A second battery, yes or no?

[WiskyDan]

So I bought a 2006 Yamaha SX230 at the end of last season and have it dry-stacked on Lake Winnebago in Oshkosh, WI. When I'm done with the boat I tie it up at the dock, put the mooring cover on, and away I go. What I'm concerned about is that since it's still in the water I need to leave the battery switch in the on position so that the bilge pump stays powered until they pull it out and re-rack it. If I'm only out on a Saturday it's possible the boat may sit at the dock until Monday morning which concerns me a bit since the battery will be discharging for what could be 36-40 hours.

I talked the the service guy at the place it's dry-racked at (they're a full service dealer) about a second battery and he feels that since I only have the factory stereo and a Garmin chart plotter/GPS drawing power that a second battery would be a bit of a waste. He recommends that they set it up so that the bilge pump is wired directly to the battery so that I can turn the battery switch off when I'm done to decrease the discharge. I spoke with the service guy at the Yamaha dealer where I bought the boat and he said that this would be fine - it's how he's seen some boats set up in the past. If I were to go this route I plan on buying a Noco Boost Plus GB40 and bring it with me whenever I use the boat - for piece of mind:

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I don't have a problem spending the money to add a second battery (was told it would be about $500 from the dealer) but I'm not sure it makes economical sense to put it on an older boat if I plan to buy something newer in a couple years. Thoughts?

 

[rkluck]

All the above makes sense but I always but two batteries in every boat I have ever had. I liked the ability to switch between the two as well. It wasn't for when the boat was at the dock but when I was on the water. I wanted to know for sure I had a way to start the boat no matter what and get back. It was just another way I felts secure.

 

[Scottintexas]

what if you had a 2nd battery and added a solar charger, you could switch your main battery off, move to the Aux battery w/solar charger keeping it up, at least if for some reason the aux battery failed you still had the starter battery,

 

[WiskyDan]

Thanks for the replies.

Now I'm getting more information and things are getting a bit more murky.

The Yamaha dealer service guy called me back and said to leave the main battery switch in the on position and the bilge pump rocker switch on the dash off. This will allow the bilge pump to run only when the float switch is triggered. They're telling me that when the the rocker switch is turned to the on position it is a manual override and the pump will run whether there is water present or not. If that's the case then I'm pretty sure I burned up the bilge pump the first time I had the boat out. I'm 99% certain the owners manual said to leave the dash bilge switch in the on position - I'll check right when I get home. Any bilge system info from someone with an '06 SX230 would be greatly appreciated.

Right after the I got done talking to the Yamaha service guy, the service guy at the place where I stack it called me back and is telling me that there isn't a float switch on the bilge pump. He's going to determine if the bilge pump is burned out, and if not, put some water in the bilge and see exactly how it works by flipping the battery and bilge switches to the different combinations as described by the Yamaha service guy.

I then called the Yamaha dealer back and told them the the boat doesn't appear to have a float switch. They said that it's possible it has a different water sensing switch (especially if its been replaced at some point) but they would need to look at it themselves to make a determination.

Ugh........

 

[Scottintexas]

when you have a used boat anything is possible,

If it's stock, I believe the Yamaha mechanic is wrong for your model boat, I believe the newer boats do operate that way.

It's a good idea if you never see your bilge pump working (at least once a season) to test it, normally they just are attached by spinning on the mounting base, so they are easy to pull out to clear debris or test in a bucket.

 

[Scottintexas]

on my 2007 the rocker switch is either on or off, if it's off the bilge isn't working ( I know this for an unfortunate fact),
if it's on, the bilge "cycles" every few minutes, if it senses resistance (pumping water) it continues to run, (this is different than a float switch that doesn't activate or will turn off at a certain level).

 

[WiskyDan]

I just checked the owners manuals for the '06 SX230 HO and the 07' AR230 and the statement on the bilge is identical:



@Scottintexas: Does your bilge operate as described above when the main battery switch is in the "off" position or does it need to be in the "on" position?

 

[dgfreeze]

I have your exact same boat, and for these exact reasons, I did two things: installed a second battery, and a backup bilge that is hardwired to said battery. My reasoning is this: a second battery is good in case of battery failure, and I don’t like the factory bilge. If it’s the factory bilge, it will cycle every few minutes to “check” for water, as opposed to using a float. This drains the battery over a day or few (depends who you talk to). Makes me nervous, and I don’t have a wet slip, I always trailer. Also, here again, if it’s the factory bilge, it won’t cycle if the bilge switch is off. I can’t remember if it works with the main battery switch in the off position...

 

[WiskyDan]

Thank you for the confirmation, it‘s much appreciated.

I guess I’m in a bit of a unique position when you combine the way my bilge system operates and the boat being left in the water instead of being trailored or on a lift. Does anyone have their boat in a slip full time?

 

[Gym]

I have an 06 SX230 with the original bilge pump. It runs exactly as @Scottintexas stated. If the rocker switch is left in the on position it will turn on every few minutes looking for water to pump. If it finds no water it turns off in a few seconds.

Your simplest solution is to hotwire your existing, or new bilge pump to the battery via a float switch. That way power is always available to the bilge pump but will not turn on unless water raises the float.

 

[marcham]

1. Does your bilge pump work? Fill bilge with fresh water and test.

2. Does the switch have to be on for it to work? Does the battery have to be on for it to work?

These simple tests you can do yourself.

Next, if the battery switch has to be on, I would see if there is a bilge pump wire connected to the load side of the battery switch. If there is, it's a simple extension direct to the battery. I would make this change without hesitation.

As far as dual battery, it cost me CAD200 in materials (new battery, switch, tray, wiring, terminals). About 90 minutes of work. That's for a manual 1 2 off both battery switch with no ACR. Do this if you boat in places where there's often no other boats.
If you have no concerns over getting a tow or draining the battery with the stereo, then by all means, it's not a necessity.

 

[WiskyDan]

Thanks for all of the info and great ideas. ?

I'm going to chat with the service guy this morning and discuss the different options.

 

[Scottintexas]

since you have to leave your boat in the water unattended a high water alarm may be a good item also,

normally I recommend them (and a 2nd bilge pump) so that if you're underway and may not notice the bilge pumping you've got some other indicator something is wrong ( like you a cooling hose clamp let loose)

in your scenario you bilge could be pumping while tied at the dock but nobody would notice or care, if you had a high water alarm in the engine bay at least somebody might notice and take an extra minute to notify someone,

 

[Julian]

The Yamaha dealer is wrong about your boat (for new boats he is correct). Your boat has to have the battery switch on, and the bilge pump switch on for the bilge to operate.

I would follow the marina's advice and wire the bilge pump directly to the battery, but I would take one more step and swap out the stock bilge pump to a float switch pump vs the stock back pressure sensing pump. The back pressure pump will slowly drain your battery (takes about 2 weeks from my wet slipping experience to drain a battery). A float switch bilge will have no drain on the battery (unless water rise makes it run).

 

[WiskyDan]

Decided to add a second battery and float switch with the bilge pump wired directly to the second battery. Thanks for the insight and helpful suggestions!!

 

[piper84]

I installed an extra Batt. As an old Aircraft mechanic redundant sys. In some cases are good If you like to hang out with Assy. Running and bilge backup.