The tractor battery is a great idea Yanni. Furthermore, I suggest you place it high up near the main hatch and hooking it up to the VHF, spreader lights, and any other light loads that you would need if the boat began sinking so that water would short out the main batteries. Even better would be to connect one of Ann-Marie's Combiners from the tractor battery to the main battery which would keep them both charged automatically.
I recall a story by an Alaskan boat electrical expert in a lecture to a group of shrimpers in Charleston SC years ago. He told of a sinking fishing boat with hull awash that was thus equipped and the crew being picked up off the wheelhouse top while the skipper was talking the rescuers on his VHF microphone lead out one of the wheelhouse windows! There are available battery switches that have an auxiliary set of contacts to shut off the alternator field when the switch opens the battery line to prevent zapping the diodes. I have one and it works. Norm S/V Bandersnatch Lying Julington Creek 30 07.695N 081 38.484W ----- Original Message ----- From: Yanni Nikopoulos To: liveaboard@liveaboardnow.org Sent: 11/25/2008 9:54:46 AM Subject: Re: [Liveaboard] A few more questions there is my 1/2 penny worth the setup i havefor protection just in case i have that marinated stuff and shut off the main switch battery without thinking. I got a small garden tractor battery from walmart last winter for $10 and connected it full time on the supply/charge calble. If iturn the switch to off position while the engine is running (dumb) there is still a battery that the current wil flow and protect the diodes cheap but effective. Yanni Marinated S/V Princess Thalia Columbia 8.7 #73 On the Hard Mayo MD
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