BOAT DUAL BATTERY SYSTEM INSTALL | HOW TO

[@tylerdurden1787]

Bought my first boat a couple months ago a 1989 Arima 19' SeaRanger. It has been sitting in a barn for the last 10 years and the wiring all needs to be redone. Was sitting here going over my measurements and diagramming out how I want to rewire it and found your video. Many many thanks!!

[@servandomartinez5270]

I am running a 24 volt trolling motor so I have two batteries up front for that. How do I run the wiring for the battery switch? I have lithium Dakota batteries in front. I have the starter battery in the back for the motor. Want to put the switch under the the dash along with the buzz bars. Any help will be appreciated sir.

[@louisg4845]

Do you really need the positive bus bar? And go directly to fuse box + put inline fuse just off the battery?

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

No you don’t need the positive bus bar if you put in the fuse panel.. it just gives you more options for wiring .. a lot of times you would put a bus bar in the back and a fuse panel up at the helm . Or you could put a fuse panel that has a negative bus built in .. but this gives him lots of options to add more down riggers and flood/spot lights etc. down the road.. thanks for watching and commenting I appreciate it.

[@genekersten7165]

Nice to see you back home again. Thought you left for Florida.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Not yet.. 😉Thanks I appreciate it.. I know I haven’t been posting that much lately.. but there is something big about to happen.. 🤞

[@raoulbreault9905]

What wire gauge would you be using for + and - Bus bars to the batteries. Thank you!

[@mezzy1439]

Awesome work buddy!! You do a great job of mapping out a clean look and effective system. Thanks again for all of your professional hard work! Will be sad to loose ya

[@jamesshelleywijnhamer19]

Love all your videos. Learning a lot regarding my pontoon. Question: On my pontoon I have a cranking battery and I am installing a 24V battery system for my trolling motor (love that video also). When I install the 3-bank charging system, I know according to the other video you ran the wire to the cranking battery. Do you attach the wires from the 3-bank charging system to each of the batteries that go to the trolling motor? Thanks again.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Yes you want a battery charger bank for each battery.. even though the batteries will be wired in series, when you hook anything to just one of the batteries positive and negative it’s only 12v .. hopefully that makes sense.. thanks for watching I appreciate it! I have a video explaining it better I’ll share it

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/fGnNXn6tppJ2pJosi=5otO2OuNaMuTo6wH

[@jamesshelleywijnhamer19]

@@ReelLifeFisherman thank you so much brother. I watch your video and puts me at ease when it comes to my boat. I saw in a video you recommend the NOCO Gen 5. I need a 3-bank battery charger. Do you recommend the 15 amp? Thanks again

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Yes 5 amps per bank is perfect! Thanks for watching the channel I appreciate it!

[@cletusself5725]

Would it be possible for you to provide a simple wiring diagram with the appropriate or suggested wire sizes that you used. This was the most detailed video I have seen, and I want to do this to my boat. I bought a 2014 Carolina Skiff 218 back in January, and it has only 1 battery for start and house. I am wanting to add a second battery to separate them. Any info would be helpful.

[@Kaptajn1eye]

Dang thats neat. I just bought a couple of Penn electric downriggers so im going to install 2 bus bars. i have to change the plugs on the downriggers, witch plugs would you reccomend i buy?. I can get the ones from Marinco here in Denmark.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Those would work great! I prefer the two prong plug style over the 3 . But the 3 prongs can be easier to find.. thanks for watching and commenting like always I really appreciate it!

[@Kaptajn1eye]

@@ReelLifeFisherman Its the two prong i have found 👍

[@Mazzey0006]

I have to do this for my boat next year so appreciate the video man! Might be doing vynl next winter as well, thanks for all the tips and being a normal person!

