With all due respect

C

CMS1

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I have had several Grady’s over many years and my 2019 235 Freedom is a great boat for the family. For the life of me I can’t seem to enjoy this boat as it should be enjoyed. Lots of little things screws snaps etc and now despite trickle charging replacing the batteries again. It’s not the batteries it’s the tiny deck hole given to do any type of work in the stern. Reach your arm in to do something and you lose the visual so it’s all reach and feel. Why? It’s a great boat in many respects except for repairs which gives me aggravation that’s at an un necessary level. Yes I’m venting and thanks to anyone who read this far.
 
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Well it's a small boat. What do you expect? How old were the batteries? They are a replacement item a some point. Maintenance is part of the ownership contract between you and your boat. "They are all sinking...only difference is how fast!".
 
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Hookup1 said:
Well it's a small boat. What do you expect? How old were the batteries? They are a replacement item a some point. Maintenance is part of the ownership contract between you and your boat. "They are all sinking...only difference is how fast!".
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Like that analogy! Needed a laugh. As to the batteries first set lasted two years this set three.
 
either you are using shite batteries or some thing is wrong... either you or your setup. parasitic load? wrong battery type? heavy discharging? lack of maintenance/ watering? charging profile/voltage is wrong.
I dont know you but id guess some reading would help. trojan batteries has so much written info on batteries, more then you want to know almost. it might help with what's failing you or your batteries

my old boat I got 6 years out of the start and house battery. Im on year 3 for my current boat/batteries

check out Pacific Yacht Systems on YouTube... guy named Jeff cotes. really good info and tons of specific videos on electrical
 
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A parrasitic discharge can run a battery down but it shouldn't kill it. What type of batteries do you have? The wrong battery and usage can greatly shorten it's life for flooded cell types.
I see your location is the Jersey Shore so the excessive heat that southern boats ( like Florida) is not a big issue. It's the heat that shortens the battery life. Impropper discharging or charging can be a factor as can excessive current draw for deep cycle battery types.
 
Something is not right with battery/charging setup. Five years for battery life. What make of battery charger? I’m using ProMariner ProSportHD 20amp 3-bank charger. Duracell AGM 27M and 34M batteries from Sam’s Club-great price worth the membership.
 
I pray to God that I never have to replace a battery on my Freedom. They are in just about the most impossible to reach location possible. That tiny little hatch was not very well designed.
 
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Just changed 3 of 3 of my AGM West Marine and got 6 years on them - One was dead so I figured the other 2 were close behind. Sounds like something wrong in the system.
 
FREEDOM!!! said:
I pray to God that I never have to replace a battery on my Freedom. They are in just about the most impossible to reach location possible. That tiny little hatch was not very well designed.
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If the batteries are hard to get to the electrolyte levels never get checked and topped off. Best way I know of to destroy a battery.

That's why I switched to AGM's. I don't have to check!
 
I just replaced the batteries on my boat at the very end of last season. I purchased the boat in October of 2021 and am unsure of the age of the batteries, especially since the one didn't have a date sticker on it. The second was punched with a "3" on it for the year, so I'm not sure if that was 2013 or what exactly that meant, but it wasn't the month. I don't imagine it lasted 10 years, but it did very quickly go from working great to not being able to start over the period of just a day or two. I had an Optima red top in my 1965 mustang for over 15 years and kept chugging along until I let it sit for too long. With my daily driver, I typically see 7-8 years out of a battery before they need to be replaced. Depending on where you live, the kind of batteries you have and how long your boat sits during the "off-season", I can definitely see having to replace your batteries every 5 years or so. When I did replace my batteries last fall, I called up the local GW dealership here in Edmonds and they recommended against going with AGM batteries. They said that they're typically quite a bit more money and with the vibration and bouncing around in the boat, that they don't last as long as the standard batteries. Which I guess makes me circle back around to my DD, in that if it's only getting 7-8 years while being driven daily... I again imagine 5-6 out of a marine battery is probably right around that point of needing to be replaced.
 
FREEDOM!!! said:
I pray to God that I never have to replace a battery on my Freedom. They are in just about the most impossible to reach location possible. That tiny little hatch was not very well designed.
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You are going to have to replace batteries or you are going to pay someone to replace batteries. Praying will not change that.
 
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I typically get 5-7 years out of my batteries, just basic wet cells from Costco. I replaced my this year as a precaution - 5 years on last set that was fine holding a charge. They are always on a solar trickle charger.
 
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