New to me 1999 Challenger 1800 - Couple of questions

[brushmore]

I recently bought a 1999 Challenger 1800. I've had it on the water twice now and it's a lot of fun! It has a a few issues as one would expect for a boat of that age and this forum has been a big help. The previous owners made a couple of modifications and there are a few things I was hoping to get some opinions on:

1. It has been converted to a single battery. Is it worth converting this back to a dual battery? I just want to make sure I have a reliable boat that won't leave me stranded. The current single battery is less than a year old and has given me no problems yet.

2. A valve on the oil tank was added. This valve is on the hose those goes to the bottom of the motors. What is the purpose of this hose and why did the previous owner decide to add a valve? There has been a small amount of oil in the bilge but I think I have a minor leak from the top of the tank at the vent.

3. Next summer I plan on leaving the boat in the water all summer. Any recommendations from people who have done this before?

4. Any recommendations for a place that sells a bimini top for this?

 

[XP 787]

Engines may have bad crank seals. Without the valve if the boat was sitting for a period of time the engines would fill with oil and locking up. You would then have to remove spark plugs and crank to pump out all of the oil.

 

[jhjesse]

I recently bought a 1999 Challenger 1800. I've had it on the water twice now and it's a lot of fun! It has a a few issues as one would expect for a boat of that age and this forum has been a big help. The previous owners made a couple of modifications and there are a few things I was hoping to get some opinions on:

1. It has been converted to a single battery. Is it worth converting this back to a dual battery? I just want to make sure I have a reliable boat that won't leave me stranded. The current single battery is less than a year old and has given me no problems yet.

They come with a single battery set up new.

2. A valve on the oil tank was added. This valve is on the hose those goes to the bottom of the motors. What is the purpose of this hose and why did the previous owner decide to add a valve? There has been a small amount of oil in the bilge but I think I have a minor leak from the top of the tank at the vent.

Shut off valve added to prevent leaking crank seals from filling up the cylinders with oil during long period of non use.
Hang your DESS lanyard on the valve to prevent forgetting to open the valve.

3. Next summer I plan on leaving the boat in the water all summer. Any recommendations from people who have done this before?

Water seeps in around the carbon seal on the drive shaft. Make sure you have a hot battery with an automatic bilge pump.

4. Any recommendations for a place that sells a bimini top for this?

Google JM Camper. They are the best.

 

[brushmore]

I like the tip on hanging DESS lanyard on the valve. Beats my original plan of the sticky note on the console!