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks! It’s a great upgrade to doing your a serious fisherman or even just enjoy long days on the water and listening to your radio and spending time with the family.. never worry about dead batteries.. thanks for watching and commenting.. let me know if you have any questions when your project time gets closer.. tight lines🎣

[@kurtrasco2145]

Liked the video. I will get some of the stuff for my boat. I read some of the responses to what I am confused with and still confused, I think. The Gen5x2, is for when at home to keep charged and maintained. The ACR charges while motor is running ? But while the boat is running doesn't position of "both" batteries charge the batteries ? Is the ACR just a redundancy for charging ? I hope my question is understandable. I will watch the video again but also thought I would ask the question. Thanks. Great info.

[@cormier333]

I'm curious about this too. I was told it was a redundancy thing so that you don't have to remember to switch to house battery when the engine is off.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

So you both are correct but in this particular system you have a house battery and it’s a deep cycle.. running them on “both” puts them in parallel and you don’t want the two different battery types in parallel unless for a emergency to crank the engine. Hopefully that makes sense and helps.. thanks for watching and commenting

[@zulu55]

Oh this is good to know. Thank you for that. I would have had no idea.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

The house battery is there to switch to if you want use lights and stereo and fish finders for long periods of time without starting the engine.. keeping the crank battery ready to go when you want to leave.. also the deep cycle is there s a backup battery in case the crank goes bad .. but the ACR will keep them both charged when making long runs with the engine. You could also wire it up a different way..ACR and no switch.. just have all the boat “house” stuff off the deep cycle and just the engine on the crank.. and the ACR will keep them both charged and the engine will always be ready to start because it’s the only thing on the cranking battery. But the switch let’s you have the option to have the house as a backup

[@zulu55]

Oh excellent to know. With this in mind, I think I will keep my switch just in case I ever need a backup. I’m also installing a Victron BT battery monitor

[@stevensteiner2539]

So this might be a dumb question but I'm wondering, so it won't hurt my 115 yamaha to have a battery charger charging my cranking battery while it's obviously still hooked up to the moter.....won't fry anything on the moter?

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Are you talking about the onboard battery charger you plug in household/shore power to ? Or the automatic charging relay and isolator? But the answer to either one is no.. they both have voltage cut offs and the charging relay is your motor charging your batteries as normal.. and when your crank battery is full it with switch the charge to the other battery or house battery.. if the cranking battery gets low it switches back .. hopefully that makes sense and helps .. let me know if you have any questions.. thanks for watching and commenting

[@stevensteiner2539]

@@ReelLifeFisherman yes I was talking about an onboard charger and hooking it up to the cranking battery, didn't know if by plugging in the on board charger while hooked up to cranking battery would do something to the moter

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

No it won’t hurt the motor at all it is just fine to charge them with a on board battery charger like the one in the video they are “smart “ chargers and won’t over charge or harm any electronics.

[@terrybarrett5522]

great video thanks. Question. I have a noco 3 bank charger. Banks 2 and 3 charge the 2- 12 volt batteries for the 24v electric up front. Bank1 goes to the starting and house battery through the ACR. So bank one charges the starting battery first and then switches to charge the House battery. Is there any issue with doing it this way? SO far it has been great but maybe my start battery is too old as the Noco is flashing at Bank #1. I will be replacing the start battery as a first thought.

[@johnchapman3225]

Really Great Video in detail. Im just starting to install my two battery system but I have a question regarding the switch. Since Im also installing two new Fish finders how do I ensure they stay on with out having to power them down when switching the battery switch back to the cranking battery. When running on plane I want me fish finders on to know depth of the lake as I am running across the lakes. I saw another type of switch that has 4 prongs that was explained it keeps all power on to everything the boat needs outside the cranking battery. Just want to better understand if thats the switch I need. any Help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

[@TackleAndTide]

Hello. I am adding a 1000 watt 5 channel amp to my 2020 G3 20’ bay boat and I’d like to know if I need to add a house battery. My main accessories on the boat are a blade power pole, trolling motor, and gps fish finder. Need some advice please

[@glenndaugherity6187]

Great video ! I’ve ran dedicated 10 gauge from my bow and console back to a compartment that I installed the Blue Seas fuse block and it’s the same compartment my battery switch is in and next to the battery switch is a 30A breaker should I run power to the fuse block from the 30A breaker or from the battery switch ? I’m planning on running my new HDS Live units and Talon to that fuse block and that’s all. Thanks hope you can help me.

