battery dead already.

[cehupper]

Hi, I bought a 2007 170CC end of Sept.
I used it a few times and parked it in my yard when not in use.
During rain, the nav lights would turn on even though the switch was set to off. (middle position)
I haven't used the boat in 3 weeks. I'm in S NH, so the cold weather is here and it has frost a few times. I went to winterize my boat the other day and I had enough battery to trim the motor, but not enough to start it. Wouldn't even turn it over.

Any reason the battery would be dead already?
My truck can sit way longer than this and still start.
My atvs have batteries, they sit all winter and then start right up in the spring.

Any advice? Or is this normal?
Thanks.

[NJWardy]

There is probably a draw on the battery like the auto bilge or other lights.

[NCangler]

Or possibly the stereo. The newer models may have a radio kill switch located in the back of the console to cut power completely to the stereo.

[Jan from Humboldt]

Check and see what type of battery is in the boat for starters, my 2005 came with a "Marine starting battery" which as I found out is not a deep cycle marine battery and it was almost dry to boot so it didn't take long to die on me. My dealer took care of the issue for me.

It sounds like to me you have someplace where the water is intruding into your electrical pannel near the switch in the console or in a connector. This is bad as it will cause stuff to corrode and fail (Always fails while you are on the water) I'd get hold of your dealer and see if he can fix it under warantee.

Fresh water on hot DC electrical is bad, saltwater on same is very very bad and will cause you no end of continuing problems for years.

[tfink]

I just bought a 195 DC and contemplated whether I wanted to buy a second battery with a switch or not. What I decided was to spend less on a device called the Battery Brain. The Battery Brain cuts the connection when the voltage goes down so far. I bought mine at Overtons - http://www.overtons.com/modperl/prod...Brain&r=search. I'm glad I got it.

[fridaysoff]

CEHUPPER,
If your 170CC is like the one I had it has a bilge pump that comes on every couple of minutes to "sniff" for water. It will run your battery down after a couple of weeks. I put an onboard battery maintainer on the boat to take care of it. If you're putting your boat away for the season you can unhook the bilge pump from the battery. Good luck.
John D.

[tfink]

Fridaysoff,

If you're putting your boat up for the winter, shouldn't you pull the battery and put it on a trickle charge?

[cagrove]

I installed one of the Perko Main Battery switches that I bought at Boater's World....$29.99. It kills all power to your battery when off the water. Simple and effective. Here's a link:

http://www.boatersworld.com/product/197260748.htm

I hope this helps.

[fridaysoff]

TFINK,
I live in SE North Carolina. We have quite a few mild winter days here where its possible to get out on the water so I leave my batteries in the boat. I like to start my motor every 2 weeks or so with the water hose during the winter months. I do not have to winterize the outboard motor as long as I'm able to run it a little.
John D.

[rkola]

Sounds like there might be a couple of things going on. The fact that the Nav lights came on in the rain could be a due to water shorting out the switch, or causing a short somewhere in the wiring (bad insulation). Not sure how to find this, other than with a hose and perhaps a multimeter. This should be covered by your warranty, and I'd contact the dealer.

The dead battery could be due to this short, but is also common when the boat sits with the battery connected and the automatic bilge pump cycles. The wire to the "auto" feature is connected directly to the battery, and over time the pump will drain it. I found that this took a couple of weeks on my 170DC. After searching the forum, I found a choice of solutions:

1. Discoonect the battery when the boat will be parked for more than a couple of days.

2. Install a battery cut-off switch ala Chuck's recommendation

3. Install a switch in line with the power wire to the bilge.

After discoonecting the battery a few times, I decided to install the switch in line with the bilge pump wire. Instructions are here:

bilge switch

It was a pretty simple installation, and has worked out quite well. The only problem I've encountered is with my failing memory. The switch effectively cuts all power to the bilge pump, so if you forget to turn it on, you've disabled the pump in both auto and manual modes. I used a rocker type switch, with an indicator light to help remind me, but the wife still catches me once in a while when she asks if I've turned the bilge on. She's got a lot less faith than I do in regard to the "floatabilty" of our boats!

Ron