Best brand of battery charger?
#1
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to mount in boat. What lasts the longest, does a good job of charging conventional marine batteries, etc?
#2
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Although I have no other Minn Kota equipment I looked into their chargers after seeing a couple in sporting goods stores, and finally bought the MK220D, a two bank on-board charger which I am very impressed with. I use it to maintain my two 12 volt trolling motor batteries, and it's maximum output is 10 amps per bank. It is temperature sensitive, automatic, and digital with displays for each battery bank. There are numerous models for various demands you might have which you can view on the website. I payed about $184.00 on-line, and was a simple installation.

#3
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After searching and reading a lot here I saw that many like the ProMriners. I got a ProMariner ProSport 20 Plus GEN 2 three bank for my purpose and am very happy with it. But only have it for 2 weeks.
#4
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I've been on a MinKota now for 6 months. We'll see if it makes it a year.
#5
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I read excellent reviews of the Noco Genius chargers and got one. Haven't used it much but like it so far. Read some reviews (amazon has a bunch) and see what you think. Good luck
#6
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#7
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As it happens, I am replacing 2, 2 bank ProMariners that are a little over a year old and went out within weeks of each other.
Thanks for all the replies. Hard to know which way to go with this. Reading reviews on Amazon for the Nocos and most of them are good, but all the reviews seem to be done shortly after purchase - which is pretty much what you'd expect. So far it looks pretty much like a craps-shoot as far as longevity goes!
Thanks for all the replies. Hard to know which way to go with this. Reading reviews on Amazon for the Nocos and most of them are good, but all the reviews seem to be done shortly after purchase - which is pretty much what you'd expect. So far it looks pretty much like a craps-shoot as far as longevity goes!
#8
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I had a Guest 2 bank charger in my bay boat for 14 years; it worked flawlessly until early this year. Cabelas had a special on the MinnKota charger, so I purchased and installed one. So far, it has worked fine.
#9
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I had a Cabelas branded two bank Pro Mariner for 5 years with no issues. I now have an older Guest that was installed years ago by the former owner and its starting to give me problems. It's certainly older than 5 years. I think when I replace it in the off season I will add an ACR. I know people have mixed opinions about using an ACR but it makes sense to me and I had used one on my last rig and both batteries were always topped off.
#10
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What about Charles Marine? They are expensive, but think have a lifetime warranty and are made in the USA.
Dual Pro is another I've heard good things about. The Professional and Sportsman are US made. They have a certified reconditioned sale section on their website if you want to save some money.
Dual Pro is another I've heard good things about. The Professional and Sportsman are US made. They have a certified reconditioned sale section on their website if you want to save some money.
#11
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Thread Starter

Checked out the Charles Marine stuff. Very nice and VERY pricey LOL. Looks like a product line aimed at full time boaters or yachters. Lots of very nice features that would be very nice to have for a boat you live on or maybe spend weeks at a time on. For a weekend fishing boat you'd be paying a lot of money for features you really don't need. If I ever buy a sport fisher this would be the one!
Think I'm gonna go with the Dual Pro Sportsman. (2, 2 bank 10A/bank) I have a 3 bank Dual on my marsh boat that's been doing well for a while now. Can't remember how long it's been on there but I've owned the boat for 12 years and it replaced the original charger that died after a few years. Maybe 5 years? Maybe more. Anyway, I really like the LED, graduated charge level indicators. Easy to read w/o having to squint to read the label and find out what a particular LED means. The fact that it's lasted so long on my FlatsCat and the fact that it is a "repairable" unit are also big +'s for me.
Thanks for all your help and suggestions. Hard to know these days with so many choices.
Think I'm gonna go with the Dual Pro Sportsman. (2, 2 bank 10A/bank) I have a 3 bank Dual on my marsh boat that's been doing well for a while now. Can't remember how long it's been on there but I've owned the boat for 12 years and it replaced the original charger that died after a few years. Maybe 5 years? Maybe more. Anyway, I really like the LED, graduated charge level indicators. Easy to read w/o having to squint to read the label and find out what a particular LED means. The fact that it's lasted so long on my FlatsCat and the fact that it is a "repairable" unit are also big +'s for me.
Thanks for all your help and suggestions. Hard to know these days with so many choices.
#12
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Have you looked at the Phase Three chargers? I'm no expert, but when I told the guy at the yard that I wanted to modernize the mid-90's vintage electrical system on my boat (the current charger was boiling off the electrolyte of the 8D's, for one thing), he recommended the Phase 3's. I think they're may be a little pricey, but the guy said they were top-notch and I'm not worried about my batteries these days.
Good luck
Good luck
#14
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I had Bass Pro shop charger 2 years Trash then Pro Sport 2 years Trash. Now after some reading reviews and not wanting to break bank on charger I'm using Dual Pro Sportman 2 bank 10amp. 8 months and counting.
#15
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Exactly what I ordered last night x 2. As in my earlier post, I've had a 3 bank Pro Sportsman in my marsh boat for 5-7? years and it just works. My experience with that one heavily infuenced my decision here.
#16
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Thread Starter

Have you looked at the Phase Three chargers? I'm no expert, but when I told the guy at the yard that I wanted to modernize the mid-90's vintage electrical system on my boat (the current charger was boiling off the electrolyte of the 8D's, for one thing), he recommended the Phase 3's. I think they're may be a little pricey, but the guy said they were top-notch and I'm not worried about my batteries these days.
Good luck
Good luck
Just looked at the Phase 3's. Nice, but they don't make make a 2 bank charger that has 10 amp / bank output which I really wanted. They also don't make a 4 bank, just 2 and 3 and the 2 bank is 7 amps.
The price for the PT-7 (2 banks at 7A/Bank) is right in there at $240 though. Paid $231 for the Dual 2 bank @ 10A/Bank) so this is a viable option for sure. Just wanted 10A for situations when needed a faster charge rate.
#17
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Thread Starter

Just checked out Mastervolt too. Wow, lots of quality battery chargers out there!!!