12V Battery Question

Stella · #1 11-16-2022, 02:42 PM

So i just upgraded from a Garmin Striker 4 Pro to a Garmin Striker Vivid 7SV. I was running a 12V 7.2AH battery. Question, should I upgrade my battery to a 9AH or 10AH for this new unit or will the 7.2AH get me thru 7-10 hours of fishing in the kayak during the open water season? Thanks!

calgarygringo · #2 11-16-2022, 02:52 PM

Move to a 10 amp Lithium and enjoy. More run time and way lighter to boot. Switched my wi ter toys and was a great move. Just hurts the pocket a bit.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stella

So i just upgraded from a Garmin Striker 4 Pro to a Garmin Striker Vivid 7SV. I was running a 12V 7.2AH battery. Question, should I upgrade my battery to a 9AH or 10AH for this new unit or will the 7.2AH get me thru 7-10 hours of fishing in the kayak during the open water season? Thanks!

AlbertanGP · #3 11-16-2022, 03:03 PM

Scroll down to your unit and see exactly how long each battery will last. Or take the manufacturer's amp draw and divide that into the battery's Ah rating.

mlee · #4 11-16-2022, 06:14 PM

I run a vivid 7 as well for one of my flashers. With the screen brightness on 60% a 7.2ah sla battery will get about 8-10 hours of run time. On a 10ah dakota I get about 18-20 hours. This is using it 90% in the tent.

English Setter · #5 11-17-2022, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stella

So i just upgraded from a Garmin Striker 4 Pro to a Garmin Striker Vivid 7SV. I was running a 12V 7.2AH battery. Question, should I upgrade my battery to a 9AH or 10AH for this new unit or will the 7.2AH get me thru 7-10 hours of fishing in the kayak during the open water season? Thanks!

A 10Ah lithium should give you close to double the time an equivalent sla. Because the voltage remains relatively higher than the sla with a given draw on power. I started with a 10 Ah Dakota for my Helix 7 and it lasts all day on the ice. Over time I have added Helix 9 and a mega live and power a network hub on my boat with with the Dakota and three more 10Ah Marcum Brutes. I’ve spent long days on the lake and never powered out. I put together a ammo box power box that is light and portable that I can remove for charging. The batteries were go on sale every few months, the Marcums come with a charger for $30 less than the Dakota. At the time, on sale , it was cheaper per Ah to go with 2. 10s than a 20.

Can anyone comment on performance of some of the lower priced alternative lithiums? Anything to avoid completely?

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AlbertanGP · #6 11-17-2022, 01:42 PM

There are only two or three makers of lithium cells in China. What's proprietary among manufacturers are their BMS (battery management systems). There are lots of lesser known, lower priced batteries out there that will perform just as well as Dakota Lithiums.

Buck Rogers · #7 11-19-2022, 01:30 PM

Check out “ice hole power” power on YouTube, Jeremy does a fantastic job of reviewing many different LipO4 batteries from lots of different manufacturers. The 10 ah marcum actually clocks in at 11.8 Ah, I run a single 30 Ah marcum to power my livescope with no complaints.

WayneChristie · #8 11-23-2022, 08:39 AM

TFH has some batteries on sale

Skabulon · #9 11-23-2022, 12:20 PM

I bought a 9AH lithium battery for my flasher from https://www.canbat.com/, price was good, delivery was fast, and I haven't had any issues with it so far.

fish99 · #10 11-25-2022, 09:32 AM

Picked up a 13.5 amp hour battery for $40 at battery world.
Used the helix 7 for 4 hours yesterday ice fishing
It still had 12.1 volts
My 7 amp hour would have been under 10 volts.

astepanuk · #11 11-25-2022, 09:42 AM

I ordered a 12V 18AH battery from Alberta Lithium great to deal with and an excellent price.
https://www.ablithium.ca/products#!/...IES/c/80046558

SNAPFisher · #12 11-25-2022, 10:24 AM

If you can afford it, lithium is amazing. In open water this year I made 10 trips with the fish finder on the entire time and the lithium did not need any recharging.
The AGM version of this story is 3-4 recharges would have been required.

Savage Bacon · #13 12-29-2022, 11:24 AM

Cabelas has a Dakota Lithium 10ah battery on sale for $99.99 regular $140. Is this a decent battery at a decent price? Plus the charger is about $30.

I'm just getting back into ice fishing now that my boy is big enough.

I have a Humminbird helix 5 that I would use year round.

I'm used to taking one of the deep cycles from my camper but it's a pain to lug around.

Also I have about a 2' Led strip for lighting. Would this battery power that as well?

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Savage Bacon · #14 12-29-2022, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savage Bacon

Cabelas has a Dakota Lithium 10ah battery on sale for $99.99 regular $140. Is this a decent battery at a decent price? Plus the charger is about $30.

I'm just getting back into ice fishing now that my boy is big enough.

I have a Humminbird helix 5 that I would use year round.

I'm used to taking one of the deep cycles from my camper but it's a pain to lug around.

Also I have about a 2' Led strip for lighting. Would this battery power that as well?

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I see the fishing hole has a Marcum 10ah for $144 that comes with a charger.

