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New Benny owner with some questions.

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Mason Niemi

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Has anyone put an onboard charger on their Benny?
Last question I was going to put interior LED lights around the seating area. Has anyone done a DIY install?
Thank you for the feedback.
 
Had dealer put on trolling motor and battery’s with a on board charger Look pretty simple
 
Thanks. I don’t think I will do a trolling motor right now. But thought an onboard charger might be nice, but not sure if it is needed.
 
Hi Mason, so what are you hoping to get out of having an on-board charger? Do you have a particular need or concern?
 
Michiman said:
Hi Mason, so what are you hoping to get out of having an on-board charger? Do you have a particular need or concern?
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If I am in the water all day, radio on, lights at night. Just concerned if the battery drains quickly.
 
Hmm, when you say on-board charger, are you talking about a "jump starter"? If so, then full speed ahead. You could also consider adding a second battery with perko switch. It's my experience and opinion that unless you have a really powerful stereo system, you probably don't need either but peace of mind can be worth every penny.
 
There are people on this forum with jump starter packs and others with a second battery and still others with both. My Benny came with two but my bowrider only had one and I never had a problem even after hours at the sandbar. However, sometimes I would start wondering if it would start when it was time to leave, particularly when we were the last boat!
 
I've got two batteries with the Perko switch. I run the radio for hours, and if we are out at sunset, add the decor lights and anything else we might have going. Boat cranks right up when it’s time to go, but then, even if it didn't crank, I'd just switch the Perko switch to the other battery, and after it cranked, I'd switch back to number one for a full charging of both batteries while cruising.
 
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you can never be "over prepared". I have double batteries with a perko. Also have a third battery I store on board. For night fishing. If we are on a fishing trip, for the lights I drop over board And yes, I do have a jump starter pack. I have that in case I need it. but really for other boaters who have neither and drained their batteries. Plenty of times I have drained the "starter" battery, flip it over to the "house" battery and BAM....up and running...both batteries charging.

Here is the jump starter I got.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01D42TYFC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And what a dual pro charger look like.

https://www.amazon.com/Dual-Recreat...pID=51KpSwHSEDL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

or

http://www.dualpro.com/product/realpro-series/

Good luck. Welcome to the forum. Post pics~!
 
Spoiledrotten said:
I've got two batteries with the Perko switch. I run the radio for hours, and if we are out at sunset, add the decor lights and anything else we might have going. Boat cranks right up when it time to go, but then, even if it didn't crank, I'd just switch the Perko switch to the other battery, and after it cranked, I'd switch back to number one for a full charging of both batteries while cruising.
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Perfect thanks for the input!!!
 
We exercised the two battery option purely for peace of mind.
 
For $80 or so, a charging relay automates all the switching for you. Double peace of mind because there's nothing for you to forget.
 
Mike31406 said:
I like that. Would it save me from moving the stern chair around in order to open the seat to access the battery switch. In other words when done for the day does it automatically disconnect the batteries, like switching the manuel switch to off?
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I don't think it disconnects the batteries and I really don't know why people do that. Our battery has never been disconnected since day one and has never gone dead. Only replaced the battery once in 12 years. The relay isolates the batteries from starting and accessories.
 
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