Battery Switches , Plz HELP

[M-SAYEGH]

Hi all,
I just bought a 1998 Sea ray 270 Sundancer,
twin engines , 3 batteries , no generator
I have a few questions I couldn't find in the owner's manual,
1- wich engine charges wich battery, if each engine charges 1 battery , what charges the 3rd battery ?
2- I have 2 battery switches on says on/off and the other says 1/2/both , what do those switches do ? And on what setting do i put them while on the water if i want to stay all day on the water with the engines off, and gps or other accessory on
3- what does the emergency switch do on the console

ps. It might be a real simple thing but I couldn't find it in the manual or anywhere online

thanks alot,
Michel SAYEGH

 

[WDCboater]

1- Do you have a battery charge on your boat? Three batteries sound odd, but in not familiar with your boat. Usually each engine has 2 batteries and a generator has 1.

2- The on/off switch turns the batteries on or off. Ie: allows them to power things onboard. The selector switch allows you to turn one batter off while at anchor so you have a fresh battery to start the boat. If you select both, both batteries will remain on. We usually select a single "house" battery to stay on when at anchor

3- On the newer SeaRays the emergency start button uses all batteries together to start the engines. I'm assuming this is the same on your boat. The idea is to pull enough power required to start them.

 

[IanBat]

3 batteries would be correct.

1 battery per engine = 2 batteries, plus 1 house battery = total 3 batteries.

Starting with just the on/off Switch, turn it on, leave the other switch off. Check your starters and see which engine cranks, port or starboard. Good idea to then mark that switch with the engine it operates.

The other switch, Off/1/2/Both controls the battery to the other engine, Mark it. Also should control your house circuit. It gives you the option of using No 1 or 2 Battery or Both.

Now are all 3 batteries the same? Or is one a larger battery or a deep Cycle battery?

I would presume position 2 is the house battery, best practice is for the house battery to be a Deep Cycle, will provide more long term constant amp draw and last longer.

So start and run engine on position 1. Switch to 2 when on the hook for a while. Though if batteries are the same, then won't really make much of a difference, the 2nd battery can be kept as a backup so if you flatten the main then you can switch over.

The other way is to select 2 which doubles your amp hours so the batteries should run your load for several hours whilst on the hook.

Note: it is NOT good practice to flatten a battery. Particularly with start/crank batteries as it will shorten their life.

Now the emergency start button.

Turn both battery switches ON. Don't have engines running and have the radio off, No noise.

Activate the emergency switch, you should hear a click or clunk. Solenoid engaging. On my 330 the solenoid is near the battery switches.

This solenoid joins the 2 battery switches together (or batteries) and allows you to jump start an engine in the case of flattening a battery.

So to use in the case of a flattened battery.
Have the On/Off switch ON
On/1/2/Both Switch it to which ever battery has the most power.
Start the engine that has the good battery, warm engine up if necessary and lift engine RPM up to say around 1500RPM or higher and allow to run for a couple of minutes to replace charge into battery that you used starting the engine
Engage the emergency start (if it is a spring loaded button you will need to keep it engaged) Wait about a minute, allow charge to flow through to the battery.
Start the other engine, lift RPM up to 1500RPM.
Release the emergency start switch.
Drop first engine back to idle.
I would run the 2nd engine at 1500RPM for say 5 minutes before dropping the engine RPM back and starting to drive off.

If you have an electric anchor winch I would hold revs up whilst you bring the anchor up.

Hope that explains it


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[Ruff Life]

I have the same boat and option set up as you. The Port engine has the On/Off battery switch and the port battery only runs that engine, The battery is charged from the alternator on the port engine and also by the AC convertor when on shore power. The Starboard engine has the 2 battery switch and is also used for the house battery power. When anchored you should only be using #1 or #2 but not both. I usually rotate between choices every weekend. If you totally discharge one of the house (Strbd) batteries you can switch to the other one. Normally in a single engine boat you always want to keep one of the batteries in reserve for starting. The beauty of the twin engine and battery setup is that the switch on the dash that says emergency start is basically a built in jumper cable that will jump the Port battery that should never get run down to the Starboard house battery side if you discharge them both. Make sure to start the Port engine first. We have been able to stay anchored out for 3 days without starting engines.
Rick

 

[Bt Doctur]

