Starting battery

[parkj5]

Guys I fished for the first time yesterday the longest trip sense I bought my 920. I have a new interstate group 31 850 CCA AGM battery. I caught my first fish around 7 Am this morning filled my live well up and switched it to recirculate. I have 2 helix 12” graphs. And also I have talons and use them a lot as I am a shallow water fisherman. Around noon I shut my console helix off. Around 2 Pm my battery was toast dead. I want to stay with the AGM style battery as I can’t afford lithium batteries. I do plan on installing the megalive in next few months. My question is do i install another battery to keep my power up or is it any good battery options? Thanks

[PoppaChuck]

Watching

[haus9393]

Seems odd because if it’s a group 31 it should be around 100ah battery which should easily be able to handle a load of 2 helix 12s and a live well pump for well over 12 hours. Are you absolutely sure the cranking battery was fully charged and reading over 12.8v prior to leaving the house? Honestly a fresh agm might be more like 13.0v on a full charge. I’d recharge and verify 100% full charge and then see what happens next time you go out.

helix 12 uses about 1.75 amps per hour and you have 2 of them so let’s call it 4amps per hour of graph power drain. Each pump uses about 1 amp per hour so you are consuming somewhere around 5amps per hour. Talon cycles aren’t going to toast a battery.

100ah battery divided by 5 amps of usage per hour is about 20 hours of juice with your setup but realistically with lead acid you will probably get a good 12-14 hours of use before any low voltage alarms and the fact it only lasted 6-7 hours tells me either something on your boat has an issue and is toasting the battery such as a bad alternator or motor in the talon or your battery was only charged to 50% before you started your day. 50% charge on the battery will be about 12.00v and like I said before 100% would be around 12.80-13.00v.

[Bartman]

Here's my thoughts. Bite the bullet and get this https://drewcraft.com/product/125ah-...thium-battery/

You will never have to buy another cranking battery for 10+ years and it will handle all your needs. I'm running two Helix 12s with 360, Garmin 126 Ultra with LS, dual poles, and pumps for over 8 hours and the lowest I have ever seen is 58% at the end of the day.

Otherwise, you'll be buying another AGM and running it in parallel or buying the Power Pole Charge. Either way you will be spending money so subtract that off the price of lithium, pay a little more and be done with it for years to come.

[Bjxds]

You may need a new battery, but... I agree with haus9393. I have a group 31 925 CCA 1900AH 200 RC,( No Issues) the size battery you have is probably not the problem.

When I need to replace my batteries, both trolling and starting I will most likely go with lithium. IMHO lithiums are better options for low usage than LA, because they hold charge much longer, less leakdown.

[ThomasD]

Seems odd because if it’s a group 31 it should be around 100ah battery which should easily be able to handle a load of 2 helix 12s and a live well pump for well over 12 hours. Are you absolutely sure the cranking battery was fully charged and reading over 12.8v prior to leaving the house? Honestly a fresh agm might be more like 13.0v on a full charge. I’d recharge and verify 100% full charge and then see what happens next time you go out.

helix 12 uses about 1.75 amps per hour and you have 2 of them so let’s call it 4amps per hour of graph power drain. Each pump uses about 1 amp per hour so you are consuming somewhere around 5amps per hour. Talon cycles aren’t going to toast a battery.

100ah battery divided by 5 amps of usage per hour is about 20 hours of juice with your setup but realistically with lead acid you will probably get a good 12-14 hours of use before any low voltage alarms and the fact it only lasted 6-7 hours tells me either something on your boat has an issue and is toasting the battery such as a bad alternator or motor in the talon or your battery was only charged to 50% before you started your day. 50% charge on the battery will be about 12.00v and like I said before 100% would be around 12.80-13.00v.

Lead acids and AGM's are only good for about half their rated capacity before the voltage gets too low to run electronics or start your motor. Also, a 500gph livewell pump uses about 1.6a.

[Sefty77]

Just a heads up, if you have the new Merc four stroke, 850 CCA doesn't cover what Merc wants (975+ CCA). Check out the link below for requirements. It helped me choose a battery since the place I bought my boat installed a battery that didn't cover the minimum requirements.

https://www.bbcboards.net/showthread.php?t=20671

I've been running the X2 SLI31AGMDPM. Been running (3) 12" and (1) 9" Lowrance, active target and the boat with the X2. It's gets me through a full day. Of course I make the average runs between spots. It's 450 with a core.

[Phoenix Ed]

Even if you have a 2 stroke outboard, that 850 CCA is not enough. Get you and X2 Group 31 and never look back.

[parkj5]

I got a replacement battery this morning under warranty. I am going to do a 12 hour test with live wells and graphs on tonight. I will upgrade batteries right after Christmas time but for now ill have to make this work.

[haus9393]

You said it was a “brand new” battery. Does this mean 1 day old or 6 months old?

[parkj5]

The battery I changed this morning I bought Oct. 12 of this year. It was bad they tested it.Also thanks everyone for the responses you guys are a lot of help Thanks Guys!!

[Tom Edwards]

A blue top Optima battery I bought years ago was bad from the beginning. So had it exchanged for another new one.

