# Dakota lithium 12v 54ah battery / tm question



## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I just bought a 12v 55 lb ipilot for my little billfish 14 skiff. It's slightly bigger than a 13 ft gheenoe, might weigh 150 lbs. Does anyone here have experience with the Dakota 12V 54ah battery? My skiff is pretty weight sensitive so at 17 lbs this battery seems ideal.

I saw a video of a guy in a kayak running a 30 lb minnkota wide open for 2hr 39 min on this same battery. While the 30lb motor draws less I can't imagine needing to run full power on the tm much if any. Most of my fishing is either at a slow crawl, or using the spot lock.

If anyone has experience with this combo I would be interested in some feedback.


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## Labsrule (Sep 30, 2013)

el9surf said:


> I just bought a 12v 55 lb ipilot for my little billfish 14 skiff. It's slightly bigger than a 13 ft gheenoe, might weigh 150 lbs. Does anyone here have experience with the Dakota 12V 54ah battery? My skiff is pretty weight sensitive so at 17 lbs this battery seems ideal.
> 
> I saw a video of a guy in a kayak running a 30 lb minnkota wide open for 2hr 39 min on this same battery. While the 30lb motor draws less I can't imagine needing to run full power on the tm much if any. Most of my fishing is either at a slow crawl, or using the spot lock.
> 
> If anyone has experience with this combo I would be interested in some feedback.


No direct experience but interesting - From the Dakota web site:

*How to calculate run time for a trolling motor battery*
How long you can run your trolling motor depends on the max amp draw and if your battery is lead acid or Dakota lithium (see above). Also important is how often you run your trolling motor at the max power setting while on the water. Using a lower power setting = more fishing time!

*Step 1: Determine the voltage of your motor. *12V motors are smaller, and more cost effective. They typically requires only one battery. 24V and 36V motors have more thrust and use more power, requiring multiple batteries (directions for how to link batteries in series to create a 24V or 36V battery are here). If cost is top of mind for you then a 12V motor may be a better choice. If power & performance is the most important then a 24V or 36V system may better meet your needs.

*Step 2: Determine the amp draw of your motor. Max amp draw of your trolling motor should be less than < the max amp draw of your battery* (also called continuous discharge rate). This means that your motor will never ask for more power than your battery is capable of giving at any one time. For many 12V motors the max amp draw is roughly equal to the lbs of thrust. So if you have a 30 lb motor the amp draw is most likely near 30 amps. 24v and 36v motors use less amps per pound of thrust. It is important to confirm the max amp draw with your motor manufacturer.

*Step 3: Find a Dakota Lithium battery with a max continuous amp discharge that is greater than what your motor needs. Shop trolling motor batteries options here.*

Here’s an example from Minnakota on how many amps their line of trolling motors draw. The larger the lbs of thrust the more power the trolling motor uses.

_Please note: this chart is for educational purposes only and is not applicable to all trolling motors. Contact your trolling motor manufacturer for your model’s amp draw and instructions on rigging, including the use of fuses or circuit breakers. _

*Motor Thrust / Max Amp Draw / Voltage*


30 lb / 30A @12V
40 lb, 45 lb / 42A @12V
50 lb, 55 lb / 50A @12V
70 lb / 42A @ 24V
80 lb / 56A @ 24V
101 lb / 46A @ 36V
112 lb / 52A @ 36V
*For a all Dakota Lithium batteries the max continuous amp discharge for a 12 volt battery is roughly = to the total amp hours (Ah).* For example a Dakota Lithium 23 Ah battery has a max continuous amp discharge of 24 amps. This is enough to power small 12v kayak fishing motors, but would not be enough for motors with more than 25lbs of thrust. For big motors you want a bigger battery. One way to create a larger continuous amp discharge is to wire two batteries in parallel. This will double the capacity (run time) and the max continuous amps. For example two Dakota Lithium 23Ah batteries wired in parallel would have the max continuous amps available to power a trolling motor with up to 45-50 lbs of thrust and a capacity of 46 amp hours (Ah). This is enough power for many kayak fishing and other small boats.

One important note, if you wire two batteries in series it will increase the voltage but not the max continuous amp discharge or the capacity (Ah). This is why most 24V or 36V trolling motors use 50 Ah batteries or larger. 24V and 36V motors have a high amp draw and needs multiple batteries in series to meet the power required. Wiring two smaller, 23Ah batteries in series may work, but you would only be able to use your motor for a short amount of time.

*Step 4: Decide on how long you want to run your motor for each day.* If you are a fish from dawn to dusk person (aka “full day”) you will want your battery to have double the capacity (Amp hours or Ah) of your motors max draw (for example, if your motor draws 25 amps you may want a 50 Ah battery). If you are a half day or run your trolling motor for just half the day you can use a battery where the capacity (Ah) is equal to your amp draw. For example, if you have a motor that uses 25Ah you might be fine with just one 23Ah battery.

*Here’s the math to calculate run time:* (Total capacity of the battery ÷ total max amp draw of your motor) × 60 minutes = Run time for your trolling motor at maximum power setting*

* Using a lower power setting will significantly extend total run time. A deep dive on power settings and run time is available here.
When you are fishing with a trolling motor your power setting is determined by the conditions, and your application. Trolling in high flow river current will require a higher power setting then trolling near a lake inlet.

Here’s what we have learned from our Team Dakota Lithium pro staff: in most applications a professional fisherman averages a 30% of max power setting. So *if you buy a Dakota Lithium battery that meets you max amp draw needs (Ah capacity rating of battery is greater then the max amp draw of your motor) than you most likely have a battery that will last you a long day on the water*. For example, one pro staff tested a 24v 54ah battery package for their 24v 80 lb thrust trolling motor during tournament fishing conditions (lake fishing, low wind) and got a 14 hour run time.

