livemusic Posted March 11, 2016 Posted March 11, 2016 I have a 12v troll battery I use for troll motor on my jon boat or my pond jumper boat. But I might not use either boat for weeks at a time if I am using my 17' bassboat. Should I top off the battery occasionally? One more question... should I always charge a battery after any use? Say I fish only an hour and a half and use the troll motor, it is not even close to run down. If I know I will go the next day, any need to top off, and does it do any harm? Quote
Super User BrianinMD Posted March 11, 2016 Super User Posted March 11, 2016 Always charge it as soon as possible after use. And yes you should top it off occasionally, better yet is to have a trickle charger and just leave it charging. 2 Quote
junyer357 Posted March 11, 2016 Posted March 11, 2016 5 minutes ago, BrianinMD said: Always charge it as soon as possible after use. And yes you should top it off occasionally, better yet is to have a trickle charger and just leave it charging. X2. Quote
Gotfishyfingers? Posted March 11, 2016 Posted March 11, 2016 Battery Tender is your best friend... 2 Quote
livemusic Posted March 11, 2016 Author Posted March 11, 2016 1 hour ago, Gotfishyfingers? said: Battery Tender is your best friend... Say, I see that Battery Tender product site says, " 21023 - The Battery Tender Junior The Battery Tender Junior is a 12 volt, .75 amp battery charger that is designed to fully charge and maintain a battery at a proper storage voltage without the damaging effects caused by trickle chargers. === That blurb is for the Junior. Looks like the Plus model is same except larger, and has 1.25 amps. My question is what does "without the damaging effects caused by trickle chargers" means? Quote
Super User A-Jay Posted March 11, 2016 Super User Posted March 11, 2016 Consider the Schumacher SC-1200A/CA SpeedCharge 3/6/12 Amp Charger/Maintainer/Tester. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BQSIWK?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00 This model pretty much does it all ~ A-Jay Quote
Neil McCauley Posted March 12, 2016 Posted March 12, 2016 Everyone seems to agree that deep cycle 12v batteries should be stored fully charged. But then for lithium computer or phone batteries it's only at 50%. Not sure why the difference. Quote
paleus Posted March 12, 2016 Posted March 12, 2016 16 minutes ago, Neil McCauley said: Everyone seems to agree that deep cycle 12v batteries should be stored fully charged. But then for lithium computer or phone batteries it's only at 50%. Not sure why the difference. Totally different battery chemistries. Quote
Super User Way2slow Posted March 13, 2016 Super User Posted March 13, 2016 The maintenance charge voltage for most deep cycle, flooded cell batteries is 13.17VDC. For AGM batteries I think it's about 13.4VDC. Anything more that this is harmful to the battery, it makes flooded cell batteries loose water quickly while stored also. Trickle chargers are not battery maintainers. Their output voltage is usually too high and will damage the battery. Also, flooded cell batteries need to be charge at a high enough rate to make the electrolyte form bubbles to keep them from stratifying. That's why you should use a charger that's approx. 10% of the batteries rated capacity. Trickle chargers are designed for small batteries, not deep cycle trolling batteries 1 Quote
Super User slonezp Posted March 13, 2016 Super User Posted March 13, 2016 I would say fully charge them after use and make sure nothing is draining the battery during the period it is not being used. Top off the charge the day before you go fishing again. I pulled my boat out of storage yesterday. It is stored outdoors year round and hasn't been used since October. Batteries stayed in the boat and were fully charged before storing and I removed all wiring on the + posts to avoid any type of drain. When I reconnected everything and plugged in the charger, the batteries were still 90% charged. 1 Quote
livemusic Posted March 14, 2016 Author Posted March 14, 2016 19 hours ago, slonezp said: I would say fully charge them after use and make sure nothing is draining the battery during the period it is not being used. Top off the charge the day before you go fishing again. I pulled my boat out of storage yesterday. It is stored outdoors year round and hasn't been used since October. Batteries stayed in the boat and were fully charged before storing and I removed all wiring on the + posts to avoid any type of drain. When I reconnected everything and plugged in the charger, the batteries were still 90% charged. You feel this is okay for your battery health? Others recommend having a charge on at all times, even after it's charged. I have always done it like you do. I just thought of another question for you guys. Does one need to remove the cell cap plastic thingy when charging, so that the battery can bubble more easily? I note that when I charge, my battery oozes out some water when charging, and I have not been removing that plastic lid. The water is just being forced out around the lid edge. Quote
