Re: {Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders} Trolling Motor Battery Reccomendation

Short version: Yes. Bigger motor = more energy requirements = need bigger battery to use it for a while. 

Long version: You'll absolutely want to get a marine deep cycle battery. Do NOT get a cranking battery. A cranking battery is meant for short bursts of high power (cranking your engine). A deep cycle battery is meant for longer cycles of charging and discharging at lower power levels - your trolling motor. You'll possibly also need either two or three batteries depending on your motor. The batteries will basically all be 12V, and a lot of bigger trolling motors are either 24V or 36V, so you'll need to run two or three batteries in series to meet the voltage requirements. If you have a 12V motor, only 1 battery is needed. There are three main acronyms you need to look for with marine batteries - MCA, CCA, and Ah. MCA is marine cranking amps is the number of amps the battery can draw without dropping below a voltage of 1.2V per cell after 30 seconds. CCA is cold cranking amps, which is basically the same thing but at 0*F. Technically, it is the amount of current the battery can deliver at 0*F for 30 seconds without dropping below the cutoff voltage. For both of those, the higher the actual temp, the better performance you'll get. For your trolling motor application, though, the biggest thing you'll need to look at is the Ah, or amp-hour rating. This is how much power is available for you to use. The rating assumes a draw of 10 Amps from your motor. A bigger Ah rating means you can troll for a longer period of time. You'll need to look at the rated current draw of your trolling motor to figure out how long you'll really have. For example, Minn Kota has a 12V 50lb thrust motor that draws 50A. If you get a battery that is rated at 100-Ah, it would be able to deliver 100 minutes at 10 amps. Since it's drawing 50 amps, it'll run for 20 minutes (100 / (50/1)). Of course, that's assuming full charge and you're only using the motor at full blast, and many are variable speed, which means variable energy consumption. 

On Mon, Aug 31, 2015 at 9:20 AM, Connor Donovan <donovac@gmail.com> wrote:

Fellow TPFR-er's,

I'm very tired of rowing through flat water and am looking to buy a trolling motor.  Does anyone have recommendations or tips for buying a battery?  I honestly have no idea what I should be looking for. 

I have a trip down the upper James this weekend and am borrowing a 35 lbs thrust motor.  Does battery size matter if I'm not rocking a 50lbs+ pound thrust trolling motor? Or is it a one-size-power's-all type of thing. 

Thanks in advance for any responses.

Connor

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