On-board charger questions

[Dahitman44]

MinnKota --

Do you guys like the Kota brand on-board charger? I got the Dual Pro from "Skeels" last year and it was a great one.

Now I have to get a new one because of the whole new-boat thing.

Which one do you guys use and why?

Some say to stay away from the 20 amp per cell trickle because it will kill your battery.

What are your thoughts

[Northlander]

I have had 2 Minkotas and they both did what they were supposed to.

[Dahitman44]

Great. Do you remember what rate the trickle was? Can you go too high and hurt your batteries?

[Giant_Jackpot]

I would say that 20 amps per battery is far more than you need. Just as running a battery down can lead to a shortened life span, charging too fast can be harmful as well (too much heat). For most people, a 6 amp per bank onboard smart charger is plenty. There have been only a couple of times in the last 4 years where my 6 amp per bank charger did not charge my batteries completely overnight (I’m running the group 31 Trojan’s).

A lot of us grew up with the old 10 or 20 amp chargers that we bought at Sears. These old technology chargers would taper off the current going into the battery as the battery voltage climbed. So at 14 volts or so, the charger might have been only putting out 2 or 3 amps. The smart chargers put out their full amperage all the way to a certain voltage, and then they go into the absorption stage before going to the trickle charge. I would have to check the charger specs but the trickle current is probably around one amp or less. In most cases the 6 amp smart charger is going to charge a battery faster and better than the old style 10 amp charger.

Hope this helps

[Dahitman44]

I think it does help.

The salesperson is trying to sell me the Minn Kota over the other brands. I did have good luck last year with the Other one.

Are they just trying to get me to buy the one that they make the most on or has the best spiff or is MinnKota that good?

Any thoughts?

[delmuts]

my $.02 ! i had a dual pro on my bass boat ( that i sold) and was very happy with it. when the charger goes out on my current ranger, it will be a dual pro going in it.

[Giant_Jackpot]

I’ve been using the Cabela’s ProSport and have had no problems. I’m sure the Minn Kota is good but not worth more than anything else out there.

[Dahitman44]

That is my thought. It is hard to get out of something when you know it works and is good.

[carlcmc]

ditto on the cabelas prosport version.

i have the 3 battery charger model.