Kota and battery maintenence

[Brad Y]

After a bit of info on kota maintenence. The weekends leccy round was a good wake up to the condition of the battery and motor.

I went through my trojan within the first hour or so. I think i rectified that problem by topping up with distilled water as the plates were on surface. Its had a really big full charge and its getting load tested tomorrow. Is there anything else i can do to monitor it? It was equalise charged by challenge batteries in october last year.

The second problem was i went through the same size different brand battery that i borrowed in the same time. The kota was on 10 but was used in short bursts only as i was still being carried by the wind. The speed never increased past the normal rate i would get on having it at 6.

The kota worked perfectly the previous weekend... I left it in perth to get checked and serviced by the appropriate people so if there is anything wrong it can be rectified before walpole.

Also with the pedal, some people say it can be dipped in warm water to remove salt buildup etc. Is this a good idea or should i just spray it with contact cleaner inside?

Appreciate any feedback.

[matchangler]

i had mine serviced by bla the other week the guy there is so good,he told me don,t wash it in warm water ,blast it off with a air hose if you have one otherwise a long bristled brush between the gaps will do he says there a sealed unit and the new ones are even better they have been upgraded there was heaps wrong with mine and he fixed it and got it back within 2 days 4 me

[don]

Brad

If you ring BLA 94303910 and talk to Todd he should be able to answer your questions on the Minn Kota.

As for the battery.

I had mine on 10 , on the weekend,for about an hour to get to maylands and that took the best part out of it .

I changed over batties and fished the session and took it seady on the way back , around 7-8 ,and still had quite a bit left at the finish.

Pulling 10 for a lot of the time will work the battery hard.

[Stu_000]

That all tells me I have a good battery (Hoppecke sp?). I gave it a hammering and travelled a long way on 10 (probably 50% of the time). I went to the Maylands Boat ramp and back and it was still going strong when I got back. When I put it on charge that night it showed I still had half a battery.

I leave mine on trickle permanently and always charge it as soon as I get home.

HTH

[Doc_Hollywood]

I really am starting to think that the quality of charger makes the diff. I know stu has a good one and so do I and I also had heaps of battery left. The Prostrike weighs in at 1000kgs and even though the leccy is 80lb thrust it still has its work cut out. Saying that we kota'd around all day and was still showing a full charge at the end of the day.
I have a 3 stage charger which is 20 amps and is on my battery as soon as i get a chance.

[BIG PETE]

Doc
do you leave it on charge like Stu said or only leave it on charge till its finished its cycle

[Doc_Hollywood]

Pete if you have a three stage charger, you can just leave it on all the time. From what I have been told by the battery dudes. The battery heats up quicker than you can charge it so it shows a false full charge until it cools down, when it is able to except more charge. The more expensive quality chargers have trionic (or similar) charging technology that regulates the current going into the battery so that a) the battery doesnt heat up as much and b) more charge is trickle in once the initial charge has been done.

[BIG PETE]

thanks fella very interesting looks like i am going to have to get another charger i just got a 10 amp for the cruiser what do them three stage chargers cost

[Stu_000]

My c-tek 7000 (7 amp) was about $370 Pete. 7 amp doesn't sound much but it is a three stage and as you can see from my post above it keeps the battery in good nick.

HTH

[BIG PETE]

Originally posted by Stu_000
My c-tek 7000 (7 amp) was about $170 Pete. 7 amp doesn't sound much but it is a three stage and as you can see from my post above it keeps the battery in good nick.

HTH

thats a good price i paid more than that for this one i got here but its not a 3 stage

sorry for the hijack Hill Billy

[Stu_000]

Sorry Pete notice edited price. Never was a good typist :rolleyes:

[BIG PETE]

i know what the prob is mate its got nothing to do with your typing
you left your milk crate at work and you cant reach the back of the key board

[matchangler]

there 350 pete from battery world i got the same one or should i say leon saw mine then brought his:D :D

[Stu_000]

Don't respond to his posts mate he gets abusive for no reason. If you ignore him he might go away :D

[Rod]

You can get a the Minn Kota 10amp three stage for RR of $245 but they sell cheaper if you now some one good :D

[BIG PETE]

Stu
i not goin to ignore him i want to go fishing on his boat one day only if he thinks im not to big to go on it

[Stu_000]

Originally posted by Stu_000
Don't respond to his posts mate he gets abusive for no reason. If you ignore him he might go away :D

I was talking about you sport ;)

[BIG PETE]

i not thinking really well had a BAD BAD day at the pits with the cruiser i not happy

[Stu_000]

After your milk crate remark your getting no sympathy from me :p

I can hear the violins from here

As they say if it's got wheels it's bound to be trouble

[BIG PETE]

:cool: :(

[Stu_000]

Only jokes mate. The inspectors can be be brutal. Should have gone to Midland mate. They are a good bunch there ;)

[BIG PETE]

i was hoping to see a mate but he on hollidays


sorry again for the hijack Hill Billy :) :) :)

[Stu_000]

Just to get this thread back on track..........

I checked my water levels in my battery yesterday and found they were below the plates :eek:

I have only used it a handful of times so it goes to show it's something that should be done as routine especially if it's on charge fulltime like mine. I guess hot weather may reduce the levels too.

So check your water levels or your battery could die an early death