kayak battery for sonar

[saintsix]

I just picked up a 2019 outback and a hook2 5 to go with it, looking for ideas to power it. ive seen good reviews on the nocqua battery. theyre small and lighter but cant seem to find anywhere in Canada that has them. anyone know where I can get them or of any others similar?

[old dog]

Just us the rechargeable 30$ ones from TFH or other places. The one u use for ice cameras, flashers etc. That all I use on my kayak

[HuyFishin]

Currently I'm using the 12v10amp sla battery from the fishing hole for my kayak

[RavYak]

Originally Posted by saintsix

I just picked up a 2019 outback and a hook2 5 to go with it, looking for ideas to power it. ive seen good reviews on the nocqua battery. theyre small and lighter but cant seem to find anywhere in Canada that has them. anyone know where I can get them or of any others similar?

Nice kayak, I use a 2017 Outback and the new 2019 ones look great.

The Nocqua batteries are decent but they are pricey and I believe you do have to get them from the states. I know one guy that bought one and he had to pay quite a bit for shipping. They are only 10 aH which is good for single day trips but not big enough for a big weekend trips.

Here is one option that is a bit more money but is higher capacity and waterproof. Works out to around $250 cad shipped vs Nocqua for around $200 for smaller battery.

https://www.fpv-power.com.au/kayakba...&product_id=51

Other options include the regular SLA batteries. A 7 or 8 aH will only last a full day if that so I recommend a larger version. I like to do multi day trips and use a bigger fish finder so I use a 35 aH battery but it weighs over 20 lbs which sucks.

Edit: Oh and avoid the Wilderness Systems battery like the plague. Looks super appealing but it is junk.

[thumper]

The 4.4 Ah Nocqua, with charger, is available on Amazon.ca for $140.
I expect it would last about the same as a set of 8 x AA batteries - about 12 hours on my basic Lowrance.

[southernman]

I run a sealed lead acid battery 7.2 or 10 amp hr, run you $40-50 from Canadian tire, I put it in a sealed water proof container, and build a small harness to clip on terminals and a connector. (detuz) in my case, then to to power supply for fish finder, 7.2 volt will last all day, on a small humming bird 718 unit. Add a fuse,
I use my kayak in the salt, so have built up a bit more robust system, that likely need on Alberta lakes,
I take a couple extra battery's, if away on a longer trip.

[saintsix]

the nocqua is listed in the hobie catalogue and I was able to get the company I bought the kayak from to order one in. but they are not cheap $185 for the kit. thanks for all the replys

[RavYak]

Originally Posted by thumper

The 4.4 Ah Nocqua, with charger, is available on Amazon.ca for $140.
I expect it would last about the same as a set of 8 x AA batteries - about 12 hours on my basic Lowrance.

4.4 Ah is too small. The 10 Ah is what you need for a full day.

The Lowrance Hook2 5 inch unit has a power consumption rating of 1200 watts max(1 amp at 12 volt) which means you would only get 4 hours at full power draw. Lets say it runs at 500 mA(closer to what I would expect based on experience with 5 inch fish finders), that is around 8 hrs with the 4.4 size battery(to fully drained).

Sizing batteries is pretty easy, all you need to know is your power consumption and how long you want to run fish finder. Most 5 inch screen fish finders are around 500 mA, 7 inch around 1 A, larger units can be 2+ A. Most manufacturers have power draw spec on website/manual. Lowering screen brightness drastically reduces power draw on these units.

[thumper]

Thanks for the information Ravyak. My basic Lowrance is rated for 800 watts, but I'll look for a 10 Ah.

[StringTheory]

Originally Posted by RavYak

Nice kayak, I use a 2017 Outback and the new 2019 ones look great.

Edit: Oh and avoid the Wilderness Systems battery like the plague. Looks super appealing but it is junk.

Why do you say the wilderness system battery is junk? I have one to run my helix 5. The helix draws 615 ma. It's been a decent battery so maybe I am missing something? It easily lasts me all day. Having to turn the battery on before the fish finder is a bit annoying but not a deal breaker. Bought mine from Aquabatics. They are $160 regular but were on sale at the boat and sportsmen show last year.