[@thomasmcclure8458]

Hi from Bonnie Scotland sir! Great video! I have a question that maybe you could help me understand! I have a two battery system and switch installed. I recently swapped out the switch for a new one as the old one was well past its sell by. (I learned very quickly not to assume the posts are in the same position on them all. They are NOT. So folks do not change the cables to the posts like for like!!) My question having watched one of your video's is: Once you set it to battery 1 to start the motor do you have to leave it there on position 1 the whole time the motor is running? Reason being is I thought once started you could then move the switch to number 2 in order to charge it having used it all night perhaps so it is getting charged while you move to the next destination?? Hope that makes sense? I thought that was pretty much the point?? Thanks. Tom.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Hey there over the pond! So you might want to install a Automatic charging relay (ACR) also call a battery isolator.. that does that job no matter the position of the switch.. but if your 2nd battery is low or dead then you could switch it to #2 or 1&2 while running.. just make sure your switch can do that .. meaning there is contacts all the way through so no break in connection in the switch.. like going past the off position. That would give the charge from the stator Alternator nowhere to go and could fry an electrical system. Hopefully that makes sense. Thanks for watching and let me know if you have any questions.

[@thomasmcclure8458]

@@ReelLifeFisherman Awesome sir. Thank you for that. Glad you explained that as that is what I have been doing ie making sure I do not go through the OFF position while running and there have been no issues! Having said that I haven't really put it to the test of having No2 run down yet but will be this season hopefully. Could it be the case that I have just been lucky because everything was switched off when I moved from no1 to both? ie if I had left something in the on position could it have fried as you put it? Also I'm thinking if this does work without issue then there is no need to fit an ACR? Thanks again. Love getting all this education and for free too being the true Scotsman I am!! Haha! Stay safe sir!

[@sxsrecon8204]

What were the 3 hot wires you hooked to the one stud on the battery switch?

[@LucasCrankbaits]

Which inlet plug to you use that you hard wired to your battery charger. I saw it on one of your videos but can’t find it.

[@bubbaford8943]

Most helpful and informative VIDEOS OUT ON KZbin..! WE APPRECIATE YOU , thanks 🙏

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks that truly means a lot! Thanks for watching the channel and commenting! I know I haven’t been posting a lot lately.. some big changes are happening and I’m going to share with everyone in a few days..

[@MackZero]

Great stuff man. Wondering if the Minn kota ACR has better features? The one you put in is so much smaller and more streamlined...

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks this one and ones like it are great for keeping a house battery charged so you can run all the boat power and electronics and keep a starting battery just for the engine! Or just a duel battery set up! I’m not sure on a Minn kota version other than the alternator charger style that is made for charging multiple deep cycles off of your excess voltage from the cranking battery when running the motor.. I’ll have to look into it and see if they have come out with one like this if that’s the case. Thanks for watching and commenting I appreciate it!

[@camaro6810]

Can you use an ACR with different batteries? Im not sure but I dont think you can. If I have a 2012 Mercury 40hp tiller, and I have a group 24 lead acid battery for starting...I was thinking of buying a 24V 100Ah lithium for trolling motor up front, I could not hook that lithium up to the ACR right? Needs a different type of charger? Basically wondering what would be the best option for charging the lithium TM batteries when doing some boat in camping where I couldn't just plug into wall charger in the garage at night. Would be like a 4 day trip. Boat is a 1996 Lund Rebel so not huge, the front compartment for the TM battery is small, cant fit two in there, so I was hoping a 24V single would fit up there for the 24V Terrova and want to make sure that I have enough juice for a couple days of spot lock. Wouldnt be trolling much with it actually, maybe some slow movement down shores while fishing and some small movement, I would troll with the main motor. Any recommendations?

