There’s more to it than just catching fish these days.As tournament Anglers it only takes one weak link in the chain to ruin your day on the Lake and keep you out of the money.With all the new electronics,GPS,aerators,bilge pumps,sonic wave and lights.Our battery’s are working harder and longer than ever before and need our help to better do their job.
Here are a few tips that have helped me over the years to get the most out of my batteries. Number one is as easy as just looking at your batteries before every trip.Look for any corrosion and check that your connections are tight.
If you have corrosion on your cables the fix is sometimes only a wire brush away.
But if the pretty copper color is no longer there and instead you have darker colored wires feeding into your connections.Then its time to cut the cables back about an inch from the end and replace the connections.
You will notice the performance difference with the trolling motor .Second,you should never store your battery half charged. always make sure it’s fully charged after each trip,This tip alone can double the life of you batteries .Third,not all batteries are maintenance free and if that’s your case the water level needs to be checked periodically.this is done by popping out the caps and simply giving them a look .NEVER do this without wearing safety glasses,you don’t want acid in your eyes.If the cells are low just add your regular old house water to the fill level and replace the caps.Forth,It can be a rough ride sometimes and batteries really don’t like being tossed about. Always make sure the batteries are properly secured,not only will this protect them from damage,But the last thing you want is a bunch of sparks flying around that close to the fuel tanks.The angler today has alot of batteries to choose from ,I like to support the companies that sponsor those of us in the fishing world.Good Luck on your next trip and I hope this helps some of you.
Bob Tyler