What is everyone running for a battery for their ice fishing bundle with Live sonar. Thinking of going with a 23ah lithium, probably a Dakota Lithium. Is that big enough to run the Live sonar and the graph. Has anyone used any of the cheaper lithium batteries and had luck with them?
I run a cheap 18ah lithium (Amazon). Lasts from sun up to sun down in my wheelhouse running livescope on the 93sv. I have the garmin shuttle so this was the largest battery I could fit but I don’t see the need for anything larger (I plug it in to charge overnight). I know some guys go larger to fish several days, I’m just not the guy that fishes more than 1 day without access to electricity. Can’t comment a whole lot on longevity as I’ve only run this battery for 1 year. But I can say I’ve been running a cheap lithium on my flasher for 3+ years and no signs of slowing down.
It all depends in the screen size and how long you plan on fishing before needing to recharge it. Take the combined listed amp draw of the screen and black box/transducer and multiply that out to see how many AH hour battery you need.
So a combined 3ah draw screen & ducer combo (Garmin UHD93 & LVS32/34) will get you about 6 hours use from an 18AH battery (conditions and settings can + or – that a bit)
If you hooked two 10ah batteries in parallel would it be the same as having a 20ah battery or not?
Sure, but you’re likely adding weight that way…
I also run a 18 amp Amped in my ice bundle with a UHD93 and the lvs32 and yet to kill it ice fishing full days. I also use it in the summer in my boat dedicated to the black box only and have had full days as well. My settings must be different that what Joe is alluding to.
With that said get the bigger battery if its in the budget and can fit in the shuttle if weights not a issue.
I think the ratings on the electronics is not an exact rating, and one must also factor in the voltage of the battery. You will draw less amps at 14.4V compared to 12V. The units run better at the higher 14.4V than at the rated 12V. I run my Garmin Livescope on the Amped 14.4V 30Ah battery and can use for several days (running 4-6hrs) before recharging.
Screen size and model determine what AH battery to get. The newer 93UHD2 units pull 3X the power as the older 93UHD did…
I run a Ultra106 bundle and use the Amped Outdoors 32AH, it runs it for 8-10 hours
I think the ratings on the electronics is not an exact rating, and one must also factor in the voltage of the battery. You will draw less amps at 14.4V compared to 12V. The units run better at the higher 14.4V than at the rated 12V. I run my Garmin Livescope on the Amped 14.4V 30Ah battery and can use for several days (running 4-6hrs) before recharging.
Running at a higher voltage will not change how the unit operates, but yes it will change amp draw.
Most units have an operating range of something in the range of 10.5v-17v, give or take, and the unit will function the same across the voltage range. If it’s not, then you have a faulty unit or wiring issue.
One thing to note on run time, the brightness setting will make a significant difference in run time. Changing from the highest setting to even 2 levels below can increase run time by more than 25%, again I am using somewhat theoretical numbers.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Tlazer wrote:</div>
I think the ratings on the electronics is not an exact rating, and one must also factor in the voltage of the battery. You will draw less amps at 14.4V compared to 12V. The units run better at the higher 14.4V than at the rated 12V. I run my Garmin Livescope on the Amped 14.4V 30Ah battery and can use for several days (running 4-6hrs) before recharging.Running at a higher voltage will not change how the unit operates, but yes it will change amp draw.
Most units have an operating range of something in the range of 10.5v-17v, give or take, and the unit will function the same across the voltage range. If it’s not, then you have a faulty unit or wiring issue.
One thing to note on run time, the brightness setting will make a significant difference in run time. Changing from the highest setting to even 2 levels below can increase run time by more than 25%, again I am using somewhat theoretical numbers.
My comment about the unit running better at the higher voltage was because as the battery drains the voltage of the battery also drops. I’m sure you know that though. If you’re starting with a fully charged 12V battery, the battery voltage will be somewhere around 12.7 volts give or take, but if the battery is at 25% charge the voltage might be around 11.5V or even possibly lower which is approaching the acceptable lower voltage limits of the units, which can stress the electronics. Watching the voltage level on my Garmin unit I can notice around a 2 volt drop from a full charge to when I recharge the battery. I’m not an expert in small electronics though, but have to wonder why do many recommend the 14.4V battery if there is no benefit from the 12V battery.