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ZJHoban · #15 12-29-2022, 11:49 AM

I use a dewalt flexvolt 9ah 20V for my fish finder. I bought an adapter for the battery that lowers the output to 12v then wired a 12v car outlets male/female to respective units.
Step Down DC Voltage Converter - amazon

I also have usb charging outlet attached for my phone etc.

The run time is well over a full day

SamSteele · #16 12-29-2022, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savage Bacon

Cabelas has a Dakota Lithium 10ah battery on sale for $99.99 regular $140. Is this a decent battery at a decent price? Plus the charger is about $30.

I'm just getting back into ice fishing now that my boy is big enough.

I have a Humminbird helix 5 that I would use year round.

I'm used to taking one of the deep cycles from my camper but it's a pain to lug around.

Also I have about a 2' Led strip for lighting. Would this battery power that as well?

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I use one to run my Helix 5 and another to run my Helix 8 with MegaLive. The Helix 5 will last a couple days ice fishing. The Helix 8 alone lasts a day and I have run 5 hours with the Helix 8 and Mega Live without running it dead.

They seem to be good batteries. Have had mine for 3 years.

SS

Savage Bacon · #17 12-29-2022, 02:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SamSteele

I use one to run my Helix 5 and another to run my Helix 8 with MegaLive. The Helix 5 will last a couple days ice fishing. The Helix 8 alone lasts a day and I have run 5 hours with the Helix 8 and Mega Live without running it dead.

They seem to be good batteries. Have had mine for 3 years.

SS

Great I think I'll pick one up

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SamSteele · #18 12-29-2022, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savage Bacon

Great I think I'll pick one up

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Just remember to turn your screen brightness down a bit and it helps every battery last longer.

Savage Bacon · #19 12-29-2022, 05:02 PM

^^^
I'll keep that in mind.

What maintenance do these batteries need? I wouldn't leave it on a low charge for too long, but is it OK to run these batteries down pretty low?

This thing is a lot smaller than the deep cycle out of my camper I've been lugging around.

And I already have a spare ammo box for its new home.

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AlbertanGP · #20 12-29-2022, 07:21 PM

Oddly enough, lithium batteries dislike a full charge just about as much as a complete discharge. If you're "in season" and using it regularly, charge it fully to get the longest usage time out of it. If you know you're going to be storing it for an extended period, keeping it around half charged is actually better for it. Lithium batteries are unique this way as far as I know.

Savage Bacon · #21 12-31-2022, 09:23 AM

Yesterday I ran my fish finder and led strip lights off of my new battery for about 5 hours. I checked when I got home and the battery was at 13.14 volts. Is this abnormally high?

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SamSteele · #22 12-31-2022, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savage Bacon

Yesterday I ran my fish finder and led strip lights off of my new battery for about 5 hours. I checked when I got home and the battery was at 13.14 volts. Is this abnormally high?

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The way I understand it, lithium batteries have an even discharge so they will show full until they are all of a sudden dead. A normal battery meter doesn’t accurately show the charge.

I’m not sure about the Garmin or Lowrance sonars, but on the Humminbird units you can select the battery as being lithium and that helps the built in battery meter to read a lithium battery more accurately.

SS

Savage Bacon · #23 12-31-2022, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SamSteele

The way I understand it, lithium batteries have an even discharge so they will show full until they are all of a sudden dead. A normal battery meter doesn’t accurately show the charge.

I’m not sure about the Garmin or Lowrance sonars, but on the Humminbird units you can select the battery as being lithium and that helps the built in battery meter to read a lithium battery more accurately.

SS

Ok we're heading out again tomorrow. I'll check to see what battery type is selected.

I will eventually build up my battery box with volt meter, lights, and plugs.

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Savage Bacon · #24 01-05-2023, 09:35 AM

Cabelas has the Marcum 10ah with charger on sale for $99.99

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Poppa · #25 01-05-2023, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SamSteele

The way I understand it, lithium batteries have an even discharge so they will show full until they are all of a sudden dead.

ahhh this explains a lot. We run our Helix 7 off a lithium and we were wondering about that this past weekend. It showed 100 for most of the weekend and then just died Sunday afternoon. Thought it strange, but this explains a lot...thanks SS!

SamSteele · #26 01-05-2023, 05:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poppa

ahhh this explains a lot. We run our Helix 7 off a lithium and we were wondering about that this past weekend. It showed 100 for most of the weekend and then just died Sunday afternoon. Thought it strange, but this explains a lot...thanks SS!

Make sure you change the battery type on your Helix, as that should help your battery meter read more accurately. Turning the screen brightness down helps too, especially if you are in a shack where it’s darker.

SS

Scott N · #27 01-10-2023, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Savage Bacon

Cabelas has the Marcum 10ah with charger on sale for $99.99

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I bought one of these today, charged it up, changed it over from my old battery in my ol' Marcum, and tomorrow I'll try it out. I think the sale on these ends tomorrow if anyone is interested.

Savage Bacon · #28 01-10-2023, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Scott N

I bought one of these today, charged it up, changed it over from my old battery in my ol' Marcum, and tomorrow I'll try it out. I think the sale on these ends tomorrow if anyone is interested.

Sounds good let us know how you make out.

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