Help- Fish finder,,,battery question...

I bought a fish finder -Lowrance 5 chirp from cabellas for $150.00 and was thinking and looking at batteries and had an Idea..

Can I use a Car jump starter that I buy from walmart as a battery for my finder as they are made to RECHARGE, HAVE CIGERATTE PLUGS FOR CHARGING MY PHONE,AND ARE SEALED IN NEAT PACKAGE...PLUS LED LIGHT? only $50.00

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Stanley-600-P ... 9/14560015

Please respond if I am on the wrong direction on this?

that would probly work, its 12v and small, but a new 9ah 12v battery like used for electric gates can be had at Home Depot for under $50

12v 9ah battery and Battery Tender Junior

http://www.amazon.com/Sealed-Lead-Acid- ... +9ah&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/Battery-Tender-02 ... der+junior

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Can you use a 12volt 12ah battery and get more use per trip or how do you know how many ah to get? I want one to power my fish finder and eventually run some led light strips inside and out side my Yak and maybe charge my cell phone. But I want it to be able to last a long day with some power to spare. I don't want to run out! Lol! Thanks!

I actually run two 9ah batteries wired in parallel, which theoretically gives me 18ah and use a marine switch panel to control everything.

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nice setup!!

Pa Teeny, I didn't see an aH rating on that jump starter. I suspect that it might not provide power for a long enough period. I have that unit, interestingly, and I have an issue with the car charger receivers - not all charge units seat properly. Some work, but some don't...

I went with K2 9.6ah LiFe's to power my Elite7, GPS, lights, and usb charger. I already use a lot of LiPo's and LiFe's with my RC stuff so charging is not a problem. The LiFe's have a great discharge curve, can be drained down to 10 volts and charged at up to 9amps without balancing. The newer Genius chargers also do Lithium.
Really surprised how light they are probably 1/3 the weight of the SLA's.



Brian

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On the bank of the Bow River

What guage of wire should I use to essentially accomplish the same thing you have here?

That is a very nice and clean set up! Where did you get the marine switch and how much was it?

What does the battery holder and batteries cost each? The one thing i dont like about the battery holder is that water can get to the batteries and I have heard if they get wet it can cause a fire or some kind of problem. Not real sure what the problem was though.

Thanks for your post very nice!!!

i use the 12v 7ah battery with marine wire soldered on the terminals and marine glue heatshrink over that connection. i then crimp on the delphi weatherpack connector to the battery wires just like the one that comes on the hobie batteries. i run the wires to a dualbus bus bar with heatshrink sealing ring terminals https://www.bluesea.com/products/2701/DualBus_100A_BusBar_-_5_Circuit keeps all the salt water out of my wiring, and i can connect tons of stuff (lights, FF etc) to the buss bar without tampering with current wiring. if you have the proper crimping tools you can make a permanent seal to keep your wiring from disintegrating

I have stayed with the SLA batteries because they are safe ( won't explode and catch fire), relatively inexpensive and reliable.

As noted above, the Battery Tender Jr. is a good "smart charger" that will not over charge a SLA.

My PA-14 has such a high weight capacity, using a heavier SLA battery is a non issue.

SLA's have been used in "home computer battery back up power supplies" for more than 25 years. The typical battery life is 3 to 5 years.

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Dr.SteelheadCatcher
Warrenton, OR

Not I, a good LIPO battery with balanced charge can be a big advantage in weight and time operating on the water. Used a non balanced LIPO (similar as Tombsy above, but bigger) for the past 3 years and it worked good till it lost it (I fish a lot). Here is my latest LIPO battery, 16ah, much cheaper and better than the K2's, should hold enough charge for approximately 32 hours of runtime on my Lowrance TI and only weighs 2lbs 14oz or 1290g. I either use a small bucket for the hatch on the TI or a water proof case for my Revo 11. Now only $50. If you don't have a balanced charger, get one while your at it. You will also need the proper chords/adapters or/and do your own soldering.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/stor ... duct=66486

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Mark
Tandem Island- 2013
2 - Sports - 2014

The car jump starter has a charger built in and unit is not made for a wet environment probably would not make one trip unless you are fishing in ponds. First time it gets wet it's done.

Probably not your best choice for marine applications...Our 9ah 12V sealed lead acid battery should run your fish finder for 8-10 hours. You can even get two, and use one for backup, or bridge together like some guys are doing on the forums.

*72025001 9ah 12V SLA battery, retail $59.99, charger not included
*72025002 12V Hobie battery charger, retail $39.9939.99

There's also the Lowrance Fishfinder install kit - part no. 72020070, retail $114 (best value) that includes:

*12V, 9ah waterproof battery
*Charger
*wiring hardware
*battery holder

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Howie Strech
Parts & Accessories Product Manager
Hobie Cat USA

I use 14 gauge wire... I solder and shrink tube all connections.

Next year's kayak will have the switch panel installed in the center hatch, into a Hobie Hatch Drop-In Bucket

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