dead boat

[fisherman_craig]

hey guys
i attempted to fish this weekend but had a little problem. i had charged up my battery for my trolling motor a whole day and a half before i left. we end up getting about a mile an a half out on the lake only to have the battery to totally dry up. fortunatley after about 10 mins of hopeless rowing with just one paddle, we got a tow into the marina. i felt so dumb. i had no idea that you had to fill the battery up with water, no idea whatsoever! ??? :-[

[catfishtonyd]

Uhhhh Â*How old is this battery? Â*I assume it wasn't new.

Yes. Â*You do have keep a batteries cells topped off with water. Â*You only want to use distilled water for this. Â*Tap water will leave mineral deposits on the battery plates. Â*(There are maint free batteries you can buy too.)

The normal charge/discharge cycles are what evaporates a battery's fluid. Â*Check it ever two or three trips, and top off as needed before you charge your battery.

You can fill your battery with distilled water, and try it, but it's most likely shot. If/when you replace it make sure to get a deep cycle battery made for trolling motors. A regular automotive battery just won't hold up.

[BaSsFiShEr20]

Been there. it stinks.

Charles

[Rob Mak]

yeah getting stuck way the hell up lake even with a paddle sucks to the highest caliber. a buddy of mine ran out of gas- :-X- 8 miles from the nearest launch. he was headed back with his tm when luck would have it i came into this creek.- one i normally don't fish- i gave him enough gas to get to the nearest ramp. and followed him to the ramp.-dam i feel like such a boy scout now-trust me i have been in need of a tow a time or two. but never quite that far from the ramp to be honest.


zooker

[catfishtonyd]

I've been broke down before while people passed me and waved and laughed. That's why I never pass up someone who I think needs help. If I loose a days fishing, so be it.

[housework101]

I broke a prop one time on a wing damn,about ten miles downstream from where I put in.
As much as I hated to,I accepted a tow from a couple with a Baja.
Nothing worse than having your bass boat towed back up river by a yuppie boat right back past all the weekenders you flew by at 70 just minutes before :-/
I always said I would walk next time.

As far as batteries go the electrolyte doesn't evaporate just the water,so if you fill it up and charge it it might be OK.
All of the damage would have occured while charging,when you over charge a lead acid battery it boils the liquid and evaporates the water.
Over time the liquid level will get so low that the battery will no longer take a charge.

[ALAN_RAMSEY]

I my self had those problems as well. when i broke down it took me all day to find some-one to tow me in and i asked probably a dozen people or so. i will never turn down somebody broke down.
And people who don't help a fellow out on the water should be publicly flogged and there boat sank down to the bottom of the lake.
I would not turn anybody down even in a tourney

[Rich]

I was fishing in a buddy's boat when we lost the prop. Â*Got a tow in to the ramp so it wasn't all that bad, but I'd never pass up somebody in trouble-I think that is one of those "unwritten rules"-you help someone on the water having trouble. Â*Last Memorial Day I was fishing a cove and there was a guy by himself tied up to a dock with the enging cowling off. Â*He said he could probably fix it, but I stayed there until we were both satisfied he could get back to the ramp-it is just the right thing to do.

fdc, sounds like you may need a new battery. Â*I use Everstarts from WalMart. Â*Not because it is neccessarily the best, although they have served me well. Â*No matter where you fish you can probably find a WalMart pretty close by where you can exchange it if needed. Â*One suggestion I would highly recommend is to get a battery monitor. Â*I got one at WalMart Â*made by MinnKota. Â*Cost about $10, and you just touch two leads to the terminals and get an instant readout of the charge. Â*My cranking battery went bad, and that was how I found out. Â*Much easier than finding out sitting on the ramp ;D.

[mikee051]

[quote author=herb link=board=news;num=1111426380;start=0#5 date=03/21/05 at 18:31:04].....Nothing worse than having your bass boat towed back up river by a yuppie boat right back past all the weekenders you flew by at 70 just minutes before.... [/quote]

i can think of something, having that yuppie boat drive past you next time laughing.
like cajunbass said most people will drive by and not think twice. and im just curious but where were you going to walk to next time, are you jesus ?