[@KG_Fisherman]

Great video as usual. Quick Question: You mounted directly to the hull, but what are thoughts about using Marine Board offset of the hull by 1/4 inch so you don't put many holes in the hull? Planning for a project on my boat early next year.

[@NeverEnoughPyro40]

That would be a good idea! I’m most fiberglass boats you will see that wherever something is mounted there will be a rise in the fiberglass, That is because they install a piece of material before they fiberglass so you are screwing to the board and not the hull! You can attach a piece of king starboard to your hull and then screw your device to the king starboard, Or whatever type of material you wish! The less screws into your hull the better, Especially your transom!

[@ryanmanners9174]

What if I wanted to run my electronics and big engine at the same time? Would I have to switch the switch everytime?

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

The way this is set up you can run either off the same battery.. you would just use the deep cycle if you are going to be sitting and not running the engine for long periods of time.. and it’s also there as a back up

[@michaelclark9337]

Hello again! I'm trying to buy the items I need to complete my electrical re-work on my boat through your Amazon links but need a little info first. Your links mention a 4 stud bus but on the vid it looks like you are using a 2 stud for your run from the fuse panel to the posi bus. I need to know the AWG of the connectors your using and the Amazon links to use to buy them. I'm assuming the 4 AWG in for battery wire connectors? If you can get the NOCO listed I'll get that through your site also. I have to put this rebuild together on my garage floor, box it up and take it overseas for the install. Any insights you have are much appreciated.

[@brendanclark9223]

Can you go from your battery disconnect to a fuse box and just use your fusebox as a bussbar? I have a small jonboat and am just running a trolling motor, lights and a bilge pump right now. thanks

[@randymarsh8064]

Thanks for the great videos. I still have a question I hope you can answer. I'm not going to have a manual battery switch and I will rely on the VSR to do the switching. Can I leave the VSR and Gen 5x2 hooked up to the batteries all the time? Is there a problem with back feeding the Gen 5 while running off outboard power or back feeding the VSR with the Gen 5 while charging at home? Electronically I don't want to damage either.

[@Jason-zr6il]

What gauge wires you used to wire the switches?

[@loibigf1053]

Can I use lithium batteries for house battery? While using lead acid cranking battery?

[@Mark-dj5qf]

Great Video! Does the Kicker when running alone charge as well? Can the big motor and the kicker run at the same time? Thanks

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

So the kicker basically puts out just enough to keep itself running and put a very small charge to the battery not enough to trip the ACR and charge both.. and yes you could run both at the same time no problem.. thanks for watching the video and commenting I appreciate it!

[@Customcarves]

Hey. So I have a 12 volt trolling motor and want to add a dual battery system. Am I ok to run the trolling motor off the house battery? And if so. Would I put a on board charger to the house battery? My new mercury will charge my cranking so I assume it doesn't need a charger?

[@sstatic6093]

I have a mariner 115 motor is there a specific amp blue sea ACR that I need? also can I use any kill switch on that motor I have a key switch on 1 side on the console and a mecury throttle on the other side if that makes sence if I had your email I could send you pictures so that u could see

[@marcuszamora1787]

Yet another informative video!! I loved everything besides the hikes in the transom…..Any reason you don’t use double sided tape for applications as such? There’s some wicked strong waterproof product on the market that would work awesome

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks man I haven’t seen any kind of tape that holds up in a marine environment that long.. what is the product called I’d take a look .. but as a professional I have to do things I know will work and last.. but I like to have options so if you could find out the name I’d look into it.. like I said in the video I don’t like having to put holes in the boat if I don’t have to.. but I felt it necessary for him to be able to see and use the charger.. I almost didn’t put it there.. thanks for watching and commenting bro I appreciate it.

[@douglemmon6823]

Nice video! Do you use separate bus bars for the grounds or combine on one bar? Are there issues with combining or bonding the grounds??

[@ThoughtIwasFishin]

If I have two trolling motor batteries (deep cycle batteries) connected and I hook one of those batteries to a charger, will it eventually charge both batteries??