[parkj5]

So I did my test during the night. I filled a live well with water and put it in recycling and I had both my graphs on. I started the test at 8 Pm last night and stopped everything at 5 AM this morning. I checked voltage on my battery and it was at 8.5 volts. I did notice that the recirculating pump kicked on and off quite often but didn’t time it. The voltage on the new battery at start of the test was 12.5 volts. Looks like I have completely messed up and bought a battery that is say to small for some odd reason I was thinking this was an interstate battery but it’s an excite battery my trolling batteries are interstate.I took a picture of the tag on my starting battery and I was reading the tag way wrong. Seems this battery only has 650 CCA but has 850 MCA so looks like this battery is going in the aluminum boat. I can tell you I have learned a lot about batteries during this mess lol. I will be buying an Interstate group 31 XHD 1000 CCA battery today it’s the first battery on the approved list from this site.

[bassfisher444]

Seems odd because if it’s a group 31 it should be around 100ah battery which should easily be able to handle a load of 2 helix 12s and a live well pump for well over 12 hours. Are you absolutely sure the cranking battery was fully charged and reading over 12.8v prior to leaving the house? Honestly a fresh agm might be more like 13.0v on a full charge. I’d recharge and verify 100% full charge and then see what happens next time you go out.

helix 12 uses about 1.75 amps per hour and you have 2 of them so let’s call it 4amps per hour of graph power drain. Each pump uses about 1 amp per hour so you are consuming somewhere around 5amps per hour. Talon cycles aren’t going to toast a battery.

100ah battery divided by 5 amps of usage per hour is about 20 hours of juice with your setup but realistically with lead acid you will probably get a good 12-14 hours of use before any low voltage alarms and the fact it only lasted 6-7 hours tells me either something on your boat has an issue and is toasting the battery such as a bad alternator or motor in the talon or your battery was only charged to 50% before you started your day. 50% charge on the battery will be about 12.00v and like I said before 100% would be around 12.80-13.00v.

It's an Interstate battery so it is probably bad.

[bassfisher444]

Even if you have a 2 stroke outboard, that 850 CCA is not enough. Get you and X2 Group 31 and never look back.

850 CCA is enough for a 2 stroke, they only require 800 CCA.

[haus9393]

So I did my test during the night. I filled a live well with water and put it in recycling and I had both my graphs on. I started the test at 8 Pm last night and stopped everything at 5 AM this morning. I checked voltage on my battery and it was at 8.5 volts. I did notice that the recirculating pump kicked on and off quite often but didn’t time it. The voltage on the new battery at start of the test was 12.5 volts. Looks like I have completely messed up and bought a battery that is say to small for some odd reason I was thinking this was an interstate battery but it’s an excite battery my trolling batteries are interstate.I took a picture of the tag on my starting battery and I was reading the tag way wrong. Seems this battery only has 650 CCA but has 850 MCA so looks like this battery is going in the aluminum boat. I can tell you I have learned a lot about batteries during this mess lol. I will be buying an Interstate group 31 XHD 1000 CCA battery today it’s the first battery on the approved list from this site.

do not go buy a group 31 interstate. You didn’t even have the battery fully charged prior to your test. 12.5v is only about 70% charged.

[parkj5]

do not go buy a group 31 interstate. You didn’t even have the battery fully charged prior to your test. 12.5v is only about 70% charged.

The battery I have doesn’t meet the CCA Mercury requirements the one I have has only 650 CCA

[Sefty77]

So I did my test during the night. I filled a live well with water and put it in recycling and I had both my graphs on. I started the test at 8 Pm last night and stopped everything at 5 AM this morning. I checked voltage on my battery and it was at 8.5 volts. I did notice that the recirculating pump kicked on and off quite often but didn’t time it. The voltage on the new battery at start of the test was 12.5 volts. Looks like I have completely messed up and bought a battery that is say to small for some odd reason I was thinking this was an interstate battery but it’s an excite battery my trolling batteries are interstate.I took a picture of the tag on my starting battery and I was reading the tag way wrong. Seems this battery only has 650 CCA but has 850 MCA so looks like this battery is going in the aluminum boat. I can tell you I have learned a lot about batteries during this mess lol. I will be buying an Interstate group 31 XHD 1000 CCA battery today it’s the first battery on the approved list from this site.

Hate to point this out, but the Interstate you're talking about isn't an AGM. Merc four strokes 150 and above require an AGM. Don't feel to bad, I went down the same road with mine.

[Sefty77]

AGM BATTERIES: Suitable for ANY Alternator-Based Outboard Engine (DTS (All), Verado (All), Fourstroke (150+hp including the V6/V8 Fourstroke), Optimax (all) or (Alternator-Based 2-Stroke EFI engines ONLY)).

Label Brand	Part Number	Retailer	CCA	MCA	RC	Weight	Group	Technology	Manufacturer
Vmax	XCA31-1400	Various	1200	1400	205	78	31	AGM	VMAX USA
Odyssey	31M-PC2150	Various	1150	NR	205	77.8	31	AGM	Enersys
Northstar	NSB-AGM-31M	Various	1150	1370	220	75	31	AGM	Enersys
NLA-BPS Pro Series X-900	31	BPS/Cabela's	1150	1370	220	75	31	AGM	Enersys
Batteries Plus X2 Power	SLI31AGMDPM	Batteries Plus	1150	1370	220	75	31	AGM	Enersys

[Phoenix Ed]

850 CCA is enough for a 2 stroke, they only require 800 CCA.

I think my 250 Pro XS needed more. If it was 800 then there was no room for anything else. Go big or stay at home!!