[mikee051]

oh yeah..
http://www.batterystuff.com/tutorial_battery.html

[macgyver]

Always take a spare battery I've had too many times, been out a long ways and thankfully had a spare. Don't leave home without it. And Everstart as Rebasser said, but make it maintenance free.

As for passing folks in trouble, no I always stop, and have saved a life because of it. Why wouldn't you want to help someone in trouble? If you don't then there IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH YOU.

Lizards

[mblk181]

Trolling Motor (deep draw) batteries should be charged just as soon as you get back in from fishing. Not good to leave them half charged and sitting. Might be Best to pay the 40 plus dollars or so to get a charger with the trickle charge feature....after it charges it maintains your charge until ready for use. Whatever the case, be sure to charge it soon after use...will make the battery last longer overall. Good fishing, Mac

[randerson52]

at least theres one good reason to fish from the shore ;D

[housework101]

i can think of something, having that yuppie boat drive past you next time laughing.
like cajunbass said most people will drive by and not think twice. and im just curious but where were you going to walk to next time, are you jesus ?

It was on the mississippi river and the railroad tracks follow the river,so walking wouldn't be all that bad.
You dont by chance own a yuppie boat do ya? :-/

[Bassin_Dude]

2 seasons back, we were duck hunting. there was 1 other boat out on the water. it started to pour down rain like crazy, and we could just barely see the other boat. we decided to go check if everything was ok and it turns out their motor wouldnt start. we towed them back in our little ghenoe. just thought i'd share a story even tho it has nothing to do with batteries. ;D

[catfishtonyd]

If you get the Everstart from Wally World, pop the extra ten bucks or so and get the big yellow Everstart Maxx. Those things are great. I've got two group 29's on my boat that I've got wired in parallel. They'll run my boat all day long, and be pulling just as hard at the end of the day as they were at the start. When I hook up the charger it shows they've dropped off very little.

I actually carry three batteries on my boat when I'm on an electric motor only lake, but I've got two T/M's. The foot control motor (54#) that gets used all the time has the two Maxx's and the transome mount (45#) that just gets used to move from place to place runs on a group 27 Nautalis deep cycle.

[okefenokee010]

Don't feel bad, Cat. A couple of years ago I got my first bass rig and did the same thing. I just assumed that they were regular, maintenance-free batteries. Fortunately the big motor fired up just fine, I just had no trolling motor. The kind folks at Interstate replaced the batteries for nothing (they were under a year old). They told my that the only maintenance-free marine batteries were gel cells and they cost an arm and a leg. I don't know if that applied only to their batteries or to all marine batteries in general. I have stuck with Interstate because they did me right when they could have hammered me for replacement batteries.

[fool4bassin]

ive been SH#$ up a creek with half a paddle lol (ask kc -.-) he brakes all my paddles lol about 2 and 1/2 miles from shore with only half a paddle on a sunny as hell day THAT WAS HELL

[macgyver]

[quote author=Nitro911 link=board=news;num=1111426380;start=0#16 date=03/24/05 at 15:16:04]Don't feel bad, Cat. Â*A couple of years ago I got my first bass rig and did the same thing. Â*I just assumed that they were regular, maintenance-free batteries. Â*Fortunately the big motor fired up just fine, I just had no trolling motor. Â*The kind folks at Interstate replaced the batteries for nothing (they were under a year old). Â*They told my that the only maintenance-free marine batteries were gel cells and they cost an arm and a leg. Â*I don't know if that applied only to their batteries or to all marine batteries in general. Â*I have stuck with Interstate because they did me right when they could have hammered me for replacement batteries.[/quote]

The Everstart Gel cell's are not that exspensive. I understand your loyalty, but the Gel cell's are much easier to deal with, and no spilled battery acid, I mean water If Interstate makes one, then buy their's

Lizards