Bass Club Digest

Few things are worse for bass anglers than to get on a hot pattern, then find that your trolling motor won’t let you fish because it’s out of juice. Keeping your deep-cycle batteries fully charged is critical to fishing success, whether you’re enjoying a casual Saturday morning club tourney or casting for cash on the national circuits.

Fortunately, keeping your batteries charged is a lot easier than it used to be thanks to a new generation of computer-controlled chargers that basically let you plug in and forget it. These on-board chargers not only bring your batteries up to full charge fast, but they also include a “smart-charge” program that gradually tapers the charge so your battery won’t get overheated or overcharged, shortening its life. And if you choose to leave the charger plugged in from one trip to the next, that’s just fine. The machines drop down to ”float” or trickle-charge level, pushing in just enough current to keep the batteries completely charged but not enough to boil off the electrolyte or cause other issues, as the chargers of yesterday often did.

The big issue in buying a charger is the amount of amps it can put into your battery in a given amount of time. Amps are a measure of current flow, and more amps means you recharge quicker. Since most bass anglers fish with batteries in the 105-amp range, that means a 10 amp-hour charger left on the battery for a little over 11 hours will bring it to full charge. (Battery engineers say to allow about 10 percent extra time for current leakage.) So, if you have a 10-amp charger designed to simultaneously charge two or three batteries, and you typically charge up overnight, then a 10-amp system will be adequate—so long as you’re not fishing until 9 at night and starting at 5 a.m. the next morning, in which case a 20-amp charger would be a better bet.

The more amps the charger puts out, the more it costs, so you don’t want to buy more than you need. Don’t underbuy for your needs, either, or you won’t be happy with the result. As an example, the ProSport 12-amp charger for dual 12-volt batteries as needed for your 24-volt troller costs around $140, while the ProSport 20-amp for 24-volt systems is around $180. If you didn’t care about the extra $40, why not just buy the biggest charger available? Because with a battery having limited amps and a very large charger, it’s not hard to overheat the battery. This is why you won’t see on-board chargers designed for bass boats with outputs higher than 20 amps. (Yachts, which have monster batteries to start diesel engines often have larger chargers up to 50 amps, with yacht-style prices, too, over $700!)

Another consideration in picking a charger is whether your batteries are lead/acid, absorbed glass mat (AGM) or gel. The latter two batteries are more expensive but leakproof and generally hold a charge much longer when not used. Lead/acid batteries and AGM’s can initially charge to 14.6 volts, but gels may be damaged by that much input because it’s recommended maximum charge is 14.1 volts. If you have gel batteries, this means you need a charger that has a setting on it especially designated for gel cells. When the charge reaches 14.1 volts, it drops to trickle-charge level. Though you’re only talking a half-volt difference, battery makers say overcharging repeatedly to that level is enough to seriously shorten the life of a gel.

Portable Chargers
There’s no question that an on-board charger is the most convenient way to go, but if you have several boats or if you just want a charger around the garage to top off the lawn mower and your truck now and then, a portable may be the way to go. These use gator-clips to clamp on to the battery terminals, and they typically handle only one battery at a time—fine for recharging the 12-volt troller in your john boat, but not such a good solution for a 24-volt system on a larger bassing rig because you’ll have to swap the charger leads from one to the other sometime the night. Portables are considerably less expensive than on-board models, with a unit like the little MinnKota 5 amp 12-volt going for around $55. Minn Kota also offers a portable 5-amp for 24 volt systems, which sells for about $95. Charge Pro has a 6-amp, 12-volt model for around $70. Ten to 15-amp portables are also available, and are probably a better choice if you often fish several days back-to-back. Vector makes a series of smart chargers designed for automobile batteries. They’re not water resistant but I’ve used one on my boats for years. The 2/10/15 model, about $75, is one of the best for boaters. It’s available at Cabela’s and other outlets. The Cadillac of portables for recreational use is the West Marine 30-amp portable, which has nine selections of charge outputs, LED monitoring readouts for charge level, temperature, battery type, reversed polarity and battery fault. It sells for $180.

Charge On The Go
Battery isolators are another solution to keeping your deep cycles charged all day. These systems tap into the charge being generated by the outboard any time it’s running, and feeds to your accessory batteries. If you run a reasonable amount of time each day, they’re likely to provide enough juice to keep your trolling motor and livewells happy.

MinnKota makes units designed for 12, 24 or 36-volt systems, and prices range from under $100 to around $170. Wiring is relatively simple on most boats. One set of wires taps the system into your ignition and starting battery, so that it functions anytime the motor is started. Other wires run to the positive and negative terminals on your trolling motor batteries. Crank up and your deep-cycles get a portion of the charge coming from the motor’s alternator. Isolators produce heat, so they have to be mounted so that the cooling fins are unobstructed. It’s best not to install them on carpeted surfaces, or anything else that might be damaged by heat.

Wells Marine Technology makes the BattMax II, a single unit which will charge 12, 24 or 36 volt systems, and also has an emergency start parallel switch that allows you to tap the deep cycles at the flip of a lever to kick off the outboard, should you ever need it. It sells for about $280. And the 2530 Isolator from Guest (www.marinco.com), is a 20-amp model that goes for about $120 in the two-battery version.

Note that these systems are not going to help you much if you are the type of angler who runs five minutes to his fishing spot, works the shoreline for an hour, then runs 10 more minutes to your next spot and so on. The motor may not run long enough to do you much good. On the other hand, if you run for an hour to get to your spot, as you might on the big TVA lakes and similars—then odds are the system could give you a big boost when you need it.

You can also get hookups that will attach your boat’s deep cycles to the charging system of your tow vehicle, so that you can be charging your batteries all the way to the ramp and back home. Wells Marine also makes one of these, called the HitchHyker, for around $115.

More Information:
Visit: www.cabelas.com; www.marinco; www.minnkota.com; www.promarine.com; www.wellsmarinetech.com; www.westmarine.com.

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