870 Expressmag
Petty Officer 2nd Class
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2011
- Messages
- 154
I have an older Meyers aluminum 15ft boat, tiller steer, 58" beam width. I currently have an Evinrude 18hp FastTwin elec start on it. I just purchased a MinnKota EnduraMaxx 55 trolling motor. I currently run the Lowrance Elite 4 fishfinder, and motor starter with a lawn and garden battery, and it works well. However now that i have the trolling motor i need to go to a deep cycle. The battery i currently use is 17lbs, and i put underneath the splash well in the rear center of the boat between the transom stabilizer brackets. The new battery i was looking at is a marine group 24 dual purpose starting/deep cycle, it weighs 65lbs. I am concerned about adding an additional 48lbs to the read of the boat, since i just added the trolling motor. I have lost 60lbs myself since february and it has made a world of difference in boat performance so i didnt wanna weight the rear back down again. I am now down to 265. My problem is where to put things, i dont have much wiring in the boat so now is the time to figure this all out before i start doing the wiring. I have heard that the enduramaxx motors with their power saving feature can mess with the fishfinder when connected to the same battery? anyone experience this? i dont want to have to have two batteries on board for more weight. I also have a bow mounted nav light, and a anchor/stern light on the port side. i also want to add a little panel of some sort to have my light switches and my bilge pump switch on. So, heres what i am asking, do i need two seperate batteries? where to locate my battery? where to locate switches? i usually run my fuel tank just aft or just fwd of the center seat, i really like it fwd, puts some weight up front when by myself. Compartment under front seat has 2 PFD cushions and a small box of tools in it. Heres a few pics for reference.
