Just installed a 24v trolling motor and batteries in series. I am wondering to charge the batteries if I have to hook the charger up to one at a time, or can I hook the charger to the positive on one battery and the negative on the other and have them charge at the same time?
one at a time or use a two bank charger to charge then both at the same time.
Get a two bank charger. It will pay for itself in batteries you won’t have to replace as often. You can just plug in your boat and your batteries will be ready for action when you are.
if you have 2 12V chargers hook 1 up to each battery or qet a good 3 bank on board charger and plug it in after each trip and all 3 baterries will be ready every trip. It’s also better to keep your batteries fully charged,they will last longer!
Stan 
correct me if i’m wrong..never a problem on this site..onboard chargers are just a mounted battery charger…my understanding is they are good for 3-4 years then need to be replaced from the bouncing around..i agree that fully charged batteries last longer and charging them up after each trip is the right way to do business..i plug my charger in to he receptacle after each trip..why spend the extra $ for an on board system ?? just to save the effort of taking the chagers down from the shelf and hooking them up
I love my on board charger system. I used to use the Pro Mariner charger and yes they seemed to die about every three years so I swithed to the new minkota chargers. They have a 3 year warr. Havent had it long enough to know how long it will last. Seems to be built very sturdy. Most brands only offer a 1 year warr. On the road I just drop my Honda generator in the boat and plug it in. Fully charged by go time the next morning.
On board charger all the way. The last one I had was in the boat for ten years and just replaced it.
I had a guest 2 bank for 9 yrs and sold it with the boat.Was still working fine!
Ordered one for the new boat.Guess I’m to lazy to reach up on the shelf. 
I had a pro sport that lasted 3 years and crapped out. Bought a minnkota onboard and its been golden ever since. Would highly recommend them. Bolt them down good and there shouldnt be any problems. Bolt to the floor if possible, the sides of your boat shake more than the bottom.
but yeah, just to add to what the other posters said. Buy an onboard for sure. The minnkota has a float that allows me to just plug it in and leave it. It will always keep the batteries charged, as it shuts off when they do get charged then kicks back on if they need a boost. It will make your batteries last much longer.
I leave mine plugged in to the garage until I go fishing, then it gets plugged right back in until I go again.
My Pro Tournament charger has been going for near 16 years now. Still on the same 2 trolling motor batteries Stark’s put in my new Lund when I bought it 10 years ago this July.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
