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Author Topic: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires  (Read 3389 times)

charlys1954

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 MK Endura c2 40. Got tired of 1 battery not lasting long so I bought another and put both bats up front. I used 10g extension, a mistake. The Neg wire got hot yesterday so replacing both wires. 

Spent last night and this mourning researching, found many different opinions. Some said don't use jumper wires most are copper coated aluminum, some said they used CCA jumper wires for yrs with no problem, and one person said if using CCA wire use 1-2 gauges bigger than suggested.

So my question is if MK recommends 8g for extension up to 15', if I use 4g CCA jumper cables will it be ok.

12ft of 8g Marine grade tinned copper wire is expensive, $2-3 per/ft. Rural King has jumpers 16ft 4g for $12. The extension will be 12' long, both bats are 27 group 6 mths age difference.

I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

Mac Attack

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #1 on: Jul 26, 2019, 06:11 PM »
I have 4 batteries wired in series parallel for more capacity on my 24vdc Terova.

Read the thread and let me know if you have questions.  Mac



https://www.myfishfinder.com/fishing_forum/index.php?topic=74118.0

charlys1954

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #2 on: Jul 26, 2019, 11:08 PM »
I have 4 batteries wired in series parallel for more capacity on my 24vdc Terova.

Read the thread and let me know if you have questions.  Mac



https://www.myfishfinder.com/fishing_forum/index.php?topic=74118.0

read thru a few post didn't see anything pertaining to my post

 My post is about peoples opinion on what kind of wire to use to extend the wire from battery to TM, not how to hook the batteries together parrellel I already did that.

MK says use 8g for the length of the extension(up to 15'). I was thinking about using 16' 4g CCA jumper cables. 8g Marine Grade tinned copper wire is a little salty for me.
I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

rgfixit

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #3 on: Jul 27, 2019, 05:21 AM »
I'm a retired electrician. 4 ga jumper cables will be fine. Just pick up a decent set. I wouldn't use copper coated aluminum. Too much expansion and contraction under load.Don't buy the cheap Wally World cables. The lugs you use to connect to the batteries are as important as the wire you use.

Use a copper lug like this with dielectric grease.


Rg
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

Mac Attack

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #4 on: Jul 27, 2019, 08:22 AM »
read thru a few post didn't see anything pertaining to my post

 My post is about peoples opinion on what kind of wire to use to extend the wire from battery to TM, not how to hook the batteries together parrellel I already did that.

MK says use 8g for the length of the extension(up to 15'). I was thinking about using 16' 4g CCA jumper cables. 8g Marine Grade tinned copper wire is a little salty for me.

Sorry bout that
It was late.
Like Bob suggested, I have 4 ga going to trolling motor.
The interconnect cables running my rear batteries forward to their mates and the trolling motor are heavy 2/0 gage, 00 AWG.  I had a friend who owns an electrical panel shop build them and sweat the terminals on them.  These cables are an over kill for the trolling motor but they were originally built for my 16’ Mirrocraft tiller so I could move the starting battery to the bow for better weight distribution.  I also moved the fuel up there too.  Made the boat ride far better when I was running it solo.

Hope that helped.
Good luck.

Mac

rgfixit

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #5 on: Jul 27, 2019, 10:40 AM »
Yeah, the biggest issue in a D.C. Circuit is voltage drop due to resistance. Copper coated aluminum conductors have half again the resistance of solid copper conductors. That creates excessive voltage drop.

Soldering the terminals to the wire would be the best solution. No reduction in ampacity due to crushed conductors.

Rg
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

charlys1954

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #6 on: Jul 27, 2019, 05:41 PM »
I'm a retired electrician. 4 ga jumper cables will be fine. Just pick up a decent set. I wouldn't use copper coated aluminum. Too much expansion and contraction under load.Don't buy the cheap Wally World cables. The lugs you use to connect to the batteries are as important as the wire you use.

Use a copper lug like this with dielectric grease.


