Need new charger - what brand is best for 40 - 50 Amp

[EmeraldCoastSailor]

Water in the boat during Michael apparently reached my 10 year old charger. I have 4 golfcart 6v batts for about 430 amp hours and was thinking a 40 - 50A charger would be about right as the replacement. Anyone have any thoughts on the best model going nowadays? The ProMariner ProNautic 1250P looks about right; any specific success with this model?

[rbk]

I have the same setup (6V house bank) and just installed a 1250 this spring after research, pricing etc. Been very happy with it and expect to get the most out of my new batteries.

[john61ct]

Yes, excellent line, also Sterling pretty much same unit.

Going to the 60A would not be a waste of money.

Alan @ Bay Marine gives great support.

https://baymarinesupply.com/catalogs...esult/?q=1260p

Or direct from Maine Sail even better https://shop.marinehowto.com/product...ttery-chargers
https://marinehowto.com/contact-2/

[SV THIRD DAY]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Yes, excellent line, also Sterling pretty much same unit.

Going to the 60A would not be a waste of money.

We sell the Sterling 60A chargers like Hot Cakes for $449!

http://www.cruiserowaterandpower.com..._Chargers.html

[NYSail]

At least 60amps..... sterling o understand is a fine unit. have you considered a combination charger/inverter? I have just started looking at pros and cons as I am looking to upgrade.

Greg

[EmeraldCoastSailor]

Originally Posted by NYSail

At least 60amps..... sterling o understand is a fine unit. have you considered a combination charger/inverter? I have just started looking at pros and cons as I am looking to upgrade.

Greg

I have been using a small inverter successfully for all things except my small microwave which I just do without when away from shore power. I have thought hard about a combo unit so I could run microwave without installing 2 devices but not sure I will do it out.

[NYSail]

I have a 40 amp charger and a pretty large inverter. Inverter makes a buzzing sound and feel its time may have come.... have to inspect further. But we never use the inverter. We seldom microwave..... and with small devises (phone, computer) we plug into a small charger port.

[Ostinato]

I also have had good luck with Sterling. One of the selling points for me is that it handles either US 110v and European 220 automatically.

The amperage you need should be based on projected use. I have ACs for cooling and heat and run them in Europe thru step down transformers and an inverter. For this rig I need the 60amps + so I actually have two on board and they play well together.

Also if you’re charging batteries through a generator then the largest battery charger that the generator will support should result in less run time I would think but others may know more.

[admiralslater]

I like having the inverter separate . You can tailor your equipment and also if one fails you don’t lose the other. Also upgrades in equipment are simplified. I have the room so that is not an issue for me.

[john61ct]

Yes I prefer separates for choice, flexibility, simplicity.

If you need more current multiple chargers can simply be stacked.

ICE charging will rarely complete lead charging to 100% Full, which is needed at least a few times a week for longevity.

Takes 5-7 hours even with lots of amps available in early stages. Once past 80% Full amps decline so much, better to have solar finish the job.

In which case, yes higher amps gets the ICE run done earlier in the morning, up to ~.2C for FLA, or 80A for 400AH.

AGM needs even higher rates for longevity.

[ayates]

I have had great success with the Victron Skylla 12/60A unit.




Allan.

[JD-Odyssey]

Originally Posted by EmeraldCoastSailor

Water in the boat during Michael apparently reached my 10 year old charger. I have 4 golfcart 6v batts for about 430 amp hours and was thinking a 40 - 50A charger would be about right as the replacement. Anyone have any thoughts on the best model going nowadays? The ProMariner ProNautic 1250P looks about right; any specific success with this model?

After going through a couple Xantrex chargers, I purchased the ProNautic 1250P and it has been working just fine for years now. I would highly recommend.

[River Cruiser]

I installed a ProNautic 1260p 8 years ago and it has been completely reliable. The 2 8-D batteries use less than a quart of water per year, I check and top off twice a year.

[rbk]

If you look at a bunch of these chargers, I’d swear they all had the exact same innards with different plastic cases and slightly different charging profiles to suit each companies selling features. All the good ones have identical features and most even have similar shape. My only gripe with all of them is they are not waterproof or even resistant (I know it’s a cooling issue)but you’d think they’d come up with something that can take a bucket of water without frying itself.

[Kalinowski]

I installed 2 Promariner chargers in our Pearson when converting from diesel to electric power. They work great with no issues. For this reason, I installed the same brand in our Crownline 270. Great performance in both boats to date.