Help with my marine battery cable anyone?

Hi Folks,

Could anyone out there help me out? I have a 10 ft aluminum jon boat with a 28lb thrust mariner stalker (Pretty antiquated I might add) I am replacing the old corroded battery cable and cant decide on what gauge to get. I'm running the cable 13 ft long. Its a 12v system but I plan on changing to 24v soon. Should I go for a 6 gauge or 8? Also, any advice on terminal plugs? I was planning on the standard post terminals. Lastly, would you put the breaker in line or use a terminal post breaker? Thanks a lot for your advice.

1. Cable size - Bigger is always better if you can
2. Terminals - Side mount, they'll stay tighter longer. Use the star washers
3. Breaker? 'Scuse me, I'm from Maine, breakers are what ya get when the tide comes in and hits the shoals.

Thanks I guess but none of that was really helpful in the least bit.

You asked 3 questions - hoss answered ALL of them and you crap on his response.

seems like he answered 2 of your questions and made a little joke. Come on man, this site is all about positivity.

here ya go man.

1 - I'm not sure where you are running your wires from and too - like if you have a connector somewhere. But, for that long of a run - use the largest ga wire you can go with. I would go with atleast a 6ga on that specific trolling motor.
If you are upgrading to a 24v, are you upgrading to a new trolling motor, or is the motor you currently have a 12v/24v setup? If it's a 12/24, then I would run 4ga wire if it's that distance.
The wire coming off your trolling motor is most likely 10ga wire.

2. As far as terminal plugs, if you have the Top Posts and the studs with toggle bolts, you can use either one. If you want to use the top posts, I would get some that are painted - they will help with corrosion a little better.

3. Breaker - I would use one that has a manual reset. It would suck to be out on the water and have an inline fuse keep blowing if you were far from the ramp. With a manual you can let everything cool down a little then reset it and keep going until it trips again. Costs a little more, but worth it in the long run.


And for those of y'all that give BS remarks, keep them to yourself. Some of us are here to help and it sucks to have to shuffle through that crap to get a real answer. Grow up.

Look at the thread again russ - the BS came from the guy ASKING for help

FLIFSH said:

Look at the thread again russ - the BS came from the guy ASKING for help

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yea... I don't think so :roll:

I feel if you are asking for help; and someone helps you; you show appreciation not sarcasm!

FLIFSH said:

I feel if you are asking for help; and someone helps you; you show appreciation not sarcasm!

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I don't have time for this - so this is my last response - and sorry fishmaster73 for hijacking this thread (you can PM with any other questions)...

BUT - a sarcastic response is something like "3. Breaker? 'Scuse me, I'm from Maine, breakers are what ya get when the tide comes in and hits the shoals." AND this comment "You asked 3 questions - hoss answered ALL of them and you crap on his response." was just, well.. BS -- no need for you to chime in on something you aren't going to answer.

His response "Thanks I guess but none of that was really helpful in the least bit." was a truthful statement. His questions weren't answered to any extent. He's looking for specifics. Generic answers gets you no where.

If you got anything else to say - send it to me in a PM and we'll handle it outside of this forum... no need for this crap in here anyways. Sorry Jim.

I would go with the 6 gauge wire that is what comes standard on most boats I have it on my 21ft boat and run a 36v motor...
i would also suggest a manual breaker as opposed to a automatic reset breaker. fuses are a pain in the a$$ to replace on the water when you can just hit a button to reset a breaker..

fishmaster73 said:

Thanks I guess but none of that was really helpful in the least bit.

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Perhaps I should explain in greater depth;
1. Bigger is better. This means that since 6 gauge is larger than 8 gauge, I would recommend that. If you have room, I'd recommend 4 gauge.
2. Side mount. This means that I have found the side mount terminals to maintain a good connection better than top munt terminals, especially in applications where there is likely to be a fair amount of movement. I strongly recommend the "star" type washers between the cable end and the terminal itself, for me it seems to help maintain a solid connection. Nothing i hate worse than having to constantly wiggle cables to get and keep a connection.
3. I don't use a breaker on the rare occasions that I use an electric motor.

