First time Battery and charger questions

s freud · Feb 16, 2013

So I just got an Everstart 24DC marine battery (EverStart Group Size 24DC Marine Battery: Automotive : Walmart.com) and a Schumacher XC6 charger (Schumacher XC6 Battery Charger - Walmart.com).

Is this a good combo for charging?

Also, I have a 12' aluminum V-hull and am going to run my cheap humminbird 150 fish finder and a 41lb thrust 12v trolling motor. Enough juice?

I am trying to keep things inexpensive. Also, battery boxes I looked at did not have holes in them for cables. Do I cut them myself or am I missing something?

Thanks guys.

NYBo · Feb 16, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

You're not going to get much run time out of the trolling motor at top speed with that battery. You want the largest battery you can fit in the available space.

The charger will work, as long as you aren't in a hurry.

The lid on my battery box has "bump-outs" in which to run the cables.

Don S · Feb 16, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

Well, you bought a cheap battery, cheap charger, cheap fish finder, and no doubt a cheap trolling motor.
Charge your battery and go fishing and see how long it lasts. Take some cheap oars so you can get home eventually then you will know for sure how long it will last.

s freud · Feb 16, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

How much run time do you guess I would get, and would I get that much more with a 29 of the same brand? How long will it take to charge?

Would this one charge twice as fast (in theory)? http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-SC...r=8-4&keywords=12v+battery+charger+Schumacher

gm280 · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

Contrary to what others state on here say there is nothing wrong with being frugal with your allotted finances. Not everybody can afford the best of everything but they still want to enjoy the boating fishing hobbies just the same. Don't let others belittle your investments. You will be okay and have fun and learn things along the way just like most others have in their initial investments. I applaud folks for staying within their budgets. Wish our nation would do the same. But if you are slowly trolling along and not trying to ski behind your boat with the trolling motor you could go a long time before you run out of battery juice. As for the charger, it will recharge your battery easily over night for the next day's fun as well. And your battery box has little bump outs that allow your cables to come out without drilling any holes as well. Hope you do enjoy your time on the water... Learn and be patient and things will be okay...

s freud · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

Thanks guys, I appreciate the encouragement. With my budget at $60 a month, I try to make the most of my money while being realistic of my needs.

barrynfla · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

Agree with gm280..........you're not doing anything wrong. I use a Schumacher 1.5a charger/maintainer for my battery simply because I had it for my motorcycle. It sometimes takes longer than overnight to charge but that's ok because I don't go out every day.

I put a bungee around my battery box so the lid stays on tight and keeps water out.

Good luck!

Silvertip · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

We have no idea how big your troller is. 30# thrust??? 40# thrust???? 50# thrust???? Motor size, how fast your troll, and how long you troll will determine how much time the battery will last. Look at the label on the battery. It will have a RC (reserve capacity number expressed as xxx min@23 (or possibly 25) amps. What that means is the battery is capable of delivering 23 (or 25 amps) for however many minutes are listed before it can no longer do so. As for the motor, it will use "roughly" 30, 40, or 50 amps for each hour you operate the motor under its worst current draw. Obviously you will not run under those conditions all the time so lets use just one half the current draw numbers (15, 20 or 25 amps). An for simplicity, lets use the 25 amp number. If your battery says its RC is 150 minutes, that's how long the battery would last running the 50# motor at roughly 1/2 speed. 150 minutes is 2-1/2 hours. If the motor was smaller and you used the 15 amp number the time would about double. Your choice in chargers is fine. It puts 6 amps back into the battery each hour (roughly) so it would take about 12 hours (overnight) to fully charge the battery again. Trolling and position fishing are two different fishing techniques so how much run/stop time you have greatly alters battery run time so it is really difficult to pin down exact numbers. But the fact remains, the bigger the bucket of electricity you have (the battery size), the longer you can run a troller at any speed. For your 12 footer you don't need a 50/55# troller so you also don't need a group 29 battery unless you plan to be on the water all day and trolling steady. Even then, it won't make it.

s freud · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

That's helpful. It is actually a 41 lb thrust motor and my battery says 101 amp hours at one amp. Now that you say about it, I don't actually troll with it, I use it for "position fishing." Meaning, I use my gas motor to get to an inlet use my trolling motor to move about the inlet, hold a spot, etc. then gas again to next inlet.

glenn property of pam · Feb 17, 2013

Re: First time Battery and charger questions

your set up will work but no one knows if its the best set up. i installed 2 size 24 on my father-in-laws boat which was more expensive and not the best set up but he wanted to remove the batteries from the boat after fishing so it came down to the weight of the battery was a decieding factor. have fun and carry a paddle just in case.

tahoejag · Feb 17, 2013