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

If they are connected in series.. no. If they are connected in parallel.. yes BUT it will eventually ruin the batteries because they won’t be getting the proper charge.. you should always have one battery charger bank for each battery. Hopefully that makes sense.. let me know if you have any questions.. thanks for watching.

[@ThoughtIwasFishin]

@@ReelLifeFisherman Thank you! I appreciate the feedback and information.

[@Pumpedfishing916]

What would be the best way to mount a transducer on a drift boat

[@edwardguerrero2593]

Great stuff man I just added this to my boat , it’s awesome. So my question is I am adding a stereo system with two amps. Where would I put my fuse for the amp it usually goes a few inches from the battery. Would it be okay to place one branched off the positive bus bar.

[@TvidzCT]

What isolator is good for lithium battery?

[@frankkyne6711]

I have a 2007 Lowe fish/ski it has a battery switch that doesn’t work right i would like to have looked at and I would also like to have a battery isolator switch installed is this something you do on the side

[@Esifonte57]

Awesome video, you explain things without talking down to us DIYers, clarified my misunderstanding in regards to the battery switch wiring...Thanks and MERRY CHRISTMAS and a prosperous NEW YEAR!!!

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks for the compliment! I am a DIY guy myself I’m just share things the way I would like to learn them.. I appreciate you watching the video and commenting! Hope you have a merry Christmas and a very happy new year!

[@rodeoactionphotos]

Terrific video, so is the negative bus bar bonded/grounded to the hull?

[@tomjoad1060]

please tell me where to install the "bat" wire from alternator? should I put in a fuse? how big? I have Yanmar 3gm30f, and 2 accumulators, each 100 amp

[@thumboutdoors8277]

what material is on the floor of the boat?

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

It’s Vinyl flooring, thanks for watching

[@flyingdutchman2195]

Thanks for the step by step video not skipping anything. Where do you typically buy your Interstate batteries? Thanks!

[@JAW_73]

You can get Interstate at Costco. I've also had really good luck with the Everstart Maxx Marine deep cycle batteries at Walmart. 115--120 AH battery. $100, 2 year warranty

[@martyepperly5803]

I have a cranking battery in the back of my 2018 pro guide v165 and I am adding a second battery at midship for a 24v trolling motor. Now that I've installed my 3-bank charger, I'm thinking I want a house battery back by the cranking battery. Obviously, the under-console fuse box is connected to the cranking battery. I'm also wanting to add a battery switch for the house and cranking battery. I'm not sure how to proceed.

[@brandonbridwell2254]

Why would u need a buse fuse and and a fuse block?

[@machew2009]

I use minn kota charger plug it just holds stock 120 plugs and allows you to plug extension cord straight into stock plug so you don't void warranty and keep the water tight seal of factory plug so no monster gets in wires. I need to look into one of them battery isolators I have been wanting to use a second battery to run electronics so I don't risk draining my starter battery to low.

[@christinaanderson2575]

What is the kicker? Is it the starter?

[@fishingdoge8798]

Great video on dual battery setup. I think you should clarify how the VSR actually works though. It doesn’t actually switch the charging back and forth as you described. By default, it keeps the battery isolated. When it sees 13.3 volts on either battery (happens when alternator is feeding power), a relay closes and the batteries are combined (in parallel). Both batteries will be charged at the same time. It’s no different than turning the knob to “combine”. VSR just does it automatically. When you cut the motor, the voltage will drop below 13.3 and continue to 12 volts. When the VSR senses this, it opens the relay and the batteries are isolated. This way, you’re running all of your electronics off the house battery when the motor is off without draining your start battery. That’s all a VSR/ACR does. The alternator doesn’t get switched between which battery to charge.

[@ormartinez2000]

That’s exactly my question. If both batteries are charging, could the current draw be higher than what the boat was originally wired for and risk melting some wires?

[@DSKSeattle]

@@ormartinez2000 No. The current isn't doubled when both batteries are being charged. It's actually being split between the batteries. What actually happens is that your starting battery will likely get fully charged first since it doesn't take much to crank a motor. Usually within the first minute, the starting battery is already fully re-charged. The house battery will then gets charged. In any event, the motor can't put out more than it's max amperage... ever.