Rg

The jumper cables I was going to use from Rural king are CCA wire jumpers. MK says to use 8g wire, so even if the jumpers are 4g CCA you're saying CCA would not be a good choice

I stopped at NAPA today and they had 8g copper stranded wire but it didn't look tinned which helps stop corrosion, it was $1.29/ft. So 2-12 ft pcs would cost me $31, not to bad I guess compared to the cheaper $12 4g CCA jumpers from Rural King

I planed on using regular lead battery terminals to connect to battery and compression lugs to the DIY terminal block I made that the TM wires connect to, will solder both. Its better to attach to the battery lead post than the battery threaded post.

I made a DIY POS/NEG terminal block to connect the TM and battery wire leads. Minn Kota terminals are fork terminals, can't cut them off cause it voids the warranty.







I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

rgfixit

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #7 on: Jul 27, 2019, 06:33 PM »
Still, I would use dielectric grease or no-ox at all the connection points.

Rg
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

charlys1954

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #8 on: Jul 27, 2019, 06:49 PM »
I always do that to help keep corrosion out. I will brush bearing grease all over the permanent connections after its tightened, but not the 2 washers I stick the TM fork terminal between when I go fishing. I never leave the TM connected when not in use.
I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

charlys1954

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #9 on: Jul 27, 2019, 07:47 PM »
Here's my DIY battery block terminal. A bolt going thru 1/4 plexiglass, a washer, a lock washer, nut, 2 washers, then wingnut.

I put the battery terminal in between the washer and lock washer, tighten nut and brush grease on just that part. Then when I go fishing I slide the TM fork terminal in between the 2 washers and tighten wingnut. Hard to see with small photo you have to click on it to enlarge.
There's a block of wood same size as the plexiglass that goes behind the bolt heads then I attach it all to my wooden transom and seal edges w/silicon. May look a little unsafe and rough but works for me.



I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

rgfixit

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #10 on: Jul 27, 2019, 08:24 PM »
Bearing grease does not have the same properties as dielectric grease or no- ox. It's for bearings not electrical connections.

Rg
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

charlys1954

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #11 on: Jul 27, 2019, 08:41 PM »
All I am doing is coating the outside to keep water out to stop rust. I am not applying it before I connect the battery terminal so the connection is metal against metal, current does not have to flow thru any grease. I did it to the battery connections this spring and have no corrosion yet. Dielectric grease does disrupts the flow of electrical current, right?

If I had some I would use it but not gona spent $6-7 for a 3-4 oz tube. Got plenty of grease so I use it but tks for the tip.
I'm a "Born in Ind" Redneck and proud of it

rgfixit

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #12 on: Jul 28, 2019, 03:57 AM »
Dielectric grease is a surface protector and not electrically conductive. It's generally silicone based, clear and less messy than No-ox. No-ox is electrically conductive and can be used within connections. It never really dries and looks similar to anti seize products.

But, whatever works for you.

Rg
If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

Mac Attack

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #13 on: Jul 28, 2019, 08:33 AM »
This is what I use to clean my batteries and connections.  Works very well.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BO9J52/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1



After cleaning this is what I use to protect things.  Not as messy as grease and it works well.

https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-80370-Battery-Protector-Aerosol/dp/B000BOKML2/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=Permatex+Battery&qid=1564320741&s=automotive&sr=1-1


I have lots of batteries in vehicles, the boats, and Donna's golf cart.
So I'm routinely doing battery maintenance.
It pays off in the long run.

Roccus

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Re: trolling motor moved batteries up front adding extention wires
« Reply #14 on: Jul 29, 2019, 06:23 AM »
Marine wire is expensive for a reason,  that being said, you do not want to solder wires on a boat. .it's a big no no.. and against ABYC code, soldering makes the wires stiff,  and prone to breaking, due to the many vibrations encountered. dielectric grease,a good crimp and heat shrink make a proper termination that when done correctly will last a lifetime time
When sizing extension wires remember your calculations are for round trip, not just one direction....most  trolling motor calculations are for a max % 5 voltage drops at max amp draw.

 



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