How to replace off/on battery switch with dual switch

[20mm]

Greetings all,
This weekend was the first with our new 282. Had a total blast on the lake and am now totally addicted. The boat came with an 'off / on' battery switch and I bought a perko 8150 as a replacement so I can switch from 1,2,all and off. Got in the boat and took the old switch out then realized diagrams and all that I could not tell where to put each of the wires / cables on the switch. Before I leave it to the pros who are two months out to do much of anything around here thought I would reach out for some help. The issue is not the larger cables, it's the three small red wires which I'm assuming are bilge, amp and fuse panel. When I go back down to the lake will take pics however in the mean-time wanted to see if there's any way to discern where these are coming from and which mount to put them on. I searched the forum and found alot of posts about adding a second battery but nothing about moving from the on - off to a 1/2 switch. Any tips / advice would be much appreciated.

[greenhut]

Ideally, one battery is only connected to things required to start and run the boat - like the starter, engine electronics, fuel pump, etc, and the second battery takes "house" loads like lighting, stereo, etc. So, if you switch to "2" and run down the battery, you can still operate the boat. Not sure what those three wires are, but one is likely the bilge.

Its a bit more complicated to install, but I am very partial to the Blue Sea Add-a-Battery kits over the old style Perkos. Cobalt uses the Blue Sea kit as OEM gear on newer boats. The kit automatically combines or separates the batteries based on alternator being active, so you dont need to worry about toggling the switch to manage which battery is charging/discharging.

[akorcovelos]

Make sure the bilge pump is wired directly to a battery, not through the perks. It should always have power.

[Big Block Power]

Cobalt sometimes does label the wires too so look closer.

[AsLan7]

Its a bit more complicated to install, but I am very partial to the Blue Sea Add-a-Battery kits over the old style Perkos. Cobalt uses the Blue Sea kit as OEM gear on newer boats. The kit automatically combines or separates the batteries based on alternator being active, so you dont need to worry about toggling the switch to manage which battery is charging/discharging.

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This is a great point gh. We just ordered the Blue Sea 120 amp add-a-battery kit #7650 and ACR to replace our Perko dual battery switch. Hopefully this will accomplish two goals:

1. No longer having to switch and monitor our dual batteries as the ACR smartly monitors the charging and discharging of each.
2. No Bluetooth drop out on start-up similar to how the fisherman hate seeing their fish-finders blank out without an ACR during start-up.
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[JTinMO]

I had a similar switch installed when I added a second battery. I went with the standard 1/2/all/off sea sense switch. My dealer recommended that over the add a battery setup with the ACR. They had some issues with the ACR early on. Also they explained that there is a way you can run both batteries down dead with that setup, although i think it was a remotely minute situation. Either way the standard dual battery switch was a cheaper and simpler install, and I simply switch over from battery 1 to 2 alternating each time we go out. Have had zero battery issues in two years now.

[AsLan7]

I had a similar switch installed when I added a second battery. I went with the standard 1/2/all/off sea sense switch. My dealer recommended that over the add a battery setup with the ACR. They had some issues with the ACR early on. Also they explained that there is a way you can run both batteries down dead with that setup, although i think it was a remotely minute situation. Either way the standard dual battery switch was a cheaper and simpler install, and I simply switch over from battery 1 to 2 alternating each time we go out. Have had zero battery issues in two years now.

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I think the versions before the 7650's came out had a couple of issues JtM. They have since worked those out. Honestly, the main reason we want this system is not so much for the battery monitoring (although this is a bonus) as it is for the Start-Isolation feature eliminating electronic spikes and dropouts to our expensive electronics during start-up....that and seamless Bluetooth during water-sport activities.

To your battery draining point, I do remember reading an Amazon review similar to what you discussed about the ACR draining the batteries after a long time if not in use. That review is posted below with the solution as well....

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After much reading and actually calling and talking to Blue Sea's tech support I'm very impressed with this product and their support. I know others have worried about the small voltage drain from the ACR unit. The ACR unit uses a small amount of current and over a VERY long time and it can drain the batteries it’s monitoring. I talked to the Blue Sea's Tech about this, and they had estimated about 4 months of just sitting there monitoring the battery voltage before the voltage drop would start to cause problems starting the engine. (This would depend of course on the condition of the battery and size/rating of it). However, when talking to the tech about this, there are a few things you can do to completely turn off the ACR. First if you hook it up like they show in the product picture you will need to hook up a small toggle switch to one of the three spade connectors on the unit to turn it off. Or if you are like me and want to KNOW everything is turned off when you put your boat away, you can wire as I have diagramed in the picture attached. By putting the ACR on the "downstream" side of the switch, you can turn everything off when you turn off the main switch. This will still allow the ACR to monitor the batteries when you have the boat in use and will function normally. The only thing would be if you put a charger on one of the batteries when in storage, you would want to leave the master switch to the “on” position so the ACR could function and allow current from one battery to the other. Otherwise, if you had the master switch in the off position you would only be charging the one battery that the charger is hooked up to. The batteries would be isolated from each other and from the ACR.

For the product itself, it is very solidly made, and has been working flawless. I had a Perko basic 1, 2, 1+2, Off switch in my boat, and got tired of trying to remember to flip the switch to 1 when anchored out, then back to 1+2 when cruising around. With this no need for any of that. Just turn the main switch on when I’m getting all the stuff loaded in, and off when we put it in storage. SIMPLE SIMPLE SIMPLE

Wire set up with ACR downstream of batteries & selector switch allowing ACR to be turned completely off using battery switch....

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Normal wire setup with ACR ALWAYS monitoring batteries below (which could result in battery drainage after months of non use)...

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[JTinMO]

good info A7. Yeah, Im sure they work well as they are standard install now.

When I run or cove out, I leave the switch on the same battery. I never swap it over. Next day I'll just switch to the other battery before we launch. I've never had an issue. Of course I also don't have a massive sound system that rocks for hours on end either. Just enough to hear in the water behind the boat.

I went 6 days in a row last week and never charged a battery at the dock. And to be honest left the switch on the same battery for 3 days in a row without switching it off.

[AsLan7]

good info A7. Yeah, Im sure they work well as they are standard install now.

When I run or cove out, I leave the switch on the same battery. I never swap it over. Next day I'll just switch to the other battery before we launch. I've never had an issue. Of course I also don't have a massive sound system that rocks for hours on end either. Just enough to hear in the water behind the boat.

I went 6 days in a row last week and never charged a battery at the dock. And to be honest left the switch on the same battery for 3 days in a row without switching it off.

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That's what we did for many years as well JTM ....with no issues whatsoever. Your setup is perfect for ya'.

Now that we installed a monster sound system a few months back, that has all changed. The SI-ACR is the last piece of the puzzle for us to get this electrical system where we want it.

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[greenhut]

Blue Sea support is amazing. Pretty sure they provide replacements lifetime for the original owner.

"Load Side ACR" configuration - The ACR goes on the load side of the circuit instead of the battery side. So, when the switch is turned to off, the ACR cant pull any current. Only should be used with the 6011/5511e switches. A more current doc from Blue Sea that shows what Aslan documented.

Load side ACR.PDF

[AsLan7]

Blue Sea support is amazing. Pretty sure they provide replacements lifetime for the original owner.

"Load Side ACR" configuration - The ACR goes on the load side of the circuit instead of the battery side. So, when the switch is turned to off, the ACR cant pull any current. Only should be used with the 6011/5511e switches. A more current doc from Blue Sea that shows what Aslan documented.

Load side ACR.PDF

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Thx gh

I also saw a discussion about that here.

Good stuff.

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