what kind of battery do I use?

I have a Humminbird PiranhaMAX 220 FF... actually I've had it for a year and a half now and I've never really got around to putting it on my yak, the thing that really gets me is what sort of battery I use for it.  Me and Reelknots were going to install it last year but I got stumped on this and I got busy with work.  Any suggestions? info on the unit... 200kHz & 83kHz  Power Output (RMS) 200 watts RMS/ Power Output PtP 1600 watts PtP.  Thanks in advance, brothers.

Pern

I have a Humminbird PiranhaMAX 220 FF... actually I've had it for a year and a half now and I've never really got around to putting it on my yak, the thing that really gets me is what sort of battery I use for it.  Me and Reelknots were going to install it last year but I got stumped on this and I got busy with work.  Any suggestions? info on the unit... 200kHz & 83kHz  Power Output (RMS) 200 watts RMS/ Power Output PtP 1600 watts PtP.  Thanks in advance, brothers.

Pern

http://www.kayakfishingstuff.com/drupal/content/battery-faq

I haven't read the entire article, so I don't know how good the info is.  I just googled your question and found that link.

Most people use the sealed lead acid type because its the cheapest and simplest option.

I agree with the article. I use 8 AA alkaline cells and that gets me about three paddles sessions. Mine is a "portable" unit and takes a few minutes to access the waterproof cell compartment so I don't use rechargables since then need to be recently charged because they self dischange and I have my stuff set up in advance so I can go at a moment's notice. The disadvantage is that I eventually run out of battery during a paddle. Usually I don't bother to carry extra batteries on my boat because the finder is not that big a deal to me. I would use rechargeables IF I could charge them as a group and had an external mounting that made it a simple plug in on a moment's notice.

I agree with the article. I use 8 AA alkaline cells and that gets me about three paddles sessions. Mine is a "portable" unit and takes a few minutes to access the waterproof cell compartment so I don't use rechargables since then need to be recently charged because they self dischange and I have my stuff set up in advance so I can go at a moment's notice. The disadvantage is that I eventually run out of battery during a paddle. Usually I don't bother to carry extra batteries on my boat because the finder is not that big a deal to me. I would use rechargeables IF I could charge them as a group and had an external mounting that made it a simple plug in on a moment's notice.

If you want to charge a set of rechargeables, such as a pack of NiMH or NiCd cells, you simply need a charger that can charge up to 10 of those cells, regardless of the capacity.  You don't have to limit yourself to AA sized cells.  You can purchase a 12v rechargeable NiMH or NiCd pack from www.batteryspace.com

I use this charger - http://www.electrifly.com/chargers/gpmm3155.html  It costs about 100 dollars.

It runs on AC or DC (12v) power, charges various types of batteries (NiCd 1-14 cells, NiMH 1-14 cells, LiPo, Li-Ion, SLA/Pb's).

A big reason I purchased this charger is because I have batteries of various voltages and chemistry.  It will even charge your car battery.

This picture shows a 12V NiMH pack (green one), it is made up of 10 AA size cells with a 2200mah capacity, terminated with a deans connector.  The big black battery is a 6v NiMH pack with a 10amp hour capacity.  I use that to run the pump in my bait tank.  I placed my costco card next to them for scale. 

http://www.batteryspace.com/12vbatterypackseries.aspx  You can find the different size 12v NiMH packs here.  They also sell cheaper more basic chargers that can charge the 12V NiMH packs. 

Keep in mind 1000mah = 1Ah.

-Marvin

I just ordered this from Cabela's for my Pmax 170. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Rechargeable-12-Volt-Battery/700551.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch%2F%3FN%3D10000047%26Ne%3D10000047%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dbattery%26Ntx%3Dmode%252Bmatchall%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts%26WTz_st%3DSearchRefinements%26WTz_stype%3DSP%26form_state%3DsearchForm%26search%3Dbattery%26x%3D0%26y%3D0&Ntt=battery&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

8 amp hour 12 volt battery with charger for $30 is hard to beat.

Madcat, I used to use that same unit and it worked great...could run that thing all week without recharging...but, it's heavy, probably around 7 lbs or so.  Now I run the 8-pack of AA's which is a fraction the weight and much less space.

As with pretty much any setup, there are tradeoffs for each situation.  Using a 'brick' will be heavy, but very reliable and last a long time (especially with gray scale, non-gps, small screen devices) and generally cheap. 

Going with AA's means you will have a much lighter setup, but then you either have to buy 8 alkalines every other weekend of fishing, or buying 10 high quality rechargeables, + charger (or 2, so you can do 10 at a time) but this setup will be much more expensive, and can become annoying to have to charge 10 batteries vs 1.

Madcat, I used to use that same unit and it worked great...could run that thing all week without recharging...but, it's heavy, probably around 7 lbs or so.  Now I run the 8-pack of AA's which is a fraction the weight and much less space.

I considered the 8 pack, but I intend to install lights and a bilge pump @ some point. I wanted more oomph to run those systems as well. Mine will be going in a water-proof case strapped and velcro'd in. The weight isn't a big deal to me, I can carry about 40 lbs of gear myself and the dog and not get flooded so 7 more lbs isn't a huge deal.

I wanted something I could just throw in the boat and go. I don't want to worry about whether or not it charged enough, or if it may die on a multi-day trip. I do a lot of camping/fishing and although weight is a huge concern of mine normally, in this case I think it's justified. 

I'm actually considering putting 2 of those batteries in series, Then I could power everything I want with very little concern. (Bait tank, lights, FF, bilge pump and maybe something else in the future)

Sounds like this should cover you then...might want to think about a little solar trickle charger for those long trips away from civilization, they come in mighty handy.

I went down to batteries plus and got a sealed type for $35.00 charge it in or out of yak. Mounted it in hull with Velcro, they can be  permanently installed. Lasts 4 days before charging with a Lawrence X4 pro . easy setup and removal in my tarpon 140... I got one big enough to run lights too... Lasts for Years!

Thanks for the reply guys. There are many options out there rechargeable/ non-rechargeable and there are trade offs to consider.  I'm gonna start looking up those links and see which battery fits best.  Weight is not much an issue for me, it's more or less battery life. I'm gonna check out the local napa auto parts store after work and see what they have.  Thanks again, brothers.

I just ordered this from Cabela's for my Pmax 170. http://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Rechargeable-12-Volt-Battery/700551.uts?Ntk=AllProducts&searchPath=%2Fcatalog%2Fsearch%2F%3FN%3D10000047%26Ne%3D10000047%26Ntk%3DAllProducts%26Ntt%3Dbattery%26Ntx%3Dmode%252Bmatchall%26WTz_l%3DHeader%253BSearch-All%2BProducts%26WTz_st%3DSearchRefinements%26WTz_stype%3DSP%26form_state%3DsearchForm%26search%3Dbattery%26x%3D0%26y%3D0&Ntt=battery&WTz_l=Header%3BSearch-All+Products

8 amp hour 12 volt battery with charger for $30 is hard to beat.

Do you have any overcharging issues with this battery?

Dunno, I don't have it yet, my FF isn't even fully installed.

 

 12V 7ah gel cell. (yeasu brand)  It'll power my cuda 250 for a long time.  The particular battery I'm using is over 1year old and came out of a turbo molecular pump (High vac pump) controller.  Was replaced in a yearly maintenance schedule, so it was a worked battery, and it still has enough life in it to power my FF.  It was old when I got, that was easily 4 yrs ago.  Still using it.

Hey Pern, I bought this sealed lead acid battery at Fry's for 19.99. It is made by
Genesis and it's a 12v 1.2Ah. I can get 3-4 fishing trips out of it until it needs charging.
Harbor Freight is having a trickle charger right now on sale for 4.99. I think this will do the job but I am no expert on this. Just sharing what have worked for me
this couple of years now with no problem.

Jedmo