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Cranking battery
- Thread starter lgpjr49
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onthewater102
Well-known member
People can laugh at me for this, but I've had excellent luck with the 2yr warranty batteries they carry at Walmart - I'm always careful to get a recently produced one, not that I have any reason to believe it makes a difference. I've had one for 7yrs, and I picked up a 2nd 4 years ago which has been my TM battery and is still going strong.
It's all about making sure they're fully charged after you get off the water each time shortly after getting home. Don't ever leave a drawn down battery sitting around. I would charge the cranking battery for my bass-boat after charging the TM battery - it would still take a few hours of low amperage charging after each trip - but I didn't run the gas motor more than was absolutely necessary so there wasn't much run-time to recharge what was drawn cranking the motor.
It's all about making sure they're fully charged after you get off the water each time shortly after getting home. Don't ever leave a drawn down battery sitting around. I would charge the cranking battery for my bass-boat after charging the TM battery - it would still take a few hours of low amperage charging after each trip - but I didn't run the gas motor more than was absolutely necessary so there wasn't much run-time to recharge what was drawn cranking the motor.
Charger25
Well-known member
yep,I use the batts from wally world also. Best advise is after charging ,hook up a battery maintainer , either a plug in type or a solar charger.
onthewater102
Well-known member
Good point - I take for granted my charger switches over to trickle charge after the TM battery is fully charged - I leave it there between trips
onthewater102
Well-known member
Black & Decker
SumDumGuy
Well-known member
[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=363298#p363298 said:
Here's another option. Cheap, functional and if there are any issues take it back.
I use one on my trolling battery and another on the cranking battery. Hook up the little rings to the battery and then it is simple to plug in and charge.
I hook up after I get home and by morning the units are in maintain mode.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Schumacher-XM1-5-Maintainer-1.5-Amp/15140193
The battery band isn't a huge deal; as most of them are built pretty good nowdays.
The key is....first and foremost, initial servicing. We don't know if they were put into service properly. We used to have to add electrolyte when someone bought a battery; and of course nobody wants to wait, so the "45 minute stand time" was out of the question. Those few times that we were able to service them properly, they lasted a LONG time. 50% of the battery's lifespan is dependent on initial service, IMO. Not done right, it'll be done in less than a year. Most places do it for you nowdays ("maintenance free").
Then taking care of your new battery. It's imperative to keep it topped off with electrolyte if it has removable caps. Distilled water only, NOT tap water. Not a worry with maintenance free style batteries that don't have the removable caps. Then keeping it charged. If a battery is allowed to discharge to a certain point, and left at that point for any length of time, it will kind of develop a memory-and will never recover properly. Some of the AGM batteries can withstand it better than a traditional flooded lead-acid battery; but if you charge it fully and KEEP it charged, keep the fluid level full, and don't allow it to sit discharged, it will last a very long time. I've got one in my boat that was purchased 1/18/2001 and it is still going strong. I probably need to replace it someday soon though because nothing is more aggravating than hitting the water and finding out that the battery is too low to run the trolling motor.
Letting it sit without a storage charger on it will kill it; and is the #2 cause for premature failure (behind initial service). That said, some places will order a few batteries and put them on the shelf where they'll sit for an amount of time. Batteries will slowly discharge on their own. The longer they sit, the more discharged they become. It is perfectly normal. If it sits on the shelf for a few months, it's lifespan has been cut. Wal-Mart used to be notorious for that (at least the local one was)...I remember going in to buy a battery for my Mustang one time (only place open....) and the only one that they had had been dated 7 months prior. I think I got a few months out of it until I noticed that it was getting weak. Replaced under warranty; new one was dated more recent is still in the car (had it for almost 4 years).
The key is....first and foremost, initial servicing. We don't know if they were put into service properly. We used to have to add electrolyte when someone bought a battery; and of course nobody wants to wait, so the "45 minute stand time" was out of the question. Those few times that we were able to service them properly, they lasted a LONG time. 50% of the battery's lifespan is dependent on initial service, IMO. Not done right, it'll be done in less than a year. Most places do it for you nowdays ("maintenance free").
Then taking care of your new battery. It's imperative to keep it topped off with electrolyte if it has removable caps. Distilled water only, NOT tap water. Not a worry with maintenance free style batteries that don't have the removable caps. Then keeping it charged. If a battery is allowed to discharge to a certain point, and left at that point for any length of time, it will kind of develop a memory-and will never recover properly. Some of the AGM batteries can withstand it better than a traditional flooded lead-acid battery; but if you charge it fully and KEEP it charged, keep the fluid level full, and don't allow it to sit discharged, it will last a very long time. I've got one in my boat that was purchased 1/18/2001 and it is still going strong. I probably need to replace it someday soon though because nothing is more aggravating than hitting the water and finding out that the battery is too low to run the trolling motor.
Letting it sit without a storage charger on it will kill it; and is the #2 cause for premature failure (behind initial service). That said, some places will order a few batteries and put them on the shelf where they'll sit for an amount of time. Batteries will slowly discharge on their own. The longer they sit, the more discharged they become. It is perfectly normal. If it sits on the shelf for a few months, it's lifespan has been cut. Wal-Mart used to be notorious for that (at least the local one was)...I remember going in to buy a battery for my Mustang one time (only place open....) and the only one that they had had been dated 7 months prior. I think I got a few months out of it until I noticed that it was getting weak. Replaced under warranty; new one was dated more recent is still in the car (had it for almost 4 years).
richg99
Well-known member
I've bought batteries from a number of places. Nearly ALL of them were only partially charged. Even when I asked, they either didn't know or lied about the charge condition.
Since my recent boats were all kept in locations without 110 volt power, initial charge conditions were critical. Check any battery that you buy before bringing it to your boat.
I've added a simple lamp timer to my charging setup on a number of occasions. It allows a lot of control of when, and how long, you charge the batteries. richg99
Since my recent boats were all kept in locations without 110 volt power, initial charge conditions were critical. Check any battery that you buy before bringing it to your boat.
I've added a simple lamp timer to my charging setup on a number of occasions. It allows a lot of control of when, and how long, you charge the batteries. richg99
