Trolling motor issue....please help

[jmed999]

Guys I have had my boat since last spring and got the trolling motor and battery at the same time. Here recently it seems like the trolling motor isn't as powerful as it once was. Also, when I press the battery test button on the trolling motor with the battery fully charged, the trolling motor says the charge is only "fair" instead of what it used to say, "good".

I have taken the battery back to Sears twice and they did 2 long test on it and said it was fine. They even showed me a print out of its ability to hold a charge. :| The local marine shop says the trolling motor is also fine. They kept it for a long time and said they could find nothing wrong with it.

So now I'm wondering if it's part of my simple electrical system. Take a look at the pictures.


Any ideas on what the problem may be??? :?:

 

[Captain Ahab]

Please fill out your profile and let us know where you are from

Is your batter in the stern and TM in the bow? If so, it is likely that you are using a wire that is too light a gauge. Also, those clips are not all that great a connection - use should use a terminal connector.

The more resistance means less power (amps) to your TM

 

[jmed999]

Thanks! I just added some information to my profile...great suggestion!

The reason I don't think the wire is too small is because it worked great for a few months then suddenly seemed to lose power. Could some of those connection deteriorate when left out in the weather? Not sure what else it could be.

Thanks!

 

[fool4fish1226]

Please fill out your profile and let us know where you are from

Is your batter in the stern and TM in the bow? If so, it is likely that you are using a wire that is too light a gauge. Also, those clips are not all that great a connection - use should use a terminal connector.

The more resistance means less power (amps) to your TM

+1

 

[fish devil]

:twisted: The wires do look a little thin. I would also check the trolling motor plug/receptacle for corrosion.

 

[richg99]

Borrow a good set of jumper cables and bypass everything you have. It if works like it used to...then check/replace every part of your hook up, one at a time.

It is probably just a poor corroded connection somewhere in the line. Surprised the TM place didn't tell you to do that. R

 

[jmed999]

How do I check for corrosion....just unplug it and look for something green down in the holes???

If I find corrosion, how do I remove/repair it?

Thanks for the help guys!

 

[richg99]

to remove corrosion wire brush/file/sandpaper ( disconnect from power first, of course)

R

 

[jmed999]

Well I just checked and it's clean as a whistle! Absolutely no corrosion.

 

[richg99]

bypass everything with jumper cables.

 

[redbug]

you said they had the trolling motor for a while ?
are you sure they opened it up? it sounds like the seal may be broken and
water has gotten into the motor but I agree with the others bypass everything and see if
it has full power

 

[jmed999]

Yeah, I'll bypass everything with the jumper cables and let you guys know. Thanks for the help so far! 8)

 

[jmed999]

I bypassed everything by putting the battery very close to the trolling motor and ran short 10 gauge wires from the battery to the motor. The battery was at 12.8 volts (using a voltmeter) and the trolling motor still didn't say "Good"...it still said "Fair" when I pressed the test button. The trolling motor did seem to go faster with all the boat wiring bypassed.

I'm going to change my wiring to use terminal battery connections and use 2 12 gauge positive wires and 2 12 gauge negative wires running the length of the boat from the back (battery) to the front (trolling motor). That should be better than 1 10 gauge pos and 1 10 gauge neg wire.

Thoughts? Thanks! :mrgreen:

 

[redbug]

do you have the 12 gauge wire ? if it were me i would run 6 gauge from the batteries to the trolling motor by running 2 wires you still may have a voltage drop

 

[jmed999]

Yeah, I have 12 gauge wire....going to change it out with 6 gauge!

 

[redbug]

great idea the 6 gauge wire is what most production bass boats have running from the rear to the front of the boat that will be a good choice