NorCal Kayak Anglers
Kayak Zone => Gearing Up and Rigging Up => Topic started by: PandaMan on December 01, 2017, 03:17:38 PM
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Hi NCKA,
I Mounted a new Helix 7 Fish Finder to my Kayak and was disappointed to find out that the battery only lasted about 2 hours. The display is 7 inch, full color, GPS, and HD. Is this a typical battery life for such a big FF? If so I might need to downgrade to something more efficient.
I wanted to see if anyone else has had these problems before I invest in a new 12v 3amp
battery.
Thanks!
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Somewhere in the literature for that unit should be listed how much power it draws (I think it’s 800ma if I looked at the right one) that’s in a perfect world, not accounting for power loss through bad connections. So I would think a 1amp draw would be wishful thinking. So a battery rated at 6ah would give you less than 6 hours at full charge and so on.
When I went to a bigger screen I bought a bigger battery after learning my old battery would only last a half day. Currently running an 18ah battery.
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It's simple math. Find out how much your ff draws, then use a battery that can supply enough power for the amount of time you want to fish. A 12v 3amp battery is on the small side.
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As these guys have already said your battery is way too small for the Helix 7. When looking at batteries you also need to consider that the standard SLA AGM batteries that are commonly run on kayaks shouldn’t be discharged to more than 50% of their rated capacity unless you want to replace the battery about every six months as dishcharging them completely repeatedly will eventually kill the cells.
I’m running a Helix 7 G2 SI and power it with a 21aH battery. I can fish for 14hrs straight and not kill my battery.
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... I can fish for 14hrs straight ...
You must have a cast iron derričre...
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Thanks for all the help. I misread the battery but it’s a 7aH. Regardless it’s too small of aH.
Do you guys have brands you trust? I’ll look into the 18 or above aH.
Thanks for the help!
Brett
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If you swing by your local “cycle gear” motorcycle shop you can browse the shorai lithium batteries for motorcycles. Lightweight with a large selection of sizes and a good warranty. Be ready to spend some serious coin for a light high amp hour battery though.
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Helix 7" SI here with Nocqua 10ah, never ran out of battery at 12 hours of fishing. Best price that I can find below at $80 (sorry, this one was the 4.4 AH version).
https://www.thegpsstore.com/Nocqua-44Ah-Pro-Power-Kit-for-Electronic-Devices-P4955.aspx?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1KmtqL_q1wIV17rACh3mcA15EAQYBSABEgJPWfD_BwE (https://www.thegpsstore.com/Nocqua-44Ah-Pro-Power-Kit-for-Electronic-Devices-P4955.aspx?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1KmtqL_q1wIV17rACh3mcA15EAQYBSABEgJPWfD_BwE)
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Helix 7" SI here with Nocqua 10ah, never ran out of battery at 12 hours of fishing. Best price that I can find below at $80.
https://www.thegpsstore.com/Nocqua-44Ah-Pro-Power-Kit-for-Electronic-Devices-P4955.aspx?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1KmtqL_q1wIV17rACh3mcA15EAQYBSABEgJPWfD_BwE
The link is for a 4.4Ah.
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... I can fish for 14hrs straight ...
You must have a cast iron derričre...
There are several of us that have that as a normal day.
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I am fishing putting a Helix 7 Si GPS G2 in the center console of my kayak. I went with a cheap 9 AH Battery from Walmart. I took it out and tested it for 4 hours and still was at 12.1 volts. I had the screen set at 8 and using everything including recording for map making.
Only 22.25 with free shipping and I don't mind the weight
https://www.walmart.com/ip/PowerStar-12V-9AH-Sealed-Lead-Acid-Deep-Cycle-Battery-AGM-3-Year-Warranty/196291604
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Hey guys,
Went out again with a 12v 12amp ExperPower. I dropped my pots with full confidence that I’d be able to fish all day and get back. Three hours later I get a Low Voltage warning and Fish Finder turns off.
Do you think the Fish Finder is defective?
Or
Stop being cheap and get a better battery!
(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181112/6db58da59698a5db86f8b83be05575cf.png)
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I think you should investigate if your charger is fully charging your battery.
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I think you should investigate if your charger is fully charging your battery.
+1.
I also have a Helix 7 si and using a SLA 12v 9am battery. I still have power left after fishing for 5-6 hours. I just make sure i charge my battery full the night before.
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I think you should investigate if your charger is fully charging your battery.
+1.
I also have a Helix 7 si and using a SLA 12v 9am battery. I still have power left after fishing for 5-6 hours. I just make sure i charge my battery full the night before.
Thanks for the suggestion I’ll buy a different charger for now. Luckily I had marked my location on my phone. Was able to find them pretty easily.
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A lot of good info posted above.
Your FF should drain 1a.
If you want a plug and plug type Lithium battery that's waterproof, tested heavily in salt water environment, check out my signature.
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I think you should investigate if your charger is fully charging your battery.
+1.
I also have a Helix 7 si and using a SLA 12v 9am battery. I still have power left after fishing for 5-6 hours. I just make sure i charge my battery full the night before.
Thanks for the suggestion I’ll buy a different charger for now. Luckily I had marked my location on my phone. Was able to find them pretty easily.
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You should get a charger that comes with meter or a display to eliminate the guess work. I use both LIPO and SLA batteries for my Dragonfly 7. I've been using this charger for about 3 years: https://hobbyking.com/en_us/imax-b6ac-v2-professional-balance-charger-discharger.html
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I bet your SLA is deteriorated (aka not able to maintain a charge). That's one of the biggest drawbacks of SLA. They have a short lifespan. Measure the battery 10 minutes after fully charged. Should be around 13.2v. Measure it again the next day. See how much voltage it had drop. If the battery is bad, it would probably be below or right at around 12.0v.
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Thanks for the input, I’ll get a voltage tester. I got the battery only 2 months ago :/
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