Question About Battery Setup

[Jason R.]

I've got a 16 ft Shawnee with a 9.9 and I just bought a Minn Kota 30 lb trolling motor (mounting on the bow) from a buddy. What battery and charger should i be looking at? I know I need a deep cycle and I know I need to keep the weight down as much as possible. I'm also not in a position to spend a fortune. Thanks.

[fishinwrench]

The 30# troller might be a bit weak for the job, but regardless of whether the 9.9 is elect.start or not you'll just need a single group 27 deep cycle batt. and to beef up the leads to the TM (6ga. with a 30 amp fuse or breaker).

A simple 10amp portable charger will do fine.

About 150.00 all together if you shop around for the best deal on a quality battery. If you have a Menard's nearby they have Exide NG-27's at about the best price I've heard of.

[Jason R.]

Thanks Wrench- Are the Exide's any good? They seem to be a tad cheaper. Oh and the 9.9 is a pull start.

[fishinwrench]

They are as good as anything else in their price range IMO.

I used to sell them and "honest failure" returns were very rare.

It is what I run in all three of my own powerboats and I haven't had a battery failure in over 12 years that wasn't justified.

[Jason R.]

Thanks again wrench- after I get the trolling motor set up my rig should be ready for a first outing. Hopefully the old motor holds up. Definitely going to be going upstream.

[Daryk Campbell Sr]

Where would you get a 30 amp breaker for a trolling motor? I am guessing it's a specialized part. I am asking because I only use a trolling motor on my 10 foot Lowe flat bottom and have read about the need before.

[fishinwrench]

Daryk, if you are simply clipping the exposed TM leads to a battery then a breaker/fuse really isn't a must have. But if you are extending the leads via a hidden (built in to the boat) harness then it becomes more important.

On your 10' jon setup the hull is not grounded, so if a wire gets rubbed raw and makes contact with the hull no sparks are gonna fly. And even if they do there's no fuel onboard.

Fuse links and/or circuit breakers come in various designs and can be purchased at any marine dealership or auto parts store.

[Daryk Campbell Sr]

cool, thanks for letting me know.

[Haris122]

I got me a trolling motor, and battery a few months back, and I kind of had a similar question regarding the battery charger and charging of said battery.

So specifically, I got me a "Watersnake Venom" 34 Lbs thrust, 12 Volt trolling motor, and a Autocraft Deep Cycle Marine/RV Battery with it. Yesterday I bought a Black and Decker BC 15 Amp Battery Charger (http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-BC15BD-Battery-Charger/dp/B00KNMKRU8) , cause at quick glance, it looked like both a car battery jumpstarter and battery charger in one. But now that I'm reading through the accompanying manual and trying to figure out how it works, that doesn't seem to be the case.

So, first off, does anyone know if that particular charger would work to charge a deep cycle battery?

2nd off, would it be a decent charger for such a task, or would I be able to find something for a similar price (about $50) or a bit more, that does the job better?

3rd, how long does it generally take to charge such a battery with an appropriate charger?

Any help would be appreciated.

[fishinwrench]

Should work just fine.

Be sure to keep an eye on the water level in the battery since you are charging at over 10amps (could boil dry over time).

Recharge time will depend on plate thickness and such in the battery, but I would expect it to recharge from a full day of fishing in 4-6 hours.