Pardon my lack of helpfulness, and feeble sense of humour.

hossthehermit said:

fishmaster73 said:

Thanks I guess but none of that was really helpful in the least bit.

Click to expand...

Perhaps I should explain in greater depth;
1. Bigger is better. This means that since 6 gauge is larger than 8 gauge, I would recommend that. If you have room, I'd recommend 4 gauge.
2. Side mount. This means that I have found the side mount terminals to maintain a good connection better than top munt terminals, especially in applications where there is likely to be a fair amount of movement. I strongly recommend the "star" type washers between the cable end and the terminal itself, for me it seems to help maintain a solid connection. Nothing i hate worse than having to constantly wiggle cables to get and keep a connection.
3. I don't use a breaker on the rare occasions that I use an electric motor.

Pardon my lack of helpfulness, and feeble sense of humour.

Click to expand...

I understood your first response but i have been dealing with this stuff for years.
I try to answer like anyone asking a question has never dealt with this kind of stuff

Russ,

Thanks again for all your help. You redeemed the site!

I apologize to the others that felt it necessary to vilify me, just trying to get some specific advise about my project. I'll try to keep my kid gloves on next time I post.

Thanks again!

Tried to help.
Apologies.
Won't happen again. :x

just an idea.... may or may not help you... but I have done a few sets of wiring on boats and I have found the cheapest way to get bigger gauged wire is to buy some jumper cables.... cheaper, has two sets of wire for neg and positive,insulated well, has worked great for my applications.... usually much cheaper than buying wire by the foot...

8) If you're running 24v you shouldn't need more than 6 or 8 gauge because of the lower current requirement. Also, I like the thermal circuit breakers too......but, that's just my opinion.


:beer:

The larger the wire the less resistance, the less resistance the lower the loss, the lower the loss the longer your battery runtime. The further the run the more the resistance and loss and the greater the need for a larger wire size.

From a current carrying capability #8 would be more than enough BUT the loss and hence lower runtime would be unacceptable IMO

It's a bit more expensive but if you can get it cable for welders is the ticket. It uses finer wire so it has more strands. Electricity (current) runs mainly on the outside of a wire so the more strands the more surface area and hence lower loss. Plus it's much more flexible and less like to get stress cracking of the individual strands next to a clamp or crimp connector. I've seen people hook up #6 wire and they may as well have went with #8 or even #10 by the time the hack up the connectors or cut into the copper when they strip it. Remember current runs mainly on the surface of a wire so any nicks in the surface will cause a loss.

If your battery is going in a permanent or semi-permanent location you can get a 'paint' at any auto supply store specifically for batteries. Not only does it keep the corrosion down, it helps keep the connections from coming loose on their own yet makes it easier to get the connections loose when you do need to change the battery or service the system. It's also great for starter connections on a boat or auto, around crimp connectors or even inside of wirenuts (Which I don't recommend for marine use, too much loss and corrosion problems)

I'd say #6 would be the ticket, it should give you plenty of 'headroom' for your size motor and going larger would put you in the region of diminishing returns (The cost no longer justifies the the little bit of gain) A breaker AKA resettable fuse is always a good idea, a short would not only destroy your battery you stand a chance of catching your boat on fire when it melts the insulation right off the wires .....

GOSKN5 said:

just an idea.... may or may not help you... but I have done a few sets of wiring on boats and I have found the cheapest way to get bigger gauged wire is to buy some jumper cables.... cheaper, has two sets of wire for neg and positive,insulated well, has worked great for my applications.... usually much cheaper than buying wire by the foot...

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marine jumper cables, right?

Not trying to be argumentative but losses using 8 gauge would be a very small fraction of one ohm, for all practical purposes an amount that would be considered negligible.

:beer: