cheap project boat question: charging deep cycle battery with portable solar panel

[huzzsaba]

Been too long since I have visited this site.  Hopefully everyone is doing well 🙂

 

with the prices of everything going up, I decided to kind of pimp out my intex seahawk inflateble boat for smaller lakes.  I've added a hard floor, build a battery box, added some cheap diy rod holders and finally going to use the tiny trolling motor someone gifted me from a garage sale 😁.

I also got a cheap sonar as well as 2 batteries, one for the sonar and one for the trolling motor.

So my main question here is, can I charge the main deep cycle battery with a portable solar panel while its being used by the motor? If so, can I plug it directly to the battery, or is there an inverter or something else needed in between the battery and solar panel?

 

thanks

Edited May 19, 2021 by huzzsaba

[BillM]

You're going to have a really tough time getting any sort of charge back into that battery with a solar panel.   

[AKRISONER]

Honestly your best bet is to just get a trickle charger to use when you get home. The solar method of charging Doesn’t guarantee that your battery will recharge again. 
 

you are going to want to make sure that your trolling motor battery has enough 12 volt amp hours to last you a day of fishing. Let us know what kind of battery you are planning on using.

go home and throw the battery on the trickle charger to make sure you keep it topped up at all times. Low batteries that don’t stay charged when stored dont last nearly as long. Make sure you top them up with distilled water as well that helps the solution in them remain the correct dilution resulting in longer battery life. Lots of YouTube videos will help you do that.

[misfish]

Ah look,another float boat member . Looking good . Interesting electric motor .

I was lucky to get a sealed 50AH battery. It,s perfect . 

What did you use to cover the floor ? Looks like something that will hold water and become very heavy.

[huzzsaba]

Thanks for the replies.  I do have a proper charger for the battery which is a sealed lead acid 55ah battery. Thought of experimenting with a solar panel since  I have one collecting dust the garage.

Misfish, I was planning together real outdoor carpet, but found someone throwing this carpet out and surprisingly it was pretty thin and lightweight. Haven't had much water coming on the deck in the past, so hoping to not have issue with it getting soaked.

 

The motor is a Goodman&sons raft motor which is super rare. A friend of mine picked it up for like $5 a few years ago.I know it won't get me anywhere quick,but should work fine for the calm smaller lakes until I get a proper Minn Kota.

Edited May 19, 2021 by huzzsaba

[Fisherman]

For solar to be effective, you would have to tow another raft behind you covered with 150 watt panels.  

[Terry]

Fisherman is 100% right 

[misfish]

17 minutes ago, Terry said:

Fisherman is 100% right 

Attach a wind mill.

[Fisherman]

59 minutes ago, misfish said:

Attach a wind mill.

You're almost mean, but I'd like to see that trick.

[Raycaster]

I 100% agree with Fisherman too. I went down the rabbit hole trying to figure out the math and was shocked that it didnt even come close to adding up.

There is a youtube or 2 of electric small boats zooming around but they have roofs with a dozen panels.

A small trolling motor can draw over 30 amps easy...

[huzzsaba]

Thanks for the replies.  Looks like its not worth trying it for the boat.  Will experiment with it perhaps when camping. 

 

meanwhile will take the boat out and see how long the battery lasts. not much info on this motor because of how old it is. its a 3.5 lb thrust motor and only one speed.

[Fisherman]

Most solar panels are 12volt or slightly more, a 10 watt panel even under the most idea conditions of full sunlight with the panel angled perpendicular to the sun will give you about .5 amp or 500mW.  A 50 watt panel 50/12 will give you maybe 3 too 3.5 amps at best.  Now you can see why I said you'll be towing a raft covered with panels.  Even a cheap 500 watt genny with a battery charger will do a much faster job regardless of sun conditions.  

[huzzsaba]

3 hours ago, misfish said:

Attach a wind mill.

How many hours do you get with your trolling motor and 50ah battery? 

I'm thinking of getting the Minn kota 32lb motor soon. 

