Trolling motor batteries

[msp]

Im looking into 2 new batteries for the trolling motor. The batteries that I currently have lasted almost 5 years with plenty of shoreline miles on them.

Some of the top end batteries are priced at $235.

 

What do you guys recommend ?

[ttahhan]

I would recommend Optima Deep Cycle Marine Batteries sure they are a little pricey however it will start and go just like a plug n play the advantage is that they are gel filled oppossed to being acid charged...

[krixxer]

The good ones never go on sale but in the spring CT, Costco and the like will have a few skids to blow out.

 

http://www.magnacharge.com if they don't have it you probably don't need it

[Fisherman]

I would recommend Optima Deep Cycle Marine Batteries sure they are a little pricey however it will start and go just like a plug n play the advantage is that they are gel filled oppossed to being acid charged...

 

Every one has opinions and then there are facts. You take an Optima battery and several other brands. Find out what the capacity of the batteries are and then compare the price per output. You'll find that Optimas are priced about twice as much as others. Your schekel, your choice.

[hotsky]

I have one from Costco, 115 AP. Got it maybe 2 months ago and been using it with my 30lb MinnKotta fitted on my Sevylor inflatable. I had 5 hours of use on a single charge (speeds 1-3 mostly). Pretty happy with it but it's not small and weighs 50lbs (feels even heavier).

Edited September 26, 2012 by Gray_Wolf

[Dan668]

I bought group 31's for 140 a piece. Work great, made by power cell. Might not be 100% correct but if I researched it correctly, their made by trojan

[glen]

I had it with filling batteries with water I bought sealed gel special order crappytire great price too

[Joeytier]

I had 5 hours of use on a single charge (speeds 1-3 mostly).

That's definitely not very good at all. You should be getting close to double that at least if you're running at slower speeds.

[Raf]

the nautilus I have is propably 4 years old, and the walmart brand (forget the name) is 2. Both going strong, can't complain about either of them.

[hotsky]

That's definitely not very good at all. You should be getting close to double that at least if you're running at slower speeds.

well the battery has never died on me so who knows how long it would've lasted if I tried to completely drain it (which you're not supposed to do). When I asked how long a battery lasts I was told a couple hours so I assumed 5 hours of constant use was good. Edited September 27, 2012 by Gray_Wolf

[ctered]

I am on my second set of Delco Voyager batteries in 15 years. I had 11 years out of my first set and am now onto 4-5 years on my second set. They are sealed batteries with no maintenance needed. They will run around $140 a piece for a group 27.

[Dabluz]

well the battery has never died on me so who knows how long it would've lasted if I tried to completely drain it (which you're not supposed to do). When I asked how long a battery lasts I was told a couple hours so I assumed 5 hours of constant use was good.

 

It's possible to estimate the number of hours of operation you should get from your battery.

 

First, you have to calculate how many amps your trolling motor consumes at different speeds. Most motors use a bit more than 1 amp for every lb of thrust. If you are using your 5 speed 30 lb thrust motor at about 1/2 speed, you can pretty well say that the motor consumes about 15 amps. If you use the motor for 1 hour at 1/2 speed, you have consumed 15 amp/hours. If your battery is rated at 150 amp/hours, you should be able to run the motor for 10 hours and the battery will be dead. Large deep cycle batteries have about 200 minutes of reserve. This means about 200 minutes at 50 amps. Fully discharging a deep cycle battery does a lot less harm than fully discharging a starting battery. The big problem is finding a real deep cycle battery. Most of the batteries that are called "nautical batteries" are actually hybrid batteries....meaning that they are a combination of a deep cycle battery and a starting battery. Real deep cycle batteries cost more than twice the cost of a starting battery.

 

Another thing you have to watch out for is the fact that most battery chargers cannot properly recharge a deep cycle battery. Canadian Tire does not sell chargers for deep cycle batteries. Walmart sells battery chargers made by a company called Schumacher. The instructions say that these chargers do recharge deep cycle batteries and so far (2 years now) my deep cycle battery has stayed powerful. My old charger (Motomaster) could not recharge my battery and I almost ruined the battery before buying a Schumacher. If you do decide to buy a charger and your battery is large, get the 15 amp model.