[@tucker173]

Great videos man! Not sure if it is just me, but the Amazon links are not working for me, just fyi.

[@jamiemartinez660]

Great video Sir. After watching your video I ordered everything and currently installing the same system. I do have one question though... what are the wires you have connected to the fuse box? If you dont mind explaining

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Awesome glad you liked the video and it was helpful. So the fuse box gets a main power supply from either the output side of the battery switch itself or off of the power bus bar either way with a 20 amp fuse typically inline then the negative side of the fuse box get a main negative lead off of the negative bus or off the negative side of the battery. Then you can attach your accessories to the fuse box and fuse each one accordingly. Hopefully that helps let me know if you have any questions. Thanks for watching!

[@John-rr7bf]

I'm installing a terrova 112# thrust on a 22' fishing suntracker. I've watched your other videos too. Which 4 bank charger do you recommend for a 36v minn kota terrova? I'm looking at the minn kota precision 460PC, NOCO, or the promariner prosport HD20. But I'm open to suggestions. Thanks! Your videos are awesome

[@hstetser5376]

What voltage sensing relay did you use?

[@koraymusi]

Another sensational video 👍 thank you….. I just need to ask really quick….. with the smart battery isolator, the positive connections go directly to each battery positive terminals right???? And the ground (the black cable) is connected to? Thank you once again

[@jamesfreda1903]

Could you show how to setup a 24 volt system?

[@joshmoore6375]

Want to come to south GA and help me on my little project lol

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

I’m actually living in south Florida now! 🤣 thanks for watching and commenting!

[@scottscaneh]

Another reason the leave the ground up top is in case the extension cord unplugs a bit you always have a ground so it doesn't arc

[@kylehathcock9657]

Great video. The only thing I would have done is not drill through the transom. I would have done done some kind of pvc plate glued or 3m taped to the inside of the transom and screwed into that. Less holes and less chance of leaks

[@GadgetmanSteve]

When you plug in your on-board charger, the starting battery should reach 13.3 volts turning on the VSR supplying those volts to the house battery also. But the house battery also has volts being supplied to it via the 2nd bank on the on-board charger. This doesn’t create a problem for the House battery to have these two sources of charge volts?

[@boldeaalin7873]

Interested in the answer!

[@MILLWRIGHTEXPRESS]

Contacted Noco and they said this , so you must isolate the ACR during charging if you are using the newer Noco charger. - Thank you for contacting NOCO Support. The GENM1-3 Mini and GEN1-4 chargers did not have over voltage sensors, so you could connect a charging bank to each 12V battery in your battery bank, whether it was wired in series or parallel, without disconnecting the batteries from each other. The GEN5X and GENPRO10X chargers do have over voltage sensors, so you can connect a charging bank to each 12V battery in your battery bank wired in series without disconnecting the batteries from each other, but cannot do so if the batteries are wired in parallel. For batteries connected in parallel, you can only charge all of the batteries in that battery bank with a single charging bank unless they are disconnected from each other before charging and then separate banks can be used for each battery.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

That is some great info! Thanks for sharing that! That is good to know I wasn’t aware that they had changed that .

[@yosemitesam1499]

Awesome video. Would you do anything different with lithium ion batteries?

[@jonnylambert4121]

Thank you for the Great informational video keeping coming tight lines 🎣

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks Jonny! Appreciate you always watching and commenting!

[@blaynefrancis8569]

Nice clean wiring

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks I appreciate it! Thanks for watching and commenting..

[@larrymormino668]

Can you send me a wiring diagram of this. Thanks Larry

[@sssean39]

Great video. Ive been wanting to do this on my Thunder Jet Alexis Pro 22. Ill order the stuff using your links. Keep up the videos. They really help a dummy like me get this stuff done.

[@sidewinderchip4676]

I want to Thank You for your Videos it has helped me and others. I have a question about installing and ACR or VSR. Do you or should you put a fuse or breaker between each positive leads from the start battery and house battery to the ACR OR VSR? I have seen other KZbin videos of people installing them? I’m going to re wire my older tracker 17 pro bass boat next weekend. Needed upgraded due to all the new electronics.THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR VIDEOS KEEP THEM COMING!!!!

[@CB-ww7qy]

First off, awesome video. Combined with your plywood vid I can tackle the 87 Crestliner I'm working on. Second I was able to Shazam the little ditty that plays and found it's Policy Wonk by Sam Barsh.

[@brettjantze8492]

Well, I have a few questions. Loved your videos!! For a guy who is very little electrical skills, after watching your videos, I believe I can do it. Before I ordered everything, I wanted to get your input. I just bought a 2009 Super Vee LT with a 115 Mercury Tiller / Pump and 9.9 Pro Kicker. On what I call the dash switches (located in the back), only two of the five are being used (Nav. Lights on top and second switch is for Bilge Pump), leaving the bottom three open. It has Fish Finder that is straight wired to the single battery (I am going to change it to a two battery set up). I have plenty of room for battery (almost enough for three and have plenty of room to mount the various components inside the top opening box. I will be adding an electric trolling motor for lake use on calm days (40lb. thrust Minn Kota) and down the line a wash down pump. So I would be setiting up power for the fish finder, electric trolling motor, and fairly soon the wash down pump. Was planning to order the battery switch for battery 1, 2 combined, the Noco battery charger and the sea line isolator. Should I go ahead and get positive and negative bus strips and the fuse box (if I need the fuse box, how big of breaker to go with it? I was planning on directly hooking trolling motor to the house battery. I hope my questions make some sense? How would I best utilize my three open switches? Thank You, Brett Jantze

[@brettjantze8492]

Oh, one other thing, I am adding two down riggers to the boat. Thanks, Brett

[@russellwetzel4613]

Sik!! Nice and clean!! Excellent!!

[@somsansaw7996]

SIR I SEE YOU DONE WELLS ✔️ I JUST GOT TO ASK YOU IS IT A GOOD IDEA OR BAD IDEA. I WANT TO WORK ON MY ELECTRIC TROLLING, MINNKOTA 24V 80LB WITH 8 GAGE WIRE CONECT WITH A 24V 50AH LITHIUM BATTERY CAN YOU TELL ME..IS IT OK OR NOT.

[@I_am_archie]

I really appreciate you answering my battery and wiring questions a couple of days ago. I had considered installing a battery switch. However I'm really limited on hardware space. I'm setting up like your other on the board video, except for having the battery switch. I almost purchased the Noco charger but went with the mk345pcl instead. Kinda wishing I had gone with the Noco. Bret

[@nickfischer126]

Great work there. Looks really good.

[@jhudson729]

Very Nice Work!!

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks I appreciate it! Thanks for watching and commenting

[@aProudOG]

I had a dealer install a second battery and a battery switch last year. The cranking battery (#1 on switch) is currently dead and won’t crank even with the aid of a portable battery booster pack I bring onboard every time I’m on the water. My house battery is as you described…several ring terminals on the posts, very little room for any additions to the posts. That said, I was under the impression that the boat’s alternator would automatically charge the drained cranking battery (#1) after I started the boat using the house battery, (#2). Thought that moving the switch to position # 1 after cranking with battery #2 that all would be well. Apparently, that is not the case…tried that my last trip and it didn’t work…battery #1 remained drained. So, I’m kind of back where I started from before having the switch and second battery installed, i.e., only one battery onboard that cranks. If that one dies on the water I’m screwed. What would you recommend I do at this point to keep both batteries charged while on the water, hopefully a fix short of having to add all the stuff I just watched you install in your excellent vid. What say ye? Thanks!

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

I’m glad you liked the video! So for one I would make sure the battery isn’t bad and can hold a charge.. you should get an onboard charger like the one I installed in the video to keep them charged up and keep them heathy.. as for on the water charging 2 different size and types of batteries like a cranking and a deep cycle.. you would need the isolator ACR like I installed.. thanks for watching and commenting.. let me know if you have any questions

[@aProudOG]

@@ReelLifeFisherman Thanks for the swift and detailed reply. I appreciate your studied recommendations!

[@boydscj7]

I really like the video and the great knowledge! The only part I am not big on is the drilling through the transom for the battery charger. I think a different location would be better than holes in the transom.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks.. the only other place would have been buried where you couldn’t see it and would have to remove the whole front panel to even look at charge status.. or faults .. if we ever need to change it I would use same holes and mount a pice of starboard to mount a new charger.. trust me I didn’t do it lightly.. but holes In transom is not that big of a deal.. I charge out different transducers all the time and they all have different mounting brackets and different holes are required.. but I get it trust me .. thanks for watching and commenting I appreciate it

[@chaisaelee1547]

Love the work you do 👍🏻

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks I really appreciate it!

[@easemailboxes]

A lot of drill holes into your hull. Maybe just instal a marine ply backboard with sicaflex and drill into that. Otherwise this was really useful thanks a lot.

[@salmonkiller2545]

Nicely done and inspirational video… How many hours did it take??

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks! It took all day to get it done! Things like this seem to always take more time then you ever think they will! lol

[@BMWBADBOYM3]

Great video. Very helpful. Thanks

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Awesome! Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@woodyinthe808]

Awesome video! Very helpful.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks! I’m glad it was helpful.. thanks for watching and commenting!

[@2534will]

awsome work again mate be amazing if you did a wiring diagram at the end of the video =)

[@familyfishkiller1062]

Thanks for sharing buddy

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks man I appreciate it

[@ksamrow1]

Constructive criticism, why not epoxy some marine grade plywood to the transom and mount the charger, etc to it with wood screws. That charger is going to fail and the owner or yourself is going to have a hard time finding a replacement charger, or other components that have the same hole pattern for mounting. Then you or the owner will need to fill those holes that are now not in use.

[@lawrenceashe868]

Great video very informative.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thank you I'm glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching and commenting I appreciate it!

[@jamgonzal]

So….how much $$ to do that on my boat?

[@rconcord9]

Wow 👍🏻 excellent video! Thank you ! I’m sure I’ll be referring back to it ! only thing missing is the “B C” (butt crack) haha, only kidding !

[@SwitchbackXThunter]

Damn I wish you lived near me. I’d have you install one for me! Lol

[@ovovov123123]

Thank you for sharing.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks I appreciate it! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@soo4woo554]

Amazing 🤩

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Thanks I appreciate it! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@electros28]

nice look !

[@EnviousGenome]

If you are working with aluminum and there is shaving or aluminum dust wear a respirator or mask at the very least it can cause a lot of damage to your body.

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

I’m sure you’re right! Thanks for looking out . I don’t really take enough protection for aluminum.. I do for other chemicals and fiberglass.. but not aluminum other than in my eyes.. thanks for watching and commenting I appreciate it

[@michaelclark9337]

I was mistaken- that's a 30 circuit breaker.

[@jeffbrady4281]

Or at least get it on camera 🤣👍👍

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

🤣 glad you got a laugh! Thanks for watching and commenting I really appreciate it man..

[@NeverEnoughPyro40]

Why would you ever drill through the hull? The idea is to minimize the amount of holes in your hull! All you had to do was adhere a piece of king starboard to the transom and then screw to that, This is definitely a crappy and subpar installation! This type of work is never acceptable!

[@ReelLifeFisherman]

Lmao 😂 that is the most ghetto way of installing it I have ever heard of!! If your scared to drill holes into your boat and don’t have the knowledge or skill to do it right and Seal it up! Don’t work on a boat at all! Take it to a shop!

[@BurniceBailey]

That music is irritating!

[@MILLWRIGHTEXPRESS]

Hi What size bus bars are you using for a set up like this 150A or 250A ? Also are the negative leads from the two motors connected directly to battery ? Thanks

[@ptpatrickusmc]

Excellent video!