[Raycaster]

 

And then you have to factor in boat size, wind, current.

Edited May 19, 2021 by Raycaster
Spelling

[huzzsaba]

Raycaster,  thank you!

 

[huzzsaba]

Sorry another question, since this motor is only a 3.5 lb thrust, will it move the boat at all lol? at max weight including the battery, I would say it will be anywhere between 6-700 lbs.  the boat is rated at 880lbs so well within the limits, but not sure this little motor will be able to push it. only plan to use it on calm less windy days.

Here is a video of the original boat it came on. its only got one speed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_St9z79bO8

 

Edited May 19, 2021 by huzzsaba

[Raycaster]

I think the “ballpark” quote when looking for a trolling motor is 2lbs thrust for every 100lbs of boat weight. Please don't quote me on that...

You wont be breaking speed records for sure.

 

[misfish]

1 hour ago, huzzsaba said:

How many hours do you get with your trolling motor and 50ah battery? 

I'm thinking of getting the Minn kota 32lb motor soon. 

I use my motor mostly to get out to the main spot. The real reason for the electric is to get off quicker if need be .  I will row when I need to move a 100 ft or so. 

My float boat is very stealth as I found out. There was just a light breeze on Sunday. The water was still calm and I was drifting .4-.5 MPH . It drove me nuts, as I was not marking my bait as the line was out from the range.  My motor is  30lb. Speed 1,I was getting 1.5-2 MPH. Speed 5,it was up to 5 mph. This is on glass waters. This is an older motor and I know it draws . New one out of the box is on the list. My boat loaded as in the pics I posted,still did not touch the bottom in 3" of water. I love this thing.

[huzzsaba]

1 hour ago, Raycaster said:

I think the “ballpark” quote when looking for a trolling motor is 2lbs thrust for every 100lbs of boat weight. Please don't quote me on that...

You wont be breaking speed records for sure.

 

I just read the same thing.  Looks like I better start saving up for a bigger motor 😅

 

Edited May 19, 2021 by huzzsaba

[huzzsaba]

44 minutes ago, misfish said:

I use my motor mostly to get out to the main spot. The real reason for the electric is to get off quicker if need be .  I will row when I need to move a 100 ft or so. 

My float boat is very stealth as I found out. There was just a light breeze on Sunday. The water was still calm and I was drifting .4-.5 MPH . It drove me nuts, as I was not marking my bait as the line was out from the range.  My motor is  30lb. Speed 1,I was getting 1.5-2 MPH. Speed 5,it was up to 5 mph. This is on glass waters. This is an older motor and I know it draws . New one out of the box is on the list. My boat loaded as in the pics I posted,still did not touch the bottom in 3" of water. I love this thing.

same usage here.  motor out to the spot and drift or anchor.  the inflatable drift pretty quick.  once I was unhooking a fish and getting reset, and I easily drifted 200 feet. good thing it was a small lake with no traffic 😅.

 

What I love about the inflatables is the stability, comfort and the ability to take them anywhere.

 

Edited May 19, 2021 by huzzsaba

[Raycaster]

I think most guys look at their wallet to see the biggest possible!
 

I was guilty. 

[pics]

If you get a MinKota make sure it has the maximizer on it. It will make a difference in battery life..

[misfish]

10 hours ago, huzzsaba said:

I easily drifted 200 feet.

You want to see how far I get moved when I get a big laker on. LOL

[zionkhan451]

I also picked up a cheap sonar and two batteries – one for the sonar and another for the motor. Now, my main question is about keeping that main deep cycle battery juiced up while I'm out cruising with the motor.From what I've read, connecting the solar panel straight to the battery with a charge controller should do the trick. Keeps things straightforward and ensures the battery gets topped up without hassle.If you're still figuring things out like I am, you might want to chat with the folks at (https://solarsmart.ie. They seem to really know their stuff when it comes to solar setups and could probably give us some solid advice based on what we're trying to do here.

Edited July 10 by zionkhan451