[Harrison]

Have had no issues with the Kirkland Batteries from Costco. Referred a few buddies to them as well and all seem happy.

[rdambros]

Anybody in for a Group Purchase?????????

 

If anyone has a connection, then I would be willing to buy 2.

[LucG]

I have a couple Interstate Batts, no complaints. Three years old with many many hours. They don't hold a charge like they used too, but still get me through an 8 hour day in windy conditions.

[ecmilley]

been using east penn for 6-7 years now no issues just top up in spring and go, they are traded under the name of power surge, die hard, carquest batteries are east penn as well put my trolling motor to two days of hard use before a charge just make sure you get the true deep cycle and not the dual purpose.

walmart and costco batteries do seem to do a decent job as well from everyone i know that uses them.

peterborough battery is a great place to deal with if your in that area

[Sinker]

Have had no issues with the Kirkland Batteries from Costco. Referred a few buddies to them as well and all seem happy.

 

 

X2

 

Also had a good run with Nautilus from CT.

 

Actually, I've never really had bad run with any batteries. Interstates were great as well.

 

My TM gets used pretty much exclusivley for slow trolling eyes, so its on contantly for hours at least half power (flat calm) to full power for hours on end. I drain the batteries down all the time, and they keep on going. I generally get 3 seasons out of them, minumum.

 

S.

[lew]

I had a pair of Walleye 1 deep cycles in my last boat and they were flawless for 8 years.

 

Fully charge your batteries after every use and they should last a long time.

[msp]

Thanks for all your imput guys.

I have been very diligent with charging my batteries as soon as I am off the water.

5 years of use for my current batteries is pretty good I thought.

I still have not decided on what type of batteries to purchase.

[krixxer]

if you can handle the weight and the price then try Trojan www.trojanbattery.com it will be the last one you buy.

 

my local magnacharge has them but the one I wanted was close to 160 lbs. A bit heavy for my little 16 footer

 

 

[tomkat]

Im looking into 2 new batteries for the trolling motor. The batteries that I currently have lasted almost 5 years with plenty of shoreline miles on them.

Some of the top end batteries are priced at $235.

 

What do you guys recommend ?

I am using costco and it is really good . I had bad luck with can. tire.

[BillM]

CostCo's return policy is good enough for me to buy them there simply because of that.

 

That being said, I've got two Nautilus batteries from Canadian Tire powering the Minn Kota up front, I think the best thing I've done for them is buy a proper charger (Guest 2 bank)

Edited September 28, 2012 by BillM

[adolson]

i have a WalMart brand, I forget what it's called now... EverStart? Maybe. Something like that. I bought it last year. I already need to replace it. To be fair, it worked great, then I kept it topped up over winter, and it quickly declined this season. Now I can charge it fully and within 10 minutes on my Minn Kota 40lb's built-in battery checker it says Recharge... It still powers the motor for I don't know how long, I've not fully tested it, but I don't trust it. It used to say Max or Good for hours. I do use it and my trolling motor as my only motor the vast majority of the time, though, so I couldn't tell you how many hours that came to. It seems that the motor runs noticeably slower than it typically would with a full or even low charge last year.

[Sour_Squirrel]

I have Interstate MegaTrons.

Work great and cost $150-160

[R. J. Kovacs]

if you can handle the weight and the price then try Trojan www.trojanbattery.com it will be the last one you buy.

 

my local magnacharge has them but the one I wanted was close to 160 lbs. A bit heavy for my little 16 footer

 

 

 

Me too. I don't have a boat, but I am using a large bank of group 27 Trojans to power up my cottage with a solar power system. I am running a fairly large load on them, 24 hours per day. The solar panels charge them up easily on a sunny day, and the genset picks up any slack. I always leave the batteries fully charged when I am not there, they are always recharged immediately after the night time use. I have just completed my 8th season with them, they are not as good as day one, but still do the job. They were about $120 each. The trick to a long life is to not leave them discharged for any length of time.