Rod,
West marine has a very good charge controller at a reasonable price. You  
need to know the charging amperage of your panels. If they are less than 7 
amps,  the $29.99 unit from Sunforce will suffice.
_http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productI
d=490088&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&storeId=11151&storeNum=50523&subdeptNum=5
0529&classNum=50530_ 
(http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=490088&catalogId=10001&langId=-1&storeId=11151&storeN
um=50523&subdeptNum=50529&classNum=50530) 
 
Rummy
 
 
In a message dated 4/3/2012 10:12:31 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
ellnerrod at gmail.com writes:

What  brand and model charge controllers do you have? 
Thanks.

Rod

On  Apr 3, 2012, at 10:49 AM, R22RumRunner at aol.com wrote:

> Lee,
>  Correction on one point. AGM batteries will last longer than lead acid   
> batteries. They cost more, but I like the maintenance free part. I  use 
only agm 
> batteries in our SeaDoo and it has more cranking power  than a lead acid 
> battery.  I have two deep cycle batteries on  Rum Runner and only use 
shore 
> power for  charging. I know from  personal experience that without a 
charge 
> controller,  solar  panels can easily overcharge a battery. You can also 
buy 
> "dual  purpose"  batteries which allow for deep discharge and also give 
you  
> cranking power for an  electric starter. It all depends on how  you use 
your boats 
> power.
> 
> Rummy
> 
>  
> In a message dated 4/3/2012 9:09:40 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time,   
> LKUHN at cnmc.org writes:
> 
> 
> David and  Geoff,
> 
> Went to West Marine and Western Auto   yesterday.  I guess it depends on 
the
> individual sales/service  person,  but the Western Auto staff seem to 
know 
> far
>  more about boat  mechanics.  We live in a fishing community so I  guess 
West
> Marine is  for recreational boaters and Western Auto  is for working 
> boaters. 
> Last  month West Marine  couldn't figure out what size spark plug wrench I
> needed   (18mm).  Last night they checked the volts but not the amps on my
>  dead  battery and declared it was a connection problem.   Sounds  like
> something I would do.
> 
> Anyway if you  have a 9.9, 4-stroke  Mercury you'll need a 12V deep cell 
with
>  about 465 amps of marine cranking  and 350 amps of cold cranking.  A  
> starting
> battery might be better for  your  electric-start outboard but not for 
your
> motor lift.  Very   important is the group size which tells nothing more 
than
> the physical  size  of your battery.  You want to ensure it fits in the  
tray
> that Stan  installed.  Mine was a group 27   (27G).
> 
>  http://www.mercurymarine.com/service-and-support/storage-and-mai
ntenance/faq
>  s/outboards/?category=electrical
>  
http://www.mercurymarine.com/service-and-support/storage-and-maintenance/faq
>  s/outboards/?category=electrical  
> 
> I basically bought  the same battery that Stan gave me.  The  Western Auto
>  mechanic told me that if it lasted seven years without  maintenance then 
 it
> was the right battery.  Like Geoff he said to  check the  battery
> acid/distilled water level once a year.  He said it   was impossible to
> overcharge the battery with the outboard or  solar  panels.  If you use a
> charger without an automatic  cut-off you could  overcharge the battery 
> (boils
> the  acid/water).  Charging the battery  if needed is a good idea, but  
you
> need to check the volts and the  amps.  My dead battery  had 13.4 volts 
but
> hardly any  amperage.
> 
> Gel and  AGM batteries cost more and may not last as  long.  Big 
advantage  is
> that they're maintenance-free and won't  leak.  Just  ensure your 
> fluid-filled
> battery covers are on tight  for  those bury-the-rail heels.
> 
> Good  luck!
>  
> Lee
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  
____________________________________________________________________________
>  _____
> I'd  be interested in the same.  Original GBI  batteries going into  their
> seventh year, and the boat has been  out of the water for almost two  
years.
> I'll pull the plastic  shrink wrap off next weekend and see if the  motor 
> will
>  turn over...
> 
> David
> 
> 
> 
>  
> On Mon, Apr 2, 2012  at 11:35 AM, Geoff  Farrell
>  <geoffreylfarrell at gmail.com>wrote:
> 
>> I have the   same setup as you do. My batteries stay charged with the 
>>  solar  panels. It's interesting to note that although I stored my boat  
>> under  a roof from April 15 through Dec 1 my batteries were  fully 
>> charged  when I got the boat out of storage. Seems the  ambient light 
>> was  enough to keep them topped  off.
>> 
>> I do notice that my batteries  use a lot of  water, perhaps because they 
>> are constantly being charged  by  the panels. I was warned by an old 
>> salt to check the fluid  often,  and he was right.
>> 
>> Recently, I purchased  a battery meter  that simply plugs into the 12V 
>> outlet over  the galley. It monitors  the batteries during charging and 
>>  also while they are being used, and  seems to work great. I can measure 
 
>> voltage drop while using various  combinations of equipment  (radio, nav 
>> lights, etc.). I have been very  pleased that on  bright sunny days I 
>> can use the VHF radio and my Ipod  (for  navigation and music) and 
>> charge an external portable  speaker  without any battery drain.
>> 
>> My motor is  hard wired to battery  2. When cruising I set my battery 
>>  switch to battery 1 to keep battery  2 fully charged for restarting the 
 
>> engine. I haven't, however, done  any overnighters so my  battery use is
>> minimal.
>> 
>> I still   have Stan's original batteries and so I would also be 
>> interested  in  what the best replacement batteries are for when mine 
die.
>  
> Leland  wrote:
>> 
>> Need some battery  advice.  
>> 
>> Probably should have replaced my  battery long ago.  When I need  to
>> pull-start my  outboard in the marina it usually recharges the  battery
>>  enough that I can use the electric start when I'm ready to  come in.  
>> Didn't happen yesterday.  By the time I unscrewed   everything to get to 
> the
>> flywheel I was dangerously close  to running  into the causeway rip-rap.
>> 
>> Easy  answer would be to replace  the battery with the one Stan put in.  
>> Wasn't sure if there was  something better out there  now.  I've got the
>> electric motor  winch which I assume  uses a ridiculous amount of juice. 
 I
>> have  one battery  hardwired to the motor which is linked to a second 
house
>>  battery.  Both batteries are linked to two solar panels.
>>  
>> I've taken zero care of the batteries since I bought the boat  seven  
> years
>> ago.
>> 
>> Should I  be concerned about the solar  panels overcharging the  
batteries?
>> 
>> Should I periodically  charge the  batteries to full capacity?
>> 
>> Any advice on what   battery would be best and what care it needs?
>> 
>>  Thanks!
>> 
>> Lee
>> 1986 Rhodes22  AT  EASE
>> Kent Island,  MD
>> 
> 
> --  
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