage dc/dc battery charger to my existing 12v outlet serving the v-berth. Of course I only paid $12 for the water proof dc/dc charger.

Easier and less expensive then running marine 1/0 wiring.

Note: it takes less then 2 hours to bring my windlass matter back to float stage.

I had two start batteries, which I nearly never use. I use the house bank to start Purple, my yanmar (which is fine with a 440ah bank btw). So left one start battery as backup and used second for the windlass. For the poor sailor chic, it was cheaper and easier then buying and running 1/0 from the rear to the bow.

[W3GAC]

I share my existing double 8D AGM inverter batteries which are mid-ship (under settee) for windless and much higher amp load bow thruster. Because of distance/ amp load, I used larger gauge wire running back to (120a) inverter and forward to the (350a) bow thruster and smaller gauge(with its own smaller amp fuse) from bow thruster on up to windless. None of which would normally be operating at same/ overlapping times. All working well after initial install 20 years ago (replaced batteries/ routine check for connection corrosion of course). In my case, using inverter batteries allows added benefit of much bigger amp hour capacity than needed for windless and auto charging/ monitoring of battery health with the inverter’s built-in 100a charger and monitoring readouts. (Also 100a inverter charger allows both inverter & switched in house batteries to charge/ top off quickly during and generator run.... otherwise inverter/ bow thruster/ windless AGM batteries charge via engine alternator (via diode charging combiner.) I have found that having plenty of ‘extra’ battery capacity is well worth the initial extra expense in order to take any worry of dead battery during long anchoring/ forgetting to switch off unused devices... and allowing family/ crew to use tv, iPads, fans/ lights without ‘permission slips.’

[mikedefieslife]

Mine is in it's own compartment strapped down about 66-70% forward in the centre of the boat. I was going to just use the engine battery instead, but I ditched that and start via the 675ah house bank. Turning over a tiny 30hp motor is nothing for house bank, and saves me tearing up the boat to put in €500 worth of cable.

The issue, is dual charging, but then that's the same regardless.

[sasirles]

My boat, a Beneteau, requires you to have the engine on. Actually, you only need to have the ignition on, but who wants to hear that thing squealing while you're trying to anchor. As a practical matter, you almost always have the engine on while anchoring because you are positioning the boat for anchoring. As I understand it, all Beneteaus are wired like this.

[Scrimshaw4]

The culprits in voltage drop are wire size and the number of connections. Both of these can be measured ahead of time. That said, wouldn't you have the engine on and therefore have plenty of power from your alternator? Windlasses are not made to bring the boat up to the anchor. JMHO

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by rhubstuff

I would NOT connect a windlass to a house battery bank. Windlass loads are heavy and short, ideal for a high-aH starter-type battery, not a deep cycle house battery. Heavy, short-term loads on your house batteries will shorten their life.

You are entitled to your opinion. Consider this:

Six T-105's in series/parallel. 140 amp circuit breaker for windlass. Load is spread across the bank. Even at tripping current load is split and less than 50 amps max per set of in series batteries. Power is supplemented by 100 amp alternator.

Engine start batteries are designed for very short bursts of high current. By short I mean a few seconds. At 70 feet per minute the minimum time to retrieve an anchor, if you are anchored in ten feet of water and have five to one scope out is almost one minute, not a few seconds. Most anchoring scenarios are much longer load times than this.

So, you are putting a heavy load on a single, relatively small engine start battery and the alternator vs spreading the load out on batteries designed to move golf carts.

Oh, by the way my present set of batteries were installed in 2010 and are still going strong. I expect I will get ten years out of them.

[stormalong]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

I have had some times when I had to anchor and re anchor 3-4 times in problem anchorages before getting a good set. Not common , but it does occur. That may use up the a charge in a single battery in the process as a potential issue. If $ are a real problem, find some welding cable to use. I ran 00 large cable in a couple of boats.

Having to re-anchor is exactly where the battery in the bow situation fails. Without heavy wiring to a good power source that bow battery will be deeply discharged and may not be available when you need it most.

I would never use welding cable. It is made to be flexible by using many fine strands and soft insulation. Any water intrusion will cause rapid corrosion of those fine strands.

If you buy cable from an electrical supplier it is composed of thick strands. That makes it harder to install but it will last forever.

[Akapeterc]

Mine is right next to the windlass in the void behind front cupboards on a purpose made shelf in a battery box secured down.

[Sailmonkey]

Our windlass is powered by the House. It’s a 28’ run o contortion from the windlass to the house batteries.

Our windlass motor is 1000watts.

We have no extra batteries to care for, and our house bank is going on 8 years old (although has taken a nose dive in the last 4 months).

[daga]

Like sailorboy1 and others, I use the starter battery. I also have powered winches and they too run off the starter battery. The starter battery is 230a/h gel and is wired via the usual 1/2/all switch. Simple. Flexible. Redundant. No problems.

[CarinaPDX]

My starting point is that the total energy used by a windlass is pretty small. My windlass is wired with a 65A breaker per manufacturer's instructions, so let's assume a worst case of 60A (in fact it is usually much less as I do not use the windlass to pull the boat forward - a no-no). It takes roughly 3 minutes to lift 200ft, so 60A x 3min / 60 min/h = 3Ah, or about 1% of my house battery capacity and a negligible impact. And with a 65A alternator previously, and 115A now, there should be very little draw from the battery when the engine is running (almost always the case). The only potential issue is that without the engine running the voltage could sag and reset some instruments but I have never seen that happen on Carina.

For the tiny amount of power used I can't justify the extra battery, with the extra weight in the bow and regular replacement required. If you disagree and decide to go that way then pay attention to the @sailorchic34 post: use a DC-DC battery charger. Otherwise when the battery approaches EOL much of the load for the windlass will be provided through that under-sized wire for charging. At a bare minimum a breaker or fuse should be fitted to the charge wiring for safety.

Greg

[billgewater]

I used very long very high current welding cables during my boat construction and used those to run supply to the windlass from the battery banks in the engine room. When lifting the anchor, which is a monster, I always have the engine running. I use short engine power intervals to bring the boat up to the anchor so there is minimal load on the windlass. I then try to use the wave motion of the boat to free the anchor and then again use short periods on the windlass. Worked well for me for 40 years. I also use standard sealed truck batteries. Battery size is determined by my desire to avoid getting a hernia during installation/removal.

[bobfnbw]

Unless you have a bow thruster up there as well, it makes no sense to have a seperate battery up there. Run the largest cable you can, and power it from either your start battery or the house bank. Run the engine while using it and put a charge in after a long night. 4/0 cable might be expensive but batteries are more so. Cable will last a long time, battery, not so long. Weight is better distributed too. For a 37 foot boat this is the way to go. Nigel Calder thinks so too. If you had a 50 foot boat it would be a different situation.

[Adelie]

My battery is around my waist and the motor is in my arms.

[emoji123]

[01kiwijohn]

There's a lot to be said for having a smaller boat.
I have a windlass, but it is similarly powered. I need the aerobic exercise too!