Sun Power? Better Battery? Whats The Best Option?

[prjavelin]

Ive been thinking about the best way to keep my trolling motor running without making me break the bank on electricity bills. I think the charger im using uses a lot of electricity hence making my bill go up. I went to the local marine store and the owner had a chat with me about what my options were. 

 

 

1. he has an interstate deep cycle battery thats rated 1000 cranks. it costs 140$ and it may be the best option. I still have to find a way to charge it constantly without breaking the bank. I think its a little overkill but it should last a couple trips. 

 

 

 

2. he talked about a system that I can hook to the boat so that when i get home I plug the boat to the wall and a it will charge for a couple hours and ill be done with it. He says anything, even the 25$ options will work for this because my boat is small and doesnt need a lot of juice(the motor is a 27# trolling motor)

 

 

 

3. He offered me a solar panel that costs 55$. he says it  should maintain my system with all the sun I get on the lake. I dont know what kind of power do I need and  how big a panel it is and if it will get on the way. 

 

 

Honestly I dont know what other options I have and which is the best for my use. what do you guys think? Ive also thought about doing a mix between a couple of the options. 

 

[NBR]

For the best battery life they should be charged as soon as you get back from fishing. If he is talking an onboard charger they are very convenient and promote good battery life. I keep my boat plugged in 100% of the time when the boat is home. I do check the water level fairly often. I have never seen any discussion where solar panels are a cost effective solution. IMHO an onboard charger is the best way to charge TM batteries as well as the cranking battery.

[200racing]

my main charger bonked so i tried to use my trickle maintenance charger to bring my battery back after a draw down. it took a week and it is a 2amp output. every solar charger ive ever seen is measured in fractions of a amp with big top of the line ones kicking out a whopping 1 amp. so i figure your talking minimum 2weeks for a full charge if your charger was in the sun 24/7, and zero effect while on the water.

 

i would simply go with a battery tender. you can buy alot of electricity for the cost of a onboard system.

[prjavelin]

arent those  deltran battery tenders just 1.5 amps? how effective are those in charging the battery? will it take days also?

 

they claim they have the worlds most advanced battery charger. I have a charger from a friend and its is ok in my opinion but advanced its not. for some reason I wont charge well the battery.

[200racing]

i was going under the assumption you were keeping you charger plugged in all the time and thats why it was eating electricity. since i cant see a short charge spiking a power bill.

 so i thought a battery tender would be better.

[Nitrofreak]

A larger battery means more or longer charge life while on the water, more available current then really needed, or reserve,  but at the same time is a good thing to have for those really windy days that sometimes sneak in on you when your down lake.

 

Solar chargers are really good for a surface charge, thats about the extent of that, a battery tender will charge the battery to full charge and then turn itself off and on as it see's needed to maintain a full charge , it's the best of both worlds, and does not cost near what an on board charger will set you back for and it is just as cheap to operate.

 

Get the larger battery and buy yourself a battery tender, forget about the solar charger until they get better.

[BobP]

Batteries need a charging profile that includes voltage to de-sulfate the battery plates, if you want your battery to last.  No solar powered charger will do that, so you're in a "no free lunch" position.  A solar charger will save on your power bill but will cost you more in replacement batteries (and aggravation).  Bottom line, I'd buy a good quality charger, plug it in every time you park the boat and stop worrying about it.  On-board chargers are nice but cost more due to their water and vibration proofing.  Something like a Schumacher 1500A charger from Walmart will work fine as long as it doesn't get rained on.

[Fishes in trees]

I am having issues believing that leaving your boat plugged into the on board charger is going to break the bank - electricity wise.  After you're done fishing, you should charge up the battery ASAP.  The fractions of pennies that you will save by delaying battery charging will be offset by the dollars you will spend due to decreased battery life.

 

That's just my opinion, I have no method of doing the math, so that I know what my electric bill would be minus the on-board charger plugged to the boat in my shed.