How long do your trolling motor batteries last?

[bigcreekdad]

Got my first trip to the French coming up in a couple weeks, so I plugged in my Dual Pro SE charger. THe left bank shows 4 lights (which seems reasonable), but the right bank shows 3 continuously blinking lights. I've got a call into Dual Pro, but I wonder if I have a bad battery. My batteries are probably 5-6 years old, and see heavy use 2-3 weeks a year in Canada, and a few times in lakes in Michigan a year. How long do you keep yours before replacing them?

 

Thanks

[Sinker]

I"d say you have a bad battery. Get it load tested, and you'll know for sure.

 

 

 

S.

[SRT8 smoker craft]

CT will check it out for free in hopes you will replace it there but thats up to you.

[OhioFisherman]

I never tried to get that much life out of a trolling motor battery. I replaced mine every 3 years. Probably a different situation for me, I regularly fished bass tournaments and the batteries got a workout. I wasn`t gambling a 150 buck entry fee on a bad battery. LOL and less inclined to have a problem fun fishing with family or friends.

 

My boat didn`t have oar locks, required to carry a paddle, but I never wanted to try and row with that!

[lew]

If your batteries are already 5-6 years old and your having 2nd thoughts about them now, why not just replace them both and be done with it ??

 

At least that's what I'd do

 

No sense in putting all that planning & effort, plus the expense, into a fishing trip to the French River and then have it ruined for the sake of a couple worn out batteries.

 

Best of luck on your fish'n trip !!

[fish_fishburn]

I have the same charger on my bassboat and have never had any of the led lights blinking on and off. Not sure what that means. Dual Pro has great customer service whenever I have had to have a question answered. I have had trolling batteries last over 5 yrs and still going strong. I just swapped them out and put them in my cruiser two yrs ago and there still fine. I just didn't want to take any chances with tired batteries while fishing bass tourneys. I think the key to battery longevity is battery maintenance. Charge them back up immediately after use. Never leave them sit for any lenght of time half charged or nearly dead. The batteries I swapped out of my bassboat after five yrs were Trojan batteries. My new ones are Energizer and there on there third season and still running like new. Time will dictate if there as good as the Trojan batteries.

[scugpg]

If your batteries are already 5-6 years old and your having 2nd thoughts about them now, why not just replace them both and be done with it ??

 

At least that's what I'd do

 

No sense in putting all that planning & effort, plus the expense, into a fishing trip to the French River and then have it ruined for the sake of a couple worn out batteries.

 

That's good advice right there. This was taken from their site, not sure if your flashing lights are red:

 

Q: Do your chargers have any fault code indications that may appear if there is a problem with my charger or my batteries?

 

A:Yes, beginning in 2007, all Pro, SE, and XL Series chargers have been equipped with the capability of displaying fault codes. Listed below are the possible fault conditions and what they mean: (These fault codes are also present on all Eagle Series chargers)

 

RED BLINKING LED.............NO BATTERY DETECTED This indication occurs whenever the charger circuitry cannot detect a battery. The charger circuitry will not allow charge current to flow under this condition. With the AC power supply cord unplugged, check the connection to the batteries for proper polarity (black wire to negative or -). Also check for corrosion free secure connections to the battery. Please call the factory at 1-800-742-2740 for further assistance.

 

2 RED BLINKING LEDS...........FORMING STAGE TIMEOUT SHUTDOWN This indication occurs if the battery voltage has not risen above 1.75 volts per cell within the first 3 hours of charging. This indicates a possible battery problem and the charge cycle has been terminated at this point. The charger may be reset by disconnecting and reconnecting the AC power supply cord. Please call the factory at 1-800-742-2740 for further assistance.

 

3 RED BLINKING LEDS...........OVERALL TIMER SHUTDOWN This indication occurs if the charger has not completed the charge cycle within the allowable factory set time period. This indicates a possible battery problem and the charge cycle has been terminated at this point. The charger may be reset by disconnecting and reconnecting the AC power supply cord. Please call the factory at 1-800-742-2740 for further assistance.

 

4 RED BLINKING LEDS...........INTERNAL OVERTEMP SHUTDOWN This indication occurs if the charger circuitry has detected operating temperatures inside the charger enclosure that are above factory specified levels. This could indicate a possible charger problem and the charge cycle has been terminated. The charger may be reset by disconnecting and reconnecting the AC power supply cord. Please call the factory at 1-800-742-2740 for further assistance.

 

5 RED BLINKING LEDS...........OVERVOLTAGE PROTECTION This indication occurs if the charger circuitry has detected that the output circuitry is possibly defective. Please discontinue use of the charger and call the factory at 1-800-742-2740.

[Pigeontroller]

Do I hear a little bird...?

 

cheep,cheep,cheap...

 

LOL, just teasin ya! Listen to Lew, go get new batteries for your trip.

[NBR]

Anything over 5 years on TM batteries has been mostly luck for me.

[Billy Bob]

For the "trolling motor" I change every 4 years but my starter battery is now 9 years old...I think this could be it's last season.....anyone know where I can still get a Delco Voyager "dual purpose" battery ?

[bassfighter]

Costco battery is quite decent for the price you have to pay. Sometimes they have $10-$20 off their batteries, the price went up this year. Trolling motor battery cost $115 tax included.

 

I had another Sealed trolling motor battery that is still running after 5 years. I troll a lot, and few times I almost drained both batteries fishing for 15+ hours. My trolling battery is not connected to my main motor charging system. It is also a good back up, in case my main battery dies, I have my trolling motor to bail me out.

 

Be careful of Canadian Tire testing procedure. It is not always reliable, and depends on the person testing it. I had a working battery that I had it tested at CT just to double check, they said it was not good anymore. I then ran my trolling motor at full power with the suspected worn out battery for 6-7 hours, once in a while stopping it for 5-10 minutes to cool down the motor to ensure the motor will not get too hot. After 6 hours, it still had some juice on the battery. The battery is at least 5 years old, but well maintained, I always charge it by the time I get home from fishing. I also made sure it is clean, away from cement floor during winter months, and charge it at least once a month kept on a heated environment.

 

6 years ago I neglected maintaining a trolling battery, did not trickle charge it for 6 months frozen during season, did not always recharge it as soon as I finished fishing, never check the internal water level, and it died in less than 3 years.

Edited May 30, 2010 by bassfighter

[spoon]

Got my first trip to the French coming up in a couple weeks, so I plugged in my Dual Pro SE charger. THe left bank shows 4 lights (which seems reasonable), but the right bank shows 3 continuously blinking lights. I've got a call into Dual Pro, but I wonder if I have a bad battery. My batteries are probably 5-6 years old, and see heavy use 2-3 weeks a year in Canada, and a few times in lakes in Michigan a year. How long do you keep yours before replacing them?

 

Thanks

 

 

My batteries are 4 years old. With a Terrova/Maxxum 55 one battery lasts me a whole day I'm running regular deep cycle marine batteries

 

Always charge them after each use. A brand new deep cycle should last 4-6 years, return yours to CT and they will recycle yours. I think they even have a trade in option...

 

Good luck