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Posts: 86
Location: Wauwatosa, Wisconsin | Whats a good trolling motor battery for a good price? |
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Location: Green Bay, WI | Boy, tough question... Start with these links:
http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-electronics-forum/207039-boat-ba...
http://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-forum/201742-battery-brands.htm...
http://www.thehulltruth.com/marine-electronics-forum/200901-batteri...
There's enough there to keep you busy for awhile. Ask 20 people about battery brands and you're liable to get 21 different opinions (yes, someone will likely change their mind). Use the search engine on that site and you'll learn more than you ever thought you wanted to know about batteries.
TB |
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| i just get simple Wal-Mart MAXX marine batteries.
very reasonably priced and they've always worked plenty well for me, with good run-time (2+ days on a single charge with mid-power use, size 29s).
but the really big advantage is that if there's ever a problem i can return them for new ones at any Wal-Mart. i just keep my receipt with the batteries, and Wal-Mart is everywhere so there's no searching for a dealer.
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Posts: 2687
Location: Hayward, WI | I've had good luck with Napa deep cycle batteries. I think I used my last set for about 5 years before I had to give it up and buy new batteries. At about $70 per battery, I think that's pretty good service. Never had a problem with them going dead on the water either.
curleytail |
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| Go to Remy Battery on 43 and Lincoln. Get the Group 29's. |
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Posts: 31
Location: Fairfield, IA | Definitely a personal thing for most people. I have Interstate now. 2 SRM-27 for the trolling motor and 1 group 24 for the cranking. Had Wal-Mart batteries on the other boat. No doubt the high dollar batteries may be better but I think if you take care of the battery and do the right things, a lower cost battery may be a good value for you. |
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Posts: 734
Location: Watertown, MN | I agree with Mike, run walmart max for price, great battery, or check fleet for some, go with biggest you can fit in your boat. and check RC rating. make sure they are equal, all batteries are made by a handful of mfg.
Troyz |
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Posts: 1996
Location: Pelican Lake/Three Lakes Chain | I do the same as Mike and Troy. Never had battery issues buying at Fleet Farm. Main problem with batteries is age, and none of them sit on the shelf long at Fleet or Walmart. Fresh Batteries, take care of them and they are as good as any. |
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Posts: 76
Location: Kentucky | Whatever you buy maintenance should be your top priority. Optimas are no better than a no name deep cycle if you don't recharge immediately after a discharge. Proper maintenance is the key to solid battery life.
As far as flooded cell vs gel vs AGM that all depends on your application. |
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| Not to play devils advocate, but here is one vote against Walmart batteries. I had a run of them for 2 years(charging them religiously like anyone else), and had to replace one of the two every 6 months with a dead cell. They were very good about exchanging them for new, and only the last time did I get the yellow Maxx models. The last set went last summer in MN and I had to switch out to batteries plus Werker's in a pinch. Anyone run them? That said, been running Dekka marine master industrial batteries in my boats before trying the walmarts(couldn't find the Dekka supplier for awhile) and got 4 years on a set once, which was great. Running them again in one boat and the batteries plus in the other so we'll see... I'd recomend the Dekka to anyone(not sure who exactly makes them but they are nice batteries for the money). |
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Posts: 291
Location: Madison, WI | Ive had good luck with DieHard batteries from Sears. About 70-75 each. They are on their 4th year and no issues. |
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Posts: 105
| Can anyone define what proper maintenance means? I charge mine as soon as I get home and they stay charged until I leave, but what else should I be doing to maintain the batteries?
M4L |
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| Here's a little story for you.
Many years ago I walked into an Exide battery warehouse to make my weekly delivery of fresh clean uniforms for the employees. This warehouse was huge. There were pallets of batteries in hundreds of yards in all directions.
As I was getting my invoice signed I noticed a pile of "Diehard" stickers. Then I noticed a pile of "Fleet Farm" stickers, then I noticed a pile of "Interstate" stickers and on and on. I asked the manger what was up with that and he had this to say.
He said that there are only two battery manufactures in the US and all major brands are made by those two. So basically any battery you buy is pretty much the same as the other. I buy the cheapest 29 series I can find!
John |
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Posts: 35
Location: Johnsonville, Wisconsin | One other thing that might want to do is get an inexpensive battery energy meter. Mine is about 2" sqare with about 8" leads. Got it from Fleet. The reason that I suggest this is the batteries may not get a full charge from your on board (if you are using one). With my 3 bank charger, when the lights all turn green, the starter battery shows 100% but both deep cycles only show 75-80%. I put a little battery doc charger on them and they come up to 100% in about an hour.
Darned if I know why this happens.
Lusox |
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Posts: 76
Location: Kentucky | Depending on the battery type there may be additional maintenance required.
If you're using a flooded cell battery then charging a very high amp rate you will more quickly evaporate the water out of the battery. I always recharge at 2 amps unless I've fished late and expect an early morning return trip. Charging at the lower amperage will not produce as much heat and therefore "boil" less water out of the battery. Even so it is still necessary to check the water levels periodically and refill as necessary with distilled water. In the off season (is there such a thing??? =P ) then at least 1 once a month or every 2 weeks connect your charger to your battery and give it a maintenance fill up.
The gel and AGM batteries that are permanently sealed do not lose water to evaporation like their flooded cell counterparts. |
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Posts: 692
Location: Pelican Rapids, MN | I have used a bunch of battery brands and types. The problem with most, are they only last a season, even if cared for properly. The brand I settled on was Interstate. I have had batteries last as long as 5 years - That's with 6 months of everyday use. And 6 months of storage. I have also used Optima Gel batteries - They are awesome - due to the fact that they pretty much give you full power until the point of death. The problem I found, is that if I didn't charge immediately when low it had bad memory and was difficult to get a full charge. |
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| I put in Trojan AGM's in April of 2006 in my Ranger..so they are going into their 4th full season....31 size, I am still on the 1st pair and they have as much juice as they did the day I bought them....with 500+ hours on the water per season I think they have pretty much outperformed any other battery I could have put in..yes they are pricey, but peace of mind is huge to me.
I've seen enough guys that buy the cheapo's only to have issues or not enough juice after a long day to never think about buying anything else...plus I never have to check or add fluid...no maintenance ever...
If you can swing it..go wtih Trojan AGM's imo.
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trolling motor batteries