crystal11509 wrote:
Personally, I spend as much time as possible out on the lake trolling.
The reason we usually come head back is that the battery is low.

A solar panel might serve two functions- extend your
trolling time and also keep the battery on a float or
trickle charge so it is fully topped of when you get ready
to go.

I saw your original question about light weight batteries...
unfortunately there ain't no such animal. In fact it seems
to me that your best option is to figure out a way of build
in a battery try to hold two (or more) batteries for great
range & duration; this would have to include a "smart"
charger to keep them working well.

Batteries themselves need not be expensive, the most bang
for the buck is golf cart batteries from the farm & truck
supply store... but you can also get 12V deep cycle
batteries from there (or other sources, such as Batties Plus
franchise store) and avoid paying "marine" prices.

... I
have tried the extension cord to the boat in the past. One day - much
to my horror - I had unexpected visitors - about five young boys who
were playing in the water, on the boat, while the charger was on.....No
one was hurt, but the episode makes me fear the extension cord idea.


Why? If the cord is properly grounded, no problem. And as
Doug Kanter says, avoid having a string of extension cords
plugged into each other to reach the boat. That's bad for
several reasons even if the plug(s) don't hang in the water.


Also, could you use a regular kind of extension cord, or do you need
some heavy duty cord to go that far? Thanks for any suggestions.


The longer the cord, the heavier gage it has to be. There
are charts to tell you just how heavy, first you'll need to
know the watt load. I'd suggest making up a cord yourself
with triplex wire & plugs from Home Depot or such.

Here is a pretty good starting reference. If you don't read
anything else on this web page, check out the description of
why deep cycle batteries are called that and the section on
charging... that is very important, in fact most battery
problems are really charger problems.

http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm

Fair Skies
Doug King