[RavYak]

Originally Posted by Runamuk

Why do you say the wilderness system battery is junk? I have one to run my helix 5. The helix draws 615 ma. It's been a decent battery so maybe I am missing something? It easily lasts me all day. Having to turn the battery on before the fish finder is a bit annoying but not a deal breaker. Bought mine from Aquabatics. They are $160 regular but were on sale at the boat and sportsmen show last year.

The main issue with them is if you try to use them for a larger fish finder(like 7 inch screen) but I know others have had issues with battery life and not charging properly too. Sounds like you got a good one but I know of at least 4 bad ones.

I was going to buy 2 of them and get rid of my big battery but they don't work with my Elite Ti 7 which isn't even a big fish finder... From their website.

The recommended limit for our battery is 12v, 1.0 Amp. This limit accommodates most popular fish finders but there are some exceptions. Fish finders that do not work well with the Lithium Battery typically exceed either the 12v or 1.0 Amp parameters. See the two popular examples below.

Garmin 73sv – current draw is 12v 1.41Ah. Ah is higher than our battery compatibility.
Lowrance 7TI – current draw is 13v 0.9Ah. Voltage is higher than our battery compatibility.

Which shows how little they understand about batteries and fish finders because a) current draw should be in amps not amp hours and b) Elite Ti 7 doesn't require a higher voltage and can operate at below 12 volt. No fish finder requires an exact voltage, they are built to run on 12 volt systems(usually 10-17 volts) and the current used depends on the voltage in the battery and the power requirement of the fish finder(a fish finder will draw higher current at a lower voltage in order to get enough power).

** Please note that if the battery shuts down while powering on your fish finder, the battery is performing as designed for your safety. In this case, our protection circuit is sensing over current demand and shutting the battery off. This prevents damage to the fish finder and prevents a hazardous situation with battery overdraw. Other competitive batteries do not feature the same protection as ours does.

In other words they used inferior batteries that can't withstand current draws required by most 7+ inch fish finders and built some sort of protection system into them to avoid issues. Don't worry about damaging your fish finder, a proper fish finder installation includes a fuse to do that...

[masssalmon]

You can get a $40 Lowrance depth finder right now at Westmarine. Great brand, great price.

As for a battery, any sealed 12v battery will work.

[StringTheory]

I was thinking of picking up a second wilderness systems battery for this season. There aren't many reviews for the battery that aren't fluff pieces so its nice to have more opinions. I knew about the limited current draw for larger units, I was thinking two batteries wired in parallel would make it work, but why should you have to right? lol.

I guess I will be looking at the nocqua batteries when its time for an upgrade.

Thanks RavYak.

[RavYak]

Originally Posted by Runamuk

I was thinking of picking up a second wilderness systems battery for this season. There aren't many reviews for the battery that aren't fluff pieces so its nice to have more opinions. I knew about the limited current draw for larger units, I was thinking two batteries wired in parallel would make it work, but why should you have to right? lol.

I guess I will be looking at the nocqua batteries when its time for an upgrade.

Thanks RavYak.

You can find some examples of issues in the following thread if you search through it.

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/in...?topic=77518.0

The following thread is by a guy that claims it is only 5 Ah. http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/in...?topic=84409.0

I think the first batch of batteries were really bad. They might have fixed some of those issues as it does sound like they have made some changes.

When it first was announced I was excited for them. The price is very reasonable and extra features like usb charger would be nice to have.

I am tempted by that FPV 17.5 aH I posted earlier. Can find a couple good reviews of them and reasonably priced considering they come from Australia.

[StringTheory]

Thanks for the link to the NorCal Kayak forums, another kayak fish resource is always appreciated! I like the features of the battery too, the usb's are handy to have. Its crazy to think the battery was only 5Ah, mine is definitely okay, I can get 12hrs out of it whereas my couple year old 7Ah SLA only lasts 4. That FPV battery does look awesome, there are new batteries coming out each year, hopefully someone locally starts carrying them! I heard GPS central out of Calgary was going to stock the Nocqua but its not on their website yet.

Sorry for the hijack SaintSix.

[saintsix]

all good info here on topic, so its not hijacking.