A BATTERY SNAFU!

I order four new 8A4D MK batteries and waited a week as they made their way up from Sanford Florida. They were additionally delayed by the fourth of July holiday weekend. I received a call from the shipping company that unless I had a fork lift I would have to come and pick up the batteries at their warehouse. OK no big deal and I could then drive right down to the boatyard and begin to install them.
  I drove the half hour to the warehouse and two employees bought the batteries out on a pallet with a fork lift. The four batteries were loosely wrapped in plastic but, they still  had cardboard boxes covering them.

The cardboard was a little beat up and I did check one of the batteries to make sure they had the right terminals. In my rush to get them loaded into the car I did not check the other batteries. I signed the delivery form and off I went to the boatyard with five hundred pounds of battery in the back. When I got there I started to unload the batteries it was then I saw this:

Two of the batteries had bent terminals! One had a misshaped case too.While they tested fine I was not about to take any chances with them especially on a boat. I really should have inspected each of the batteries more closely when I picked them up.  Obviously the shipping company had mishandled the shipment and caused the damage. I contacted ALT-ESTORE customer service from whom I had ordered the batteries who then worked with MK BATTERY and they arranged for two new batteries to be shipped to me. Capt Mike gives a tip of the hat to both companies for their excellent customer service.  One thing for sure is  next time I need new batteries for BIANKA's electric propulsion system I'll be checking the batteries before I sign off on the delivery.

BUILD YOUR OWN ELECTRIC OUTBOARD

Tweet

You say you want to try electric propulsion or maybe your gas powered outboard died and you are tired of getting it repaired. Don't head to the marine store. Head over to the nearest Home Depot or lumber yard and build your own like this fellow did:

 

Though you might want to carry a few spare batteries with you and make sure you have a set of oars as backup. I don't think it would perform like a  Torqeedo or  an Electric Paddle in terms of efficency but, it might work for your needs and looks like a fun project.

BLOG UPDATE: In 2013 Hurricane Sandy sent my Honda BP2 gas outboard to the bottom. I replaced it with an Electric Paddle outboard. My review of the product starts here.
Tweet