BoatsUltraskiffSetup & Troubleshooting
Batteries/PowerBoatsSetup & Troubleshooting
Deep Cycle Batteries FAQ
Deep Cycle Batteries FAQ
What sort of Battery do you recommend?
After nearly 5 years using and loving these boats I can say the best bang for your buck is to go with a simple inexpensive deep cycle marine battery. I still use the ones from Walmart. I use sizes DC24 and DC27. I try to tell people not to spend $300 on a giant battery. Buying 1 or 2 smaller batteries for under $100 will give you more flexibility, more long term power and are much easier and lighter to carry.
Can a Battery get wet? Do I need a battery box?
You do not need a battery box. Batteries work and operate fine while sitting in water or while being rained on. There is no danger to you, the battery or the motor in wet conditions. The only thing you should not do with a battery is completely submerge it % 100 in water. The two Caps on the top of a battery are water resistant but not 100% waterproof when submerged.
How long will a motor run on a battery?
That is very subjective to a lot of factors. The primary factor is Amp Draw or in plain language: “How often you operate the motor.” With a small Deep Cycle if you left your 12V 55 Lb Thrust Trolling Motor on Full Power the battery would probably last about 2 and half hours. Where it gets tricky is that as soon as you come off 100% power the amp draw slopes off dramatically, so at 50% power you can run for about 10 Hours continuously and at 75% power about 5 Hours. These estimates do not take into account current, wind, battery health and battery age. There are a lot of variables that determine your rate of amp draw and run time.
Amp Draw
What speed you set the throttle determines the Amp draw. A 55 Lb thrust motor will pull five amps at full 100% throttle, at that rate of speed the motor will run for 2 to 3 hours depending on your battery size. If you set the motor at 75% speed, it will only draw around 2.5 amps. So the amount of amp draw drops fast when you take the throttle off of full speed. 50% throttle can draw as little as .5 to 1 amp. That is an excellent thing because as long as you try and stay off of 100% thrust unless you have to your available run-time on a single charge can be increased dramatically.
Subfactors:
1. Total Weight
Your total weight determines how many amps the motor will have to pull to travel a particular distance. The more weight in the boat, the less run time you have on a single charge.
2. Technique
Your fishing or hunting style has a lot to do with your available run time on the water. If you are anchoring from spot to spot you will be motoring much less than if you were constantly motoring around all day. For instance, when Bass Fishing anglers usually do not anchor unless the conditions are very windy. So, you'll be continuously running the motor between 25% and 100% the entire day. At that rate, you'll probably get between 4 and 6 hours of fishing and motoring of a single battery depending on wind speed. Which brings us to the next subfactor:
3. Conditions
The Wind and current play a part in determining your run time as well. The more you fight the wind or current, the more amps you will use to get to a particular destination. Wind and current behind you can actually help save battery life, so it can go both ways and even out in some cases.
4. Battery Health
Battery health is paramount. Keeping your terminals and the connections coming from your motor clean is a must. Using a wire brush to clean your terminals and all metal to metal connections periodically will help the efficiency of your amp draw and power use. Including the metal connectors coming from your trolling motor, do not neglect them, keep them shiny and clean. When charging your battery it is best to not charge past a rate of 10 amps; a slower charge increases the lifespan of your battery. Battery Chargers automatically shut off and switch to a trickle charge maintainer after the battery is fully charged. It is also good to re-charge a battery as soon as possible after discharging. Leaving a battery depleted for days will only hurt the overall long-term health of the battery.