timjet wrote: Question: With fully charged batteries should I leave the charger on when I'm not at the boat?
When we had our electrical shop install an inverter/smart charger a number of years ago, on their advice we have left the charger on all the time in the slip*since then.* We were told that sending a float charge to the batteries all the time will extend their life and enhance the performance of the batteries.
Our charger/inverter sends its three-stage signal to the house batteries.* The start and generator batteries get an echo charge, which is a float charge only.
We also equalize our house and start batteries annually.
If one does not have a "smart" charger it's probably not wise to leave the charger on all the time as this could overcharge*(boil) them.* Something to consider is if one is away from the boat and a leak develops, what happens when the bilge pump exhausts the batteries and the charger is off?
A charge rate will vary with the ambient temperature.* The colder it is, the higher the charge rate will be.* Our inverter/charger is fitted with the optional temperature sensor that will have the charger compensate for the ambient air temperature.