How long to charge and discharge a Vexilar battery?

[mixxedbagg]

I just purchased a new battery (I think it was an 8 amp) for my Vexilar FL8. I haven't run this one completely dead yet and I don't have a charge meter on the Vex or a gauge on the charger.

I'm just wondering, how long does it take that charger to completely charge the battery (roughly) and how long could I expect to get out of that battery if I actually had all day to fish some time this winter?

[harvey lee]

I would purchase a charger with a gauge. Thats all I go by. If one leaves it hooked up to long, one could damage the battery without a maintainer.

Maybe a battery tender would be a fit for you.

My Humminbird and MarCum chargers take care of that for me.

