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I have a transom mount 38lbs thrust trolling motor... its on a 14' aluminum... i need a decent battery that will last the day out fishing... will mostly use it to keep my drifts straight and to slow some of the drifts down... i know battery questions have been asked before but i never read them cause they didn't pertain to me... any help would be appreciated... Trying to watch cost also... i know you get what you pay for but it would be nice to trim some spending...

I have a 40lb minn-kota power drive with a 15ft boat. I had a nautilus deep cycle battery with a 160 minute reserve from cdn tire and it lasted about 3 seasons, which i suspect is average.

Unfortunately at Westmeath the battery was officially dead so i was forced to get what i could locally. I managed to go for a deep cycle ever-ready with a 140 minute reserve which i think will be more than enough for a day on the water. The total cost was about $80 incl taxes.

I found the 160 minute was still holding a reasonable charge after a full day of heavy use and opted for a slightly smaller reserve capacity to save on the weight side of things.

Only time will tell if that's a better sized battery for my application.

Hi Jammer,

I have a 55PD Minn kota and have recently bought a deep cycle battery. There is 3 groups to look for the 24, 27 and 31 Deep Cycle. 31 usually has a 225 minutes reserve and gives 130 Amps/Hour.

I chose between the marine master at 125$ (Group31) or the Trojan (150$) (Group31). The nautilus at C.T. Group 27 is about 110$....

I can tell you that any of these 2 batteries will last you all day if your motor does not draw to many amps.

Verify how many amps your motor draws at full speed.

Example: Minn Kotta 55PD draws 50 amps at full speed. The battery will run 1 hour at 130 amps. Do the math ! At low speed the motor can take 5 amps or 10, depending...This should give you a good idea.

Go with group 31 if you can add an extra 60 pound to your boat !

Good Luck...

I also had a CT Nautilus 31 it lasted 3 seasons. On FH advice I picked up the Trojan 31 new for this year - fingers are crossed but it has been great so far. Heavy 16ft Alum 55APD Minn

My latest deep cycle is the Trojan 27 group and I'm pleased with it so far after two seasons. I can go two days on a charge with a 48lb thrust. My last was interstate which lasted 5 seasons.
I went with group 27 for the lighter weight - have to carry it from the house to the river frequently.

Hi guys. I have a question regarding marine battery as well. After consuming all or most of the battery-life, how do I charge it? I was thinking of purchasing a battery at BPS (since they're having a sale in the marine department right now), but I need some input before buying one. I've read above that on average, the battery last for 3 seasons. Are we talking about 3 seasons of frequent use and recharging? Thanks for your help!

Thanks for your help fella's, i picked up a Nautilis today should do the trick....

For the charger get one for deep cycle batts that maintaines the charge a regular charger charges at a set amp and that will toast your new purchase. the best would be high amp then down to low or no charge then monitors the volts and charges as needed.