Super User Way2slow Posted March 15, 2016 Super User Posted March 15, 2016 As long as a battery is never allowed to sit more than approx. 24 hours at less than approx. 80% charge, it doesn't matter how you maintain it. 24 hours and 80% charge are the magic numbers for the plates to start to sulfate. The more they sulfate, the more capacity you loose. Let one sit for 30 days in a discharged state and you can trash it. Keeping them on a maintainer is to keep the human error (forgetting to check/charge periodically) out of the picture. Some maintainers like Battery Minder's and chargers that have a maintainer cycle also have a high frequency signal that helps break up and remove mild sulfation, but after it gets bad, the only way to remove it is beyond something for the average consumer. Battery manufactures also use different type of alloys for making the plates. The better brands use an alloy that has a very low self discharge rate. The bargain brands use a cheaper alloy that self discharges rather quickly. This is why some batteries can be dead after sitting a few months and others only be down a few percent. How they are constructed and how you maintain one helps determine how many cycles you get out of it before having to buy another. A cheap battery properly maintained, will out last a high end battery poorly maintained. Quote
markinny Posted March 16, 2016 Posted March 16, 2016 i give my battery a slow charge monthly. can,t go wrong. Quote
desmobob Posted March 16, 2016 Posted March 16, 2016 Use a "float charger" instead of a trickle charger. I have a couple of Battery Tenders and a Schumacher Automatic ProSeries Charger/Maintainer. I leave my boat and motorcycle batteries on the maintainers all winter when the boat is stored. Tight lines, Bob Quote
Super User slonezp Posted March 16, 2016 Super User Posted March 16, 2016 On 3/14/2016 at 7:50 AM, livemusic said: You feel this is okay for your battery health? Others recommend having a charge on at all times, even after it's charged. I have always done it like you do. I just thought of another question for you guys. Does one need to remove the cell cap plastic thingy when charging, so that the battery can bubble more easily? I note that when I charge, my battery oozes out some water when charging, and I have not been removing that plastic lid. The water is just being forced out around the lid edge. I haven't had a problem with any batteries in almost 15 years doing it this way. I believe a fully charged battery won't freeze until it's close to -50*. It doesn't get that cold in Chicago although sometimes it feels like it. During the "season" I get out both days most every weekend from ice out til ice up with a couple trips in between. The batteries are always charged up when I get off the water and topped off the night before I'm back on. I bought a total of 4 batteries in 10 years for the last boat which was equipped with 3 batteries. Would have only needed 3 but a bad charger bank smoked one of the trolling motor batteries. I'm beginning season 4 with this boat and haven't had a battery issue as of yet. Quote
Neil McCauley Posted March 16, 2016 Posted March 16, 2016 On 3/11/2016 at 10:30 AM, paleus said: Totally different battery chemistries. Obviously, but if someone could explain exactly why it is that would be helpful. Quote
BassResource.com Administrator Glenn Posted March 16, 2016 BassResource.com Administrator Posted March 16, 2016 Always use marine batteries, cranking or starting type for the outboard and deep cycle for the trolling motor. They are designed spedifcally for this use. Check the electrolyte or water level in the battery before each charge and keep it filled to the manufacturer recommendations DO NOT overfill. The gases from batteries are very explosive, keep flames and anything that could spark away while you are filling or working around the battery and do not smoke either. Always charge the batteries as soon as possible when you get off the lake if you stay the night or as soon as you get home from your fishing trip. The longer the battery stays discharged the shorter the life the battery will have. Lead sulfate will build up on the plates, and cause a cell to fail. The battery manufacturers recommend cleaning the terminals every three months. Check all of the connections for tightness. If you try to follow these guidelines your day on the water will be more enjoyable and your battery problems will be few. Quote
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