On Tue, 24 May 2005 05:58:21 GMT, "Rob V" wrote:

Hello all,

I have a Tige 22v riders edition. Great wake boarding boat, we love it.

I have 2 questions - I hope someone can help me out w/.

1. It has a main power off switch in the engine compartment (A twist knob).
Ive noticed that if I dont turn this off at the end of the day and the boat
sits until the next weekend the battery will be dead. I cannot seem to
figure out where the draw is coming from. Ive tuned everything off in the
boat. How can I track down the "leak".

Hmmm - well, if you aren't One with Mr. Electricity, then it will be
harder to diagnose why the batter is dead when it's essentially
disconnected. The only thing I can advise is to check that the two
wires from the battery to the switch and make sure the switch is wired
properly. You are looking for a break in the negative or positive
line - make sure it is a complete break then the switch is off. You
can use a test light (a screwdriver looking deal with a long pointed
end and a light bulb in the handle and a long lead to connect to
ground - available at any auto store) and check for live wires after
the switch when the switch is off.

It's also possible that something is wired around the cutoff switch
and if I had to bet, it would be the radio. I've seen this happen and
while the memories don't draw a lot - if the radio doesn't have an
internal station memory (flash memory) - then over time, 24/7 it will
draw down a battery significantly. The only solution to that is to
purchase a radio with flash memory and hook it up to the power source
after the cut off switch.

The real pain in the ass thing is each time Im done for the weekend and I
turn the main power knob off - I lose my radio stations each time I do this
which leads me to my next question....

2. The boat has 2 battery compartments. Id like to add a second battery so
the radio works off a seperate battery vs the main one the rest of the boat
uses (ie starter, lights, etc...). (I want it be transparent as well - ie -
I dont want to have to switch some switch) Is there an idiots guide out
there somewhere that shows how to do this? I can pretty much build anything
and am mr fix it so installing something wont be an issue - but for some
reason me and mr electricity dont get along all that well -so a well drawn
out electrical diagram would be really really really good!!

It would help to see a schematic of your boat, but I think that adding
a separate battery really isn't going to help you any. As Chuck said,
it's better to have a battery wired just to start the boat and a
second battery to run everything else.

Having said that though, I'd try this first - next time you use the
boat, disconnect the radio's power line and see if they battery draws
down. If it doesn't, then there is something else wrong, but I'd bet
it's the radio.

After that, we can get into details.

Later,

Tom