Quote from: frugalangler on January 10, 2018, 12:09:10 PMIt wouldn't hurt to do a post-purchase routine that includes preventative change of the thermostats and water pump impeller just to ensure all is good for you.What he said!
It wouldn't hurt to do a post-purchase routine that includes preventative change of the thermostats and water pump impeller just to ensure all is good for you.
Sounds like you're definitely headed in the right direction with everything!Regarding the pedestal poles and bases, etc., sanding them is a good start. Maybe sand them a bit more and then coat them with some light wax (rub candle wax on them) or put a light film of silicone spray on them.Once you get them working the way you want, be sure to remove them frequently so they don't do the same thing to you they did to the former owner!
for a simple setup, use a inline breaker for both the 24 volt to trolling motor, and 12 volt to the boat, but leave the cables to the engine hard connected, you don't want a breaker on those, the engine is fused on it's own. Then, just trip the breakers - they (if you use marine style) will have a little trip button for this purpose, so they make a nice disconnect - that's what I've got on my Ranger.Now, if you want to get fancy, there is a marine dual battery switch that can be also used as a disconnect for the engine battery, plus it makes it so if your cranking battery goes dead during the day, a twist of the switch puts the lower 12V battery from the troller string in parallel with the engine battery as a jump start, I've got that also on both my boats, fortunately I've only used once time, but it saved a tournament bag from being disqualified due to a no-start at the end of the day.
Wow, thanks for the data everyone! I really appreciate it.
When you get a chance could you send a photo for how you wired yours?
No issues with charging with everything connected.Running all of the accessories from the starting battery is pretty standard. That's how I've run all of my boats for the last 30 years or more. Never had an issue with a dead cranking battery. Just make sure you have a good, strong cranker and you should be good to go.And, no, there is no need to remove any wires from any of the batteries when charging, and no need to disconnect the negative from the cranking battery when charging.