ProMariner 43012 ProSport 12 12A 12/24V 2-Bank Gen 3 Marine Battery Charger - Perfect for Boats, Yachts & RV Power Maintenance

Installed the unit under my backseat just on the other side of the wall from my engine and the dual 12v batteries in my 20ft Fish/Ski boat. Very easy to install, I did have to remove a small section of carpet so the screws (not included)would go into the wood, as per the installation instructions. Once everything was connected I plugged in the unit and it goes through a self-test, after about 2 minutes if all cables are connected correctly the unit starts charging the batteries. It took my 2 batteries a few hours to charge and then it went to a "condition" mode for a couple of hours then finally a "maintain" mode. I'll keep it plugged in until I use the boat knowing both batteries will be fully charged. The unit does get VERY HOT while in the "charge" mode, I guess this is why they want you to remove carpet and the like before you install. The cables and batteries do NOT get hot and the paperwork also says the unit will get hot, so nothing to worry about. I keep the engine compart open and the seat top open just for air circulation. I live in the desert and the garage does get hot in summer, but the unit seemed fine. The LED lights are easy to read and you'll always know what the charger is doing. Nice unit so far, haven't had to call for tech support so I couldn't rate that. Shipping was just 1 day, so very fast. The ProSport 44012 model is the Gen4 version and it costs almost $50 more, so I opted for this Gen 3 model. They both look identical, so up to you.ProSport 12 IS ONLY for charging 2 Batteries! In the "Questions + Answers" Section of the Amazon ad, there are 2 answers that incorrectly say that a "Bank" is 1 or MORE batteries (a group) wired in series or parallel. They imply that this 2 bank charger can charge a starter battery on bank one, and 2 trolling batteries on bank 2. While this has always been my experience, it's NOT TRUE according to the ProMariner tech support rep I talked to.It says clearly on the box: “Prosport12 (43012)MAXIMUM Batteries: 2Single 12V engine crank battery + one 12V house or trolling battery, OR...TWO trolling batteries, OR...TWO engine start batteries.”Two batteries - PERIOD!!!And on page 19 of the ProSport12 installation manual it says: "NOTE 1: One bank cable connects to no more than one battery."After receiving the ProSport 12, and reading that the Amazon data is incorrect, I asked the seller why this false info is in their ad, and they responded with this explanation:"Unlike eBay, (where each seller has their own individual listing, has control of the item description, item photo and answers only questions sent to them), Amazon throws everybody in the same pile and gives them no control. When a question is asked by a potential buyer, that question is sent to all 25 sellers of this item and all answers (correct or false) are place on the main listing. Different sellers at different times may be the 'main' seller on the main page, but no seller has the ability to edit the answers."He went on to say, "There are many things I cannot sell on Amazon because the item image, title, or description is not correct. Amazon won't allow me to create a new listing with accurate information because the item is already listed, but they also won't allow me to correct the mistakes on the listing that already exists."The Seller concluded with, "Realize some sellers may not be too smart. Amazon ties sellers hands. Sellers may want to make the buying experience better by fixing mistakes in the listing, but can't do so. Amazon does have a mechanism for sellers to submit corrections for a listing, but of my 30+ attempts to make corrects to various listings, not one has been made."The Tech Support at ProMariner says that each battery MUST have it's own bank wires attached to it, and that using one bank to charge 2 batteries will VOID THE WARRANTY!!!So regardless of whether you have used two banks to charge 3 batteries in the past - understand this: ProMariner's technical data says ONE BATTERY PER BANK! If you want to gamble and use a 2 bank on 3 or more batteries and void the warranty, well, that's your choice. But know this - the Amazon webpage for the ProSport 12 claims it is for TWO BATTERIES ONLY!So I asked the Tech what charger I SHOULD get to charge 3 batteries, and he said you need the ProSport 20 Plus - a three bank charger. Yeah... at twice the price of the ProSport 12! Nice huh?Hence, I give 1 Star NOT because the product is faulty (it may be great for 2 batteries) - but I rated it low because the Amazon ad is deceiving! Buyer Beware!!!Bought this in 2018. I had problems with it right from