Trolling motor

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Glide40
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Joined: Wed Jun 17, 2015 4:45 am

Trolling motor

#1 Post by Glide40 » Tue Jul 07, 2015 6:25 am

How involved is it to have my alternator charge the trolling motor battery when my motor is running? The batteries are at opposite ends of the boat. I'm getting tired of having to unhook the trolling motor battery after a long day of fishing and then take it out, put it on the charger........blah, blah. I am a DIY'er if someone can tell me how to go about it. Thanks.
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C_M_25
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Re: Trolling motor

#2 Post by C_M_25 » Tue Jul 07, 2015 8:05 am

Why not install a small charger near the battery so all that you have to do is plug it in after that long day of fishing?
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JBO
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Re: Trolling motor

#3 Post by JBO » Tue Jul 07, 2015 11:43 am

You should get a 2-3 bank charger so you don't have to remove the batteries. See this thread for some ideas:

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=21708

You would have to run your main motor for a LONG time (hours) to charge up trolling motors batteries. Simply putting back and forth on the lake won't fully charge your trolling motor batteries. You should top off your trolling motor batteries ASAP once you are done using them to ensure they stay in good condition.
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Seon
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Re: Trolling motor

#4 Post by Seon » Tue Jul 07, 2015 1:18 pm

C_M_25 wrote:Why not install a small charger near the battery so all that you have to do is plug it in after that long day of fishing?
Or you could install a small solar panel and connect the wires to your battery. No muss no fuss :thumbsup .
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JBO
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Re: Trolling motor

#5 Post by JBO » Tue Jul 07, 2015 4:13 pm

Seon wrote:
C_M_25 wrote:Why not install a small charger near the battery so all that you have to do is plug it in after that long day of fishing?
Or you could install a small solar panel and connect the wires to your battery. No muss no fuss :thumbsup .
It could take days upon days to charge a pair of trolling motor batteries from a discharged state to a full state. A small solar panel wouldn't charge the battery quick enough from its discharged state to prevent sulfation (degradation) of the battery. Solar panels are OK for keeping a battery topped off but won't help with fully charging a trolling motor battery quickly. There are quite a few amp-hours that need to be pushed back into the battery in a relatively short period of time.
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killerkernrich
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Re: Trolling motor

#6 Post by killerkernrich » Tue Jul 07, 2015 9:47 pm

AT the lake I put my little Yammy 1000 gen on the deck and plug it in to the 2 bank on board charger. :thumbsup
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Glide40
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Re: Trolling motor

#7 Post by Glide40 » Wed Jul 08, 2015 4:19 am

Thanks for the input guys. I think I'll go with the on board charger and then just connect it to the extension cord at night.
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JBO
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Re: Trolling motor

#8 Post by JBO » Wed Jul 08, 2015 7:17 am

Glide40 wrote:Thanks for the input guys. I think I'll go with the on board charger and then just connect it to the extension cord at night.
That's what I do with a 3bank Cabelas on-board charger. It works great and there is no loading or unloading of the batteries.
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Averyps
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Re: Trolling motor

#9 Post by Averyps » Fri Jul 10, 2015 3:29 pm

With today's deep cycle batteries, I would only charge at the end of the day. Your alternator is not designed to charge that much

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