Trolling Motor Life

New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

Hi Jerry,
With trolling motors, it's a matter of what setting you use. Lower
speed = more time and higher speed = less time. Some trolling motors (older
ones, at least) have a chart showing estimated times at one continuous
speed. It's hard to say. Conservatively used, it should last you through
the day pretty easy.
Most important thing is to make certain your battery is a deep cycle
battery. It needs to be to withstand the punishment a trolling motor puts
it through...
--
Andrew Kidd
http://www.amiasoft.com/ - Software for the rest of us!
http://www.rofb.net/ - ROFB Newsgroup Home


"jerry" wrote in message
...
New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

I fish with a 12ft jonboat, a 43lb thrust TM on the bow and a 30lb on
the stren with one group 24 deep cycle AutoZone battery,,I normally
only fish about 3-4 hours a trip,I don't have concerns about killing the
battery.. It's important to charge the battery as soon as you can after
every use..





I fish therefore I lie

"jerry" wrote in message
...
New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

Jerry,

Without knowing more, it's difficult to say. Much of how long a battery is going to last depends on
a number of factors.

Weight of boat load
High sided or low sided boat (wind resistance)
Wind conditions
Current speed
Speed of boat
Size of battery
State of charge

I'm sure there's other factors that I've overlooked or missed. I do know that when I used to run a
12 volt system on a 16 foot AlumaCraft, high sided vee hull, on a windy day, or fishing a river
current, the battery would be done long before I was ready to come in.

If you're pushing/pulling a small cartopper type of boat under calm conditions, you should be fine
for a day's fishing. The best thing that I can tell you is the lower the speed setting you use, the
longer the battery will last. Unless the wind was too strong, with my old set up, I'd use the wind
to push my boat along, just using the motor to make course corrections. On days that I was drifting
too fast, I'd have to work into the wind and keep the motor on almost continuously. Battery life
wasn't long under these conditions.

Make certain that you charge the battery completely when returning from fishing. This will prolong
the battery life and you'll always have the battery ready to go fishing whenever you are.

Good luck,
--
Steve
OutdoorFrontiers
http://www.outdoorfrontiers.com
G & S Guide Service and Custom Rods
http://www.herefishyfishy.com

Makes me wonder how long I'll live.

I have a 55lb Minn Kota Maxxum and I get a full weekend from my Exide if I;m lake fishing. If I'm on the river I don't push it past
one day (don't want to be in a strong current when it runs out). I have a 9 1/2 hp Johnson to get back to the ramp so it only gets
used when I'm actually fishing. This is on a 12 ft. Sears Gamefisher. Bill P.
================================================== =========

"jerry" wrote in message ...
New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

Last weekend, my trolling battery gave me about 14 hours of use before
having to swap it out. My trolling motor is a MotorGuide 43lb.

--
Visit Charles at: www.thebasspro.net
www.secretweaponlures.com
www.outdoorfrontiers.com
www.midtennclassic.org
"jerry" wrote in message
...
New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

How does not charging it after each trip affect the battery life?. What if
every trip you make is limited to 3-4 hours max? I usually get two or three
trips out at 3-4 hours each before re-charging the battery. I've had no
problems and I am running a 46lb thrust on my puddle pusher.

Randy-
"Charles B. Summers" (remove extra dot) wrote in
message ...
Last weekend, my trolling battery gave me about 14 hours of use before
having to swap it out. My trolling motor is a MotorGuide 43lb.

--
Visit Charles at: www.thebasspro.net
www.secretweaponlures.com
www.outdoorfrontiers.com
www.midtennclassic.org
"jerry" wrote in message
...
New to the boating world and we just put in a trolling motor, 36lb
thrust, and we got a 12 volt EXIDE battery. It'll be a standalone with
no charger attached. Approximately how much time can we get from a
fully charge battery? 2 hours? 10 hours? I have no idea how this
works.

Thanks in advance.

Check out these battery charging tips.
www.hibodons.com/interbatt.htm





I fish therefore I lie

"alwaysfishking" alwaysfishking@ nospam.epix.net wrote in message
...
How does not charging it after each trip affect the battery life?. What if
every trip you make is limited to 3-4 hours max? I usually get two or
three
trips out at 3-4 hours each before re-charging the battery. I've had no
problems and I am running a 46lb thrust on my puddle pusher.


It shortens the overall usable life of the battery.
--
Andrew Kidd
http://www.amiasoft.com/ - Software for the rest of us!
http://www.rofb.net/ - ROFB Newsgroup Home