the start. Called customer service and they had me shave down the plug that controls the auto sensing battery type. I don't know why the charger is designed like this, but it's gone out a second time and I can't get it working. Can't find replacement plugs, so I guess I'll have to buy a new charger. Disappointing...After a lot of research I decided to purchase this charger. It came in very quick and was in great condition. I have an all aluminum Polar Kraft boat. I read the instructions very well and glad I did. I was going to secure the charger directly to the aluminum but the manual said I needed to place a piece of plywood or fiberglass in between the charger and boat. I went to Lowes and bought a small piece of pressure treated plywood and cut it to size. The wood allows the heat from the charger to dissipate heat quicker. If you have a glass boat you will not have to worry about this step. The charger does NOT come with any hardware to secure the charger. I bought some self tapping screws and it secured it very firmly. This charger is designed to charge one trolling battery and one cranking battery. Pay attention when hooking up the batteries, one cord is specifically designed to hook up to the trolling battery and the other to the cranking battery. After securing the charger I plugged it in and waited, it went through several cycles and then the green check mark lit up and it began charging. It took about 4 hours to charge both batteries which were completely dead when I hooked up the charger. The lighting system on this charger is very impressive, it shows you everything the charger is doing. When I come home from fishing I plug it in and do not have to worry about unplugging it till I go fishing again. It is nice knowing my batteries are always fully charged and ready to go. This charger seems to be well made and weighs about 4 pounds. The other reviews say the charger may get hot during the warm months, it has been 93 degrees in east Tn for 3 months straight and my charger never got very hot. I do have it under a carport though which does help. I have owned several boats and this is the nicest charger I have ever owned.This is a well built battery charger. It is very solid feeling. I bought the 2 bank unit. I like the power and charging indicators. They light up brightly and are easy to see. It is working fine so far.This was the wrong product for me as I needed one that would be I stalled for shore power and not an extension cord. The specs and the product itself were actually excellent but it simply didn't apply to me.On my 24v solar AGM bank , I noticed the green check light off, put the amp clamp meter on a lead and found it not charging , The charger was very warm, unplug it and waited for 2 min , it started charging again. If it keeps doing this i will return it !Another problem i found is when charging 2 -12v batteries in series =24v with this charger they will be unbalanced, { as per instruction booklet} one lead has 2amps the other has 10 amps ..This may be why the charger is warm and cuts out !So i configured the leads also in series , then connect it to the 24v battery..it has not stopped since,I will take some pictures and edit this again ,I have the charger installed on my bass boat charging my 2 12v Optima batteries. Just returned to the boat this weekend to find the unit has died. Confirmed there is power going to the unit but no lights and no charging happening. My single bank Noco running on my cranking battery is fine.....UPDATEOK.... so I just changed my rating from a 1 to a 4. Not happy about the charger failing after 4 months but since my review I called ProMariner regarding the issue and after only 2 days a new unit is being delivered today.... the folks on the phone were very nice, knew what they were talking about and called me back promptly when they said they would.... bad experience made good. Thanks ProMariner for showing good customer service is still a thing :)I bought this charger after my existing pro mariner 20 amp charger packed it in after 5 years of use. I only have 2 8D batteries for my boat so I thought it would be better to get a 2 bank charger but this one has quit working after less than a year of use. I expected more from it. The power light comes on but nothing happens. It killed one of my batteries. At 300 dollars a pop it was a very expensive fail.I love this. It has made Charging/Maintaining my batteries soo much easier. My batteries are about 3 seasons old and after my first start up having them on ProMariner, they performed like the day i bought them.Lo instale en mi velero y 4 meses despues dejó de funcionar. No tires tu dinero y compra una mejor marca.Verdaderamente decepcionado.