Battery Drama
05 February 2012 | Barra Navidad Lagoon
Captain Lori
Drama, yup that is what Rich said. I told him that the batteries needed to be equalized and he said just charge them for a long time and they would be fine because it would add "high drama" to my day if I had to do an equalization.
We measure battery power availability by volts. 12.7 volts is a nice full battery and 12.2 is down to half and you do not want to go below half because it can shorten the life of the batteries. After charging for 5 hours yesterday we were at a nice cozy 13.4. Unfortunately, two hours later we were at 12.4. With 3 plus years under my belt of depending on batteries for so many aspects of life, I knew what we needed to do. I just had to convince Rich of that fact when he is so far away. This is his territory and he does not especially like me mucking around in it. He conceded that I was right and that the batteries needed a good long boil. Over time, the battery acid stratifies and if not held in a good charge the lead plates in the batteries become covered and will not hold as much of a charge. We are to that point. If this continues then the batteries will hold no charge at all and everything goes dark--including the bilge pumps and refrigerator so I am keen on keeping everything up and running. So far, I have been charging the batteries at 15.8 (per the charger instructions) for 3 hours and all is going well. The boat is open so the breeze can blow the hydrogen away. I have no desire to go up like the Hindenburg--besides it stinks too.
All of this has caused me to read, analyze, and get out of doing the dishes. I do not call this high drama. I think that Rich just said that so I would think it was complicated. That being said I will admit that I am only the acting captain and this is not my field of expertise so I am speaking in generalizations and with the best knowledge of someone who makes Poblano Cream Sauce and avoids working on the head. I am looking forward to having Rich home--drama or not.