Best battery charger for money

[Dan_the_fisher]

I have a triton with a 24v trolling motor I bought that doesn't have a charger, what is the best one for the money? I have been looking at the bps brand but i dont know if they are any good or what model to buy 

[Further North]

Dan, not sure what your criteria are, "for the money", but I've had nothing but excellent results with Minn Kota chargers.

[slonezp]

Minn Kota and Dual Pro are probably the 2 best out there. NOCO is another popular one.

[A-Jay]

A-Jay

[Dan_the_fisher]

1 hour ago, A-Jay said:

A-Jay

http://www.hodgesmarine.com/Dual-Pro-PS3-3-Bank-Battery-Charger-p/duadualprops3.htm?gclid=CIKmjNDb2MwCFQqKaQodzr8Gjw&ppcstrkid=1565162769&click=19&ppcsclkid=JSexOq0V1APi&ppcsu=xhg7f5djqeniramsegdoh is this the same one?

[Kevin22]

minn kota

[Dan_the_fisher]

So absolutely no one likes the bps 5/5/5 charger? Is it junk? 

[A-Jay]

8 hours ago, Dan_the_fisher said:

http://www.hodgesmarine.com/Dual-Pro-PS3-3-Bank-Battery-Charger-p/duadualprops3.htm?gclid=CIKmjNDb2MwCFQqKaQodzr8Gjw&ppcstrkid=1565162769&click=19&ppcsclkid=JSexOq0V1APi&ppcsu=xhg7f5djqeniramsegdoh is this the same one?

Looks Like it.

A-Jay

[slonezp]

9 hours ago, A-Jay said:

A-Jay

Both Ranger and Lund offer these as upgrades over the Dual Pro Sportsman series. Both are branded with the manufacturers nameplate. My charger says Lund Professional series charger

FYI Dual Pro is the only serviceable charger. The rest are boat anchors when they die

[A-Jay]

Just now, slonezp said:

Both Ranger and Lund offer these as upgrades over the Dual Pro Sportsman series. Both are branded with the manufacturers nameplate. My charger says Lund Professional series charger

Nice - I wanted the 4 bank model but Lund wouldn't spring for it - So I had the dealer purchase & install it.  Checked it out yesterday - the PS4 is a pretty big / Beefy unit. Still fits fine in the same spot (rod locker)

A-Jay

[slonezp]

1 minute ago, A-Jay said:

Nice - I wanted the 4 bank model but Lund wouldn't spring for it - So I had the dealer purchase & install it.  Checked it out yesterday - the PS4 is a pretty big / Beefy unit. Still fits fine in the same spot (rod locker)

A-Jay

I've got a 3 and a single. I upgraded to a 36v motor a year after I bought the boat

[slonezp]

8 hours ago, Dan_the_fisher said:

So absolutely no one likes the bps 5/5/5 charger? Is it junk? 

The 3 brands mentioned seem to be the standard for bass fishing. I had a Minn Kota on my last boat. Lasted 7 years which I thought was a good run. As far as the 5/5/5, you are going to lengthen the charge time. The higher the amp draw, the quicker the charging, the easier it is on the battery. I can tell you from experience, The MK I had was 5 amps per bank and it took close to overnight to charge run down batteries. The 15 amp per bank has them charged in 2-3hrs.

So, in answer to your question, I'm going to assume BPS has a decent charger. They are buying them from a company that makes chargers and putting their name on them. I know Cableas chargers are made by ProMariner and they have mixed reviews.

[BobP]

I fish a Triton 19 ft boat with a Dual Pro XL 2 bank charger for my 24v trolling motor.  5 amps per bank.  I bought it in 2002 and it has been flawless for 14 years.  If you are a casual fisherman who only needs to recharge your batteries overnight, it works perfectly well.  I use a Schumacher Speed Charge 15 amp from Walmart to charge my starting battery occasionally and it would have been better to buy a 3 bank charger to do them all at once, but it's not really much of a chore to switch the power cord over to the Shumacher for a hour or two before I take the boat out.  The needed amp rating depends on how quickly you need to charge the batteries between usages.  Dual Pro has an excellent reputation for quality, customer service, and performance that tends to make batteries last a long time.  If you have to recharge from iffy dock power where the input amperage can be low, you should look for a unit built specifically for that circumstance.  But if you do most of your charging at home with an extension cord, that's not an issue.

[wnspain]

On 5/14/2016 at 11:26 PM, Dan_the_fisher said:

So absolutely no one likes the bps 5/5/5 charger? Is it junk? 

Didn't read any comments that indicate that. My son runs a BPS 3 bank charger and has never had any problems with it. It's a battery charger, does what it's supposed to do, every time. Don't know how you would classify "best for the money". 

[jdw174]

My boat is a '98 TR20.  I have a 24v Fortrex TM.  The boat came with a 3-bank Dual Pro that is now in it's 18th year of constantly being plugged in when I'm not fishing.  Last fall I had batteries replaced, and they checked the charger.  It's still operating as advertised and working perfectly.  If it ever goes, there will be another DualPro set in it's place.

[oomph]

I have both the portable and on board Minn Kota charges and very happy with both.

The on board chargers seem to be very waterproof. I hate to say it, but I undocked my boat once without the plug and the entire unit survived being submerged for a few minutes. That said, I would not hesitate in buying another if I ever needed to do so.

[Choporoz]

14 minutes ago, oomph said:

I have both the portable and on board Minn Kota charges and very happy with both.

The on board chargers seem to be very waterproof. I hate to say it, but I undocked my boat once without the plug and the entire unit survived being submerged for a few minutes. That said, I would not hesitate in buying another if I ever needed to do so.

I assume the OP is talking about onboard chargers, but I guess he may be looking at both/either. 

I've delayed this severance as long as I could, but I am completely done with Minn Kota's portable chargers.  My first lasted 3 years and I was satisfied enough to replace it with Minn Kota. 

     The new MK (110) died in first couple months.  MK was great about replacing it promptly, but I was without on a fishing weekend and that was disappointing.  However, things went from bad to worse...the new replacement would overheat and shut off whenever I charged my size 29.  I could get about 3 hours before it shut down and I had to unplug and wait for it to cool and start again.  PITA! 

     MK customer service was great and replaced that one, but the next new one did the same thing.  If I placed the charger over air conditioning vent or in front of a fan, I could get a full charge, but when it finally died a couple weeks ago, I tossed it - even though it was still under warranty. 

    I've gotten a NOCO Genius from Amazon and so far, so good.

["hamma"]

I have a minn kota 3 bank 15 amp per bank I bought in 1997,.... was pricey back then,.. but, still works the same as day 1, never had any issues with it, and no questions as to if my batteries charged overnight, always 100%

[S. Sass]

I posted about the one in my boat here. Seems to be pretty good for the money they charge mine is definitely a older model and it charges great still.