Elecrtic powaaaaaa!

Has anyone used any of the solar panel chargers? My 4 horse died on me so Im stuck with my bow mount Kota for the time being. Im thinking of running 2 marine batteries in parallel with a solar panel and a digital charge controller. Im wondering if 15w .40amp would even be enough to charge a standby? Electric mumbo jumbo is not my thing. Im a machinist. Any ideas other than hunt for a new motor lol. Im a full time college student so money is tight.

Hope this fits in with boat maintenance.

Btw, Im pushing a 14ft Kalamath dlx. So dont worry Im not heading into the bay with a 20ft glass boat. lol

-Chris

Id be all over a new motor if money wasnt an issue. Ive been laid off for a good while and decided to go back to school. As of right now the Ranger need tires and Im trying to put my VW bus motor back together. Id be stretched thin if I committed to another motor for the boat. There sure are a bunch of good deals though to be had out there! Thats why Im just trying to make my current set up a bit more reliable and last longer on the water. Until I get another gasser that is.

The solar charger you mention is something that would only work as a maintenance charger. You'd likely have to add another decimal place to that 15W to make it something capable of doing a recharge. Best bet is to have 2 batteries and a 110v source to recharge.

You should be able to get around 6 hours a day out of one battery. Rather than hooking 2 up together, I would alternate batteries every day if I could keep one on a regular battery charger while the other is being used.

Kokanee-Toni said:

I know if money were not an issue you would also be buying new and not used. I can sympathize with not having enough money. I would be hard pressed if something went haywire.

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Used is new to me!golucky At this point in my life anyway lol. Soon enough Ill be back to work worrying about having time to go fishing 101ok101

Thanks Super D. Thats what I was wondering. My biggest problem is I go camping in many places without a 110 source while lake hoping. But Like you said, Ill run two batteries and just trade off. I have been doing that very thing but I believe my marines are coming to their demise as well. I can always throw a much larger solar panel on top of the truck and trickle charge the not in use bat while camping. As long as Im on the lake I dont mind how I do it. Paddles are on the boat for that matter.

-Chris

The problem with the camper solar if you don't already have it, is the system you need runs about $1,300 - $1,500 for panels, inverter and controls. A small Honda Eu1000 or Eu2000 generator is a lot less expensive. But still more than getting that used but new to you replacement engine.

All to true. If all else fails revert to the KISS method. Keep It Simple Stupid. Ill just rock the Kota for as long as I can. Just thought there was some easy way to charge on the go. Thanks for all the help.

-Chris

I run my fish finder of a 10w Solar. It's cheap and easy to do you'd want a 10amp 12v sun saver. I would bet a 45w would maintain your batteries almost effortlessly. If your battery starts out fully charged the sun saver will have no problem keeping up with them . This can also be done for under a $200 bucks. Heres a couple of links for you hope they help.

http://www.civicsolar.com/product/morningstar-ss-10-12v

http://www.civicsolar.com/product/et-solar-et-m53645-45watt-solar-panel

Mike

101idea101

Mike said:

I run my fish finder of a 10w Solar. It's cheap and easy to do you'd want a 10amp 12v sun saver. I would bet a 45w would maintain your batteries almost effortlessly. If your battery starts out fully charged the sun saver will have no problem keeping up with them . This can also be done for under a $200 bucks. Heres a couple of links for you hope they help.

http://www.civicsolar.com/product/morningstar-ss-10-12v

http://www.civicsolar.com/product/et-solar-et-m53645-45watt-solar-panel

Mike

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Interesting, I did however fix my 15 horse. But now that I have done that my last marine battery has decided to give up. Time to re evaluate the situation. New battery or batteries. A fellow kokanee colleague has told me about a 6v series system that has "sparked" my interest so to speak101smily101