For an example of amp draw per power setting check out below for specifications for the Garmin Force Trolling Motor amp draw. Garmin details how many amps are used at each power setting. The Force trolling motor can run on 24 volts or 36 volts, and the chart below shows how a 24v setting will draw higher amps then running at 36 volts. And how a setting of 30% draws 10% of the amount of power used at 90%. It is the efficiency sweet spot for power use.

*24 Volt Power Source*

Throttle LevelThrustCurrent10%25 N-m (6 lbf) 2 A20%45 N-m (10 lbf) 3 A30%70 N-m (16 lbf) 6 A40%101 N-m (23 lbf) 9 A50%140 N-m (31 lbf) 14 A60%184 N-m (41 lbf) 21 A70%233 N-m (52 lbf) 29 A80%287 N-m (65 lbf) 40 A90%345 N-m (78 lbf) 54 A100%355 N-m (80 lbf) 57 A
*36 Volt Power Source*

Throttle LevelThrustCurrent10%21 N-m (5 lbf) 1 A20%41 N-m (9 lbf) 2 A30%69 N-m (16 lbf) 4 A40%103 N-m (23 lbf) 6 A50%144 N-m (32 lbf) 10 A60%191 N-m (43 lbf) 15 A70%246 N-m (55 lbf) 21 A80%307 N-m (69 lbf) 29 A90%375N-m (84 lbf) 39 A100%445 N-m (100 lbf) 54 A
_Please note: this chart is for educational purposes only and is not applicable to all trolling motors (this chart came from Garmin). Contact your trolling motor manufacturer for your model’s amp draw and instructions on rigging, including the use of fuses or circuit breakers. _


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

12v 54ah on order, will report back. Spoke to Dakota today they said fishing on lower power settings out of current should be good for 4-6 hrs of use.


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## Gervais (Nov 28, 2016)

I’ve had one on my saltmarsh 1444 for 8months or so running an ipilot 12v. I’ve never killed it. Actually never seen the battery indicator drop but lithium’s don’t drop voltage much until they are almost dead. I was running a 55ah agm before that and rarely killed that one but I was conscious about it. With the lithium I’ve stopped worrying about it. over all I’m very pleased so far and the 10amp charger that comes with it charges it pretty quick. The weight made all the difference in my skiff and I was able to move the battery to the rear and permanently mount it where I use to take the other out because the weight made such a huge difference running and poling. I run my accessories off of it as well which is just a dragonfly 5, bilge pump, and charging my phone sometimes. The performance seems roughly the same but the agm might have been a little stronger on a fresh charge to be honest. Still moves my boat at 3mph+ according to GPS so it will hold most tides just fine. For the price on a little boat like mine I would say it’s 100% worth it so far.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Gervais said:


> I’ve had one on my saltmarsh 1444 for 8months or so running an ipilot 12v. I’ve never killed it. Actually never seen the battery indicator drop but lithium’s don’t drop voltage much until they are almost dead. I was running a 55ah agm before that and rarely killed that one but I was conscious about it. With the lithium I’ve stopped worrying about it. over all I’m very pleased so far and the 10amp charger that comes with it charges it pretty quick. The weight made all the difference in my skiff and I was able to move the battery to the rear and permanently mount it where I use to take the other out because the weight made such a huge difference running and poling. I run my accessories off of it as well which is just a dragonfly 5, bilge pump, and charging my phone sometimes. The performance seems roughly the same but the agm might have been a little stronger on a fresh charge to be honest. Still moves my boat at 3mph+ according to GPS so it will hold most tides just fine. For the price on a little boat like mine I would say it’s 100% worth it so far.


Thanks for the feedback, that sounds like a good experience. I'm looking forward to testing mine out.


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## Gervais (Nov 28, 2016)

el9surf said:


> Thanks for the feedback, that sounds like a good experience. I'm looking forward to testing mine out.


BTW, the battery I got was actually under the advertised weight by a pound or more. Not much difference but I was happy it wasn’t more like 20lbs since typically companies seem to stretch the truth with weight. Either that or my scale is off🤨

also, the terminal bolts are not super long with lock washers “permanently” attached so if you plan on more than one terminal connector on each post, with an 6awg terminal end there isn’t a whole lot of extra thread and the threaded holes are fairly shallow so the bolt length is a tight tolerance. You can always buy a longer bolt and stack washers if it bottoms out though.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Gervais said:


> BTW, the battery I got was actually under the advertised weight by a pound or more. Not much difference but I was happy it wasn’t more like 20lbs since typically companies seem to stretch the truth with weight. Either that or my scale is off🤨
> 
> also, the terminal bolts are not super long with lock washers “permanently” attached so if you plan on more than one terminal connector on each post, with an 6awg terminal end there isn’t a whole lot of extra thread and the threaded holes are fairly shallow so the bolt length is a tight tolerance. You can always buy a longer bolt and stack washers if it bottoms out though.


Thank you for the info. I have to fabricate a plate to fit on the bow to mount everything to so I'm sure there will be multiple runs to the hardware store.


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## Thefishingchef (Nov 27, 2018)

Did you ever get your battery??


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## mro (Jan 24, 2018)

el9surf said:


> Thank you for the info.


I've been thinking of getting the same trolling motor as it is supposed to work with the Hummingbird Helix.

*Curious if the 55 pound thrust has been enough for your boat and how long it lasts?*


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Thefishingchef said:


> Did you ever get your battery??


I did get the battery, just haven't had a chance to get the TM installed yet.


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