Thanks for all who have weighed in on this project.
I know that most of the forum owns center consoles and cuddy cabins, but my boat is a dual console. The bow is an open area with a compartment in the deck for the anchor and another compartment with drains to the sea. The bow area is about the same size as the cockpit, placing the windscreen at about amidships. At the most forward part of the bow area in front of the anchor well is a hatched compartment on the forward bulkhead that I am considering for dual battery installation. Like I said in a previous post, the other options are the compartments at the base of the helm or passenger seats.
I'm going to try to attach a pictures that show interior layout and the bow compartment that I'm considering to clear up any confusion.
This link shows the most forward compartment I'm considering. The one with a tinted clear hatch that appears black in this photo. My grand daughter's knee is on the anchor compartment:
http://s944.photobucket.com/user/slowduc/media/630_zps44944fc6.jpg.html
This photo shows the helm station. At deck level immediately below the engine instruments is a hatched space suitable in size for a dual battery installation:
http://s944.photobucket.com/user/slowduc/media/631_zps34e0901b.jpg.html
Although at an angle, this photo shows the relatively equal size of the bow and cockpit areas as well as the area beneath the helm that could house the batteries:
http://s944.photobucket.com/user/slowduc/media/639_zpse316a87f.jpg.html
On another note, my preliminary research into long battery cable runs has led me to several wire size calculators. Has anyone used these? The variables required are generally the, acceptable voltage loss (3-10%), total circuit length and current in amps. I assume that the current requirement should be the output of the alternator (45 amps in my case) and not the battery cranking amps. Am I on the right track here?
Thanks Again, Slow