Personally I would do it a bit different.You bought a twin for reliability. "Twins" =two of each
a battery for the stbd motor
a battery for the port motor
a house battery.
Using 2 battery switches(off-1-both-2) call them A & B. Starter cables go to the common lug.
A is wired to #1 position and only goes to the stbd motors starter. nothing else.
B is wired to #1 position and only goes to the port motor starter , nothing else
All other house equipment,electronics,lighting, etc.goes to the third battery or house buss.
Position 2 is wired to both the A and B , one lead of the battery charger and the house battery.
How it works:
battery switch positions are A1,B1 ,a battery isolator is used on stbd motor system.This will charge the engine battery and the house battery but not allow the house battery to drain the engine starting battery.
On shore power , charger is charging the house battery only unless you select the #2 or both position.
e. Engine batteries are charged by the engine. When it goes click you either have no water in your batteries or the battery went bad and needs replacing or you never noticed the alt gauge reading 11 volts and going lower.
On the hook with the switches in the wrong position,dead batteries calling for HELP how?
Emergengy starting:
Both switches to both and you combine each engine battery and the house battery(batteries) to try and start one motor.

 

[IanBat]

Personally I would do it a bit different.You bought a twin for reliability. "Twins" =two of each
a battery for the stbd motor
a battery for the port motor
a house battery.
Using 2 battery switches(off-1-both-2) call them A & B. Starter cables go to the common lug.
A is wired to #1 position and only goes to the stbd motors starter. nothing else.
B is wired to #1 position and only goes to the port motor starter , nothing else
All other house equipment,electronics,lighting, etc.goes to the third battery or house buss.
Position 2 is wired to both the A and B , one lead of the battery charger and the house battery.
How it works:
battery switch positions are A1,B1 ,a battery isolator is used on stbd motor system.This will charge the engine battery and the house battery but not allow the house battery to drain the engine starting battery.
On shore power , charger is charging the house battery only unless you select the #2 or both position.
e. Engine batteries are charged by the engine. When it goes click you either have no water in your batteries or the battery went bad and needs replacing or you never noticed the alt gauge reading 11 volts and going lower.
On the hook with the switches in the wrong position,dead batteries calling for HELP how?
Emergengy starting:
Both switches to both and you combine each engine battery and the house battery(batteries) to try and start one motor.

Yep, that's similar to how I am going to change mine to.
Except I am going to put a 3rd switch in for the House Battery, so basically will have 3 x On/Off switches. (Maybe 4, the generator does not have one)


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[Hai Nhi]

Mine has a generator but only 3 batteries. Is that sufficient enough? Sorry if I hijack the thread, but thought it's related.

Thank you

 

[IanBat]

It may be. I don't know how it is hooked up though.


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[hhkatch]

OK - anyone can help me please -

I just put my batteries back in and I can't seem to turn over either engine. I have both switches on and when I turn on the ignition, I get none - or almost no amps and the engine will not turn over.

We pulled them out last October and they were being charged monthly - they should be good. I am wondering if my trickle charger has failed? I have 1994 330. Is there another switch besides the two switches discussed above? I don't remember having this problem last year, but we stored inside last year. The batteries are only 1 year old as well.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

 

[GrandMaster]

If you have the single switch to "On", the 2 battery switch to "Both" & try to start with the Emergency Start switch pressed and still get nothing, I'm guessing either all your batteries are dead or you have bad connections.

 

[IanBat]

Can you test your batteries at all?

Where / how did you store your batteries over the winter?


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[Bt Doctur]

Service Bulletin 97-5
Alternators: They are designed to charge the battery that supplies electrical power to the enginethat the alternator is mounted on. When batteries for two different engines are connected, onealternator will supply all the charging current for both batteries. Normally, the other engine’s alternatorwill not be required to supply any charging current.EFI Electronic Control Module (ECM): The ECM requires a stable voltage source. During multipleengine boat operation, an electrical onboard device may cause a sudden drain of voltage at theengine’s battery. The voltage may go below the ECM’s minimum required voltage. Also, the idlealternator on the other engine may now start charging and this could cause a voltage ‘spike’ inthe engine’s electrical system. In either case, the ECM could shut off. When the voltage returnsto the range that the ECM requires, the ECM resets itself. The engine will now run normally. ThisECM shut down usually happens so fast that the engine just appears to have an ‘ignition miss’.​

Recommendations​

Batteries: Boats with multi-engine EFI power packages require each engine to be connected toits own battery. This ensures that the engine’s Electronic Control Module (ECM) has a stable voltagesource.Battery Switches: While engines are running, battery switches should be positioned so eachengine is running off its own individual battery. DO NOT run engines with battery switches in“BOTH” or “ALL” position. In an emergency, another engine’s battery can be used to start an​

engine with a dead battery.