Boat Maintenance

Maintenance Tip - Battery Charger Selection

Marine batteries are available in 3 distinct chemistries, flooded, gel and AGM (dense absorbent glass dry cell). All have their pros and cons with varying life cycles and are available as deep cycle and starting batteries.

The majority of marine batteries installed in new boats are flooded cell chemistry. The 2 alternate battery technologies are superior and longer lasting than wet cell units. The wet cell battery is less expensive then gel or AGM batteries, but requires more maintenance.

The life cycle of all batteries is dependent on the boat owner's preventive maintenance program and a compatible charger suitable for the batteries specific chemistry. Before installing an alternate chemistry battery you need to check if the battery charger installed in your boat or that your portable charger is suitable for the intended batteries chemistry. If the charger is not specifically designed to safely charge all 3-chemistry designs you could severely damage the battery.

To verify if your charger is designed to handle the replacement battery you should contact the charger manufacturer by phone or e-mail and provide them with the charger's serial and model number and battery chemistry you intend to install. You may find that you may have to replace your battery charger or return it to the manufacturer to be readjusted to safely charge the replacement battery chemistry selected without damaging it. The normal fees for a manufacturer to reset the charger circuitry are $25 to $35 plus shipping.

Spending a little time researching your battery charger's design to operate safely with the replacement batterie's chemistry will insure that the battery will not let you down when most needed and lower you boat operating costs.

Len Harris

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