newbie questions

[StephenSharpe]

hey guys im new here although I have been reading over the site for a couple of months now, had a few questions I wanted to get some others' input on. I bought a pretty nice 14 ft jon boat and im going to put an aluminum deck on it to keep weight down, I planned on getting 1-1/4 X 1-1/4 X 1/8 Aluminum Angle 6061-T6 Aluminum Structural Angle to use as well as an aluminum sheet on top and I was wondering what everyone thought about that? Also I have a new Motor Guide foot control trolling motor 12v and I wanted to put two batteries in the boat, both in the back when im alone and 1 behind my first seat with one in the back if I happen to take someone with me. I need to run a wire from the front of the boat to the back as the cord obviously isn't going to be long enough from the pedal and I was wondering what wire I should use? thanks for any input or advice!!

 

[JMichael]

You neglected to say what size/model your trolling motor is. The larger it is the more amps it can pull and the larger the wire would need to be.

 

[Lil Ronnie]

I am also building a small deck up front for storage, how thick should the aluminum be for the deck? I have 1" square tubing and 1 1/4" angle for the frame work.

 

[StephenSharpe]

sorry it is a 54 lb thrust. probably overkill but the deal I got on it was too good to pass up

 

[JMichael]

Based on the chart I checked, max amp of 40-50 for 25 ft of wire would need to be 4 gauge wire with a 50 amp breaker. If you were going to have your batteries up front, you could go with 8 gauge.

 

[StephenSharpe]

JMichael I enjoyed your build, this wire would work wouldn't it?
https://www.lowes.com/pd_72610-295-20499001_0__?storeNumber=2488&selectedLocalStoreBeanArray=%5Bcom.lowes.commerce.storelocator.beans.LocatorStoreBean%4077937793%5D&productId=3129539&ipTrail=108.250.29.39

I had no clue about the 50 amp breaker situation. looking into it

 

[rscottp]

You should probably use tinned marine wire not the household stuff.

 

[JMichael]

Yes, that wire would work, but as rscottp pointed out, it would be better to use tinned marine wire. https://www.bestboatwire.com/4-awg-battery-cable-tinned-marine-grade-wire-black-by-the-foot
Standard wire has a problem with corrosion forming and the corrosion will actually run the full length of the wire, underneath the insulation. I used standard wire on mine, but that was because the wire was free. So When I end up replacing mine, I will only have lost the labor involved.

As for the circuit breaker, something like this is what you want.
https://www.wholesalemarine.com/sea-dog-resettable-circuit-breakers-79231.html?gclid=CMj2wfLjhbwCFUdk7AodQEsAsg
Place the CB as close to the battery as conveniently possible so that all of the wire is protected in the event of a short of other problem.

Thanks for the comment on my build. Now I just need to get it finished when the weather gets a little nicer.

 

[rscottp]

I can attest to the regular copper wire corrosion. Last year my GPS/Sonar cut out when I was out on the water. I could have been in trouble if it had been foggy(I was out of cell range). When I got home I traced the problem to a wire the had corroded away to nothing.

 

[StephenSharpe]

Thanks for the heads up guys i dont know a thing about electricity. So i would have to buy 2 14' pieces correct?

 

[JMichael]

It's highly unlikely that you will be running your wires in a perfectly straight line. Measure the path that you intend to run the wires. Then get a little more wire than you think the job will take because wire will never run as straight of a line as what you measure. Getting to the end of a job with 12 inches left over is always preferable to getting to the end and being 3 inches too short.

 

[StephenSharpe]

JMichael » 18 Jan 2014, 14:49[/url]"]It's highly unlikely that you will be running your wires in a perfectly straight line. Measure the path that you intend to run the wires. Then get a little more wire than you think the job will take because wire will never run as straight of a line as what you measure. Getting to the end of a job with 12 inches left over is always preferable to getting to the end and being 3 inches too short.

Luckily i did run them in a straight line down the side of the boat and i ended up with about 18" more than i needed so that was good, also lucked up and they had the wire i needed already cut and someone didnt show to pick it up so i got it half off! I got the deck built, wire ran, now im going to have to build a mount for my trolling motor to get it above the front of the boat when deployed. I saw some really good fabrications on the forums but cant seem to find the particular one i really liked, even using the search tool.