But the unit doesn’t “run” any better. Current can just flow more “efficiently” at a higher voltage. Higher voltage still has no affect on the operating system of the electronic, obviously to an extent. You can’t throw 19v at the unit and think it’ll run even longer. Hence the recommended operating voltage range.
They recommend you buy a higher voltage battery so they can sell more product. I have not see any 14.4v(but I’m sure they exist) batteries designed for fishing electronics, but I have seen 16v, the only advantage is what you mentioned. They will draw less amperage at a higher voltage. The unit will not perform any better. It will not give a clearer picture, it will not give any better details of the bottom, ect. But yes, you will theoretically have longer run time.
So please explain how does current flow more “efficiently” at higher voltage?
You talked about voltage ratings. Yes you are correct in there is no difference in performance of the unit as long as you operate within the acceptable voltage limits of the unit. You stated that:” Most units have an operating range of something in the range of 10.5v-17v”. Knowing that the voltage drops as the battery drains, possibly an estimated 1.5V to 2V voltage drop, wouldn’t you be better off starting with a battery of higher voltage that was within the normal operating parameters? Estimated lower voltage of a 14.4V battery would be 12.4V to 12.9V, where the estimated voltage of a 12V battery would be around 10V to 10.5V. Isn’t it hard on electronics running near or below the normal rated voltage which you stated was around 10.5V?
So please explain how does current flow more “efficiently” at higher voltage?
You talked about voltage ratings. Yes you are correct in there is no difference in performance of the unit as long as you operate within the acceptable voltage limits of the unit. You stated that:” Most units have an operating range of something in the range of 10.5v-17v”. Knowing that the voltage drops as the battery drains, possibly an estimated 1.5V to 2V voltage drop, wouldn’t you be better off starting with a battery of higher voltage that was within the normal operating parameters? Estimated lower voltage of a 14.4V battery would be 12.4V to 12.9V, where the estimated voltage of a 12V battery would be around 10V to 10.5V. Isn’t it hard on electronics running near or below the normal rated voltage which you stated was around 10.5V?
I honestly would rather not get into explaining the physics of electricity. I’m sure you can easily google increase voltage drops current.
A good fully charged 12v battery should have a voltage of ~12.7v. If your battery is showing 10.5v(do not believe what the voltage shows on the depth finder, use a volt meter) at any time, then you have a bad battery, unless it’s immediately after a burst of power consumption, IE starting the big motor. But, then it should equalize and bounce back to an acceptable state, greater than 12v.
It will not harm the device if you are running it at the lower end of the recommended voltage range. That’s the whole reason for a voltage range. Even running slightly below the voltage range will likely not cause any ill effect, do not hold me to that. Although, you will likely get an alarm on the device for low voltage.
I would also recommend not discharging a battery 1.5-2V below it’s fully charged voltage. If your 12v battery is showing 11.2, (12.7v – 1.5v), then you are well below 25% charge left in the battery, and that will cause harm to the battery over time. And will affect how long that battery last. It is recommend to not discharge a normal flooded lead acid battery below 50%, 12.1v. If you are, then I would recommend a larger battery to provide your daily fishing needs.
I was really looking forward to your explanation of current flow more “efficiently” at higher voltage. I don’t need to Google it, because I have worked in the electric field for over 35 years. I am well versed in Ohm’s law and never heard that higher voltage made the current flow more efficiently. I can also verify that electronic’s don’t like voltage that is either too high or too low. I am talking about AC not DC electronics for the high/low voltage issues that can stress and shorten their life span. That is why the electric companies are mandated by the government to keep their voltage within certain parameters. What I’m not sure of is if the same applies to DC electronics like fish finders and trolling motors being as sensitive to either high or low voltages. Saw an article where a guy was running a 12V 15Ah battery on a Livescope unit (he never posted which model or settings which would determine run time) at 34 degrees. The unit ran for 10 hours before it went dead and his last voltage read was 10.7 volts. Not sure what the voltage was just before it went dead though. Why would you want to expose your unit to the lower threshold limits if you could just buy a battery that at it’s highest voltage level and it’s lowest voltage level before going dead was well within the acceptable limits of your Livescope unit. There could be times where a person was fishing for 8-10 hours and wasn’t able to recharge their battery.
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