Fw: [alberg30] Battery Boxes - Why?

[Bob Johns]

From: Bob Johns <bobjns at nais.com>

Hi all,

I use a Sears deep cycle #24 battery in the compartment just forward of the
engine. This battery  is the backup battery and also acts as a starter
battery for the Atomic 4. In the next compartment forward is the main
battery, which consists of a pair of six volt golf cart batteries. This
normally supplies everything but the starter. Provision is made to switch
the batteries into any other desired configuration using a single pole,
single throw battery switch and the main battery switch. The reason for
(normally) placing the starting load on a separate battery from the other
loads is to keep the starter from affecting devices such as radar. When
cranking, the battery voltage drops and in the case of the radar it was
kicked off while a 90 second time delay recycled.

The two golf cart batteries add up to about 200 ampere-hours and weigh
about  60 pounds each. I had to make separate boxes for them because normal
boxes did not fit. The batteries came in cardboard boxes and I built the
battery boxes by taping the cardboard boxes to a big piece of cardboard and
building up about 3/16 inch of fiberglass on the cardboard boxes. (Cover
the cardboard boxes with waxed paper or a plastic wrap.) The boxes have
flanges on both sides, which are handy to lift them by. These boxes just
fit into the second compartment. The aft golf cart battery is installed
first and is slid aft under the sole. Then the forward golf cart battery is
installed.
The height of the golf cart batteries just cleared the cabin sole. About
ten years after installing them, I had to replace them. The new ones were
slightly higher and I had to modify one box and trim off a little of the
post tops to make them fit.

The setup has been highly satisfactory, although the battery switching
mentioned in the first paragraph is somewhat complicated from an
operational standpoint. (The circuit is simple.)

Russ' suggestion of a cap cover on the positive post is a good one.

Hope this information is of some use.

Regards,
	Bob Johns, #397



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