Battery maintainer

[VEGAS RAY]

I keep my boat in a slip with power at the dock which is 30 amp but everything I have is a standard 120 plug like on a typical house outlet. Can I purchase an " extension" type cord that converts the 30 to 120 ? :huh: Thnx

 

[capz]

I think you're confusing amps and volts. The dockside connection is a standard 30amp 125v plug. So you can plug the maintainer into a plug on the boat. Do you have a 30amp inlet on the boat (usually in the transom locker) for a shorepower cord? What kind of boat?

 

[fc3]

Well it makes a difference if you have a 18 foot bow rider without shore power, a 26 Sundancer with 30 amp shore power, or a 50' bridge boat with 230 volt 50 amp shore power. Too bad you have to keep the kind of boat you have a secret so we have to play guessing games.

Best regards,
Frank

 

[VEGAS RAY]

Well it makes a difference if you have a 18 foot bow rider without shore power, a 26 Sundancer with 30 amp shore power, or a 50' bridge boat with 230 volt 50 amp shore power. Too bad you have to keep the kind of boat you have a secret so we have to play guessing games.

Best regards,
Frank

Sorry about that it is a 20 foot seville with no 30 amp connection on the boat. I have seen people use a " pigtail " type adapter for their power lifts (hydraulic) but wasn't sure if it had a built in converter or some other " transformer" built into their unit. Thnx

 

[fc3]

There's no easy answer. To do it right, you need to use a marine battery charger and bond the ground wire to the boat's ground with an isolator. A transformer type charger would provide isolation, but typically overcharges and will boil off electrolyte. Modern non-marine chargers that are not of the ferroresonant type may not provide isolation.

You should also ensure that the shore power connector is wired correctly for hot, neutral and ground. It is also possible that some non-marine battery chargers can cause electrolysis damage or grounding faults since the manufacturer did not foresee the negative side being bused to ground. If this is a big issue for you, there are minimal shore power setups made for this type of install that provide the reverse polarity shut-off and warning, the ground isolator and some breakers.

In short, yes, you can buy a 30amp to 15amp adapter that will plug into the 30amp connector on the dock so that you can use a standard household type extension cord, but it's not a good idea for anything other than occasional, temporary use.

Best regards,
Frank C.

 

[VEGAS RAY]

There's no easy answer. To do it right, you need to use a marine battery charger and bond the ground wire to the boat's ground with an isolator. A transformer type charger would provide isolation, but typically overcharges and will boil off electrolyte. Modern non-marine chargers that are not of the ferroresonant type may not provide isolation.

You should also ensure that the shore power connector is wired correctly for hot, neutral and ground. It is also possible that some non-marine battery chargers can cause electrolysis damage or grounding faults since the manufacturer did not foresee the negative side being bused to ground. If this is a big issue for you, there are minimal shore power setups made for this type of install that provide the reverse polarity shut-off and warning, the ground isolator and some breakers.

In short, yes, you can buy a 30amp to 15amp adapter that will plug into the 30amp connector on the dock so that you can use a standard household type extension cord, but it's not a good idea for anything other than occasional, temporary use.

Best regards,
Frank C.

Thanks a lot for your input :thumbsup: I will look into my options

 

[fc3]

BTW
When I wrote "isolator" I should have spelled it out and written "galvanic isolator." It prevents millivolt level currents from damaging your boat when plugged into shore power, but allows higher currents to pass when necessary.

Best regards,
Frank C.

 

[VEGAS RAY]

thnx again