Setting up trolling motor...help

[maxwell.riddle]

So im new to bass boats, and new to the site, trying to get some help.

I recently got a 1988 skeeter bass boat. it has a trolling motor on it but isnt hooked up. i kinda need some help. so where you plug in the trolling motor i have a switch that reads 2/12v (charge) on top, 12v in the middle and 12/24v (run) on the bottom. i took the face plate off to look at the wires and they come out of both the switch and the receptacle for the trolling motor and go into 2 plastic conjunctions(im not good at electrical vocabulary. excuse my ignorance). but on the one end i have a hot and ground wire coming out. so i have 2 hot(power) and 2 ground wires back by the batteries.

i bought 2 new batteries but i dont know how to hook them up correctly. also i do not see a charger anywhere and i dont know how exactly the switch works or the difference between 2/12v, 12v, and 12/24v. if anybody can help me that would be great. thanks!

here is a pic of the switch and receptacle

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Setting up trolling motor...help

im not going to tell you how to wire it up as i believe testing with a meter or adding inline fuses or a breaker is a must on a unknown boat. the basic concept it 2/12 (charge) you use this setting when you hook a battery charger to the plug. you can buy a plug and splice that to a battery charger so it makes charging both batterys at the same time a easy option. 12v option is when running one batterys and is used when you have a 12v only trolling motor or you are happy with the performance and you do not require 24v (realy its unused as a 12v trolling motor is better ran on the 2/12 setting). 12/24 is when you have a trolling motor that can be switched from 12 to 24 volts. on 12 volts it uses one battery, for 24v trolling the batterys are run in series. because the switch changes the wiring configeration of the battery leads they need to be tested on a unknown boat to ensure no one has rewired them which happens alot. i would surgest adding inline fuses while testing.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Setting up trolling motor...help

Your boat has two separate pairs of wires running from the batteries. One pair is red and black and those can go to either BAT #1 or BAT #2. The other pair may be orange and black or black with a white stripe. That pair gets connected to the second battery. The only thing you really need to verify is that the ground wire is mated up with the correct hot wire. In other words make sure the ground wire for BAT #1 belongs with the HOT wire and the same for the other pair. The description of how the switch works is accurate. However, if you do not have an on-board, two bank charger, you should install one to really simplify the charging. Modifying a single bank charger with a another mating plug is a waste in my view. If all you have is a single charger (auto style) then simply charge each battery separately. Simple and effective. The next step is to determine if you have a straight 24 volt motor or one that operates on either 12 OR 24 volts. If it is a 24 volt only motor it will have only two wires in the power cable from the motor. If it is a combo (12/24) it will have three or perhaps four wires. If it 24 volts only, simply use a meter to check which two pins in the receptacle provide 24 volts. Wire the mating troller plug accordingly. If the troller is any other configuration let us know how many wires and wire colors there are coming from the motor.

 

[maxwell.riddle]

Re: Setting up trolling motor...help

Your boat has two separate pairs of wires running from the batteries. One pair is red and black and those can go to either BAT #1 or BAT #2. The other pair may be orange and black or black with a white stripe. That pair gets connected to the second battery. The only thing you really need to verify is that the ground wire is mated up with the correct hot wire. In other words make sure the ground wire for BAT #1 belongs with the HOT wire and the same for the other pair. The description of how the switch works is accurate. However, if you do not have an on-board, two bank charger, you should install one to really simplify the charging. Modifying a single bank charger with a another mating plug is a waste in my view. If all you have is a single charger (auto style) then simply charge each battery separately. Simple and effective. The next step is to determine if you have a straight 24 volt motor or one that operates on either 12 OR 24 volts. If it is a 24 volt only motor it will have only two wires in the power cable from the motor. If it is a combo (12/24) it will have three or perhaps four wires. If it 24 volts only, simply use a meter to check which two pins in the receptacle provide 24 volts. Wire the mating troller plug accordingly. If the troller is any other configuration let us know how many wires and wire colors there are coming from the motor.

silvertip, i have two wires coming from the trolling motor to the plug. one is red and black and the other is black. does that mean i have a 24v trolling motor? if so, could i convert my system to a strait 24v system instead of the whole 2/12v, 12/24v i got? i think it would be beter and way easier, right?

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Setting up trolling motor...help

1) Yes you can convert it to a straight 24 volt system. 2) No -- it is not way easier. 3) Why re-invent the wheel when what you have is a lot simpler to connect to than you are making it out to be. 4) Butchering the system is mean thing to do to the next person that may own the boat. That's my view but it is your boat so here ya go. The diagram below is a 24 volt ONLY system. You can use two of the four wires you already have from the battery. DON'T cut the other two. Just leave them there. You need to make the jumper that goes between the two batteries and you will need to wire the other end of the 24 volt and ground wires directly to the current receptacle, or install a separate two terminal troller receptacle.

 

[colbyt]

Re: Setting up trolling motor...help

silvertip, i have two wires coming from the trolling motor to the plug. one is red and black and the other is black. does that mean i have a 24v trolling motor? if so, could i convert my system to a strait 24v system instead of the whole 2/12v, 12/24v i got? i think it would be beter and way easier, right?

Do not trust the last person to have done anything according to standard color coding. Always trace the wires or use a continuity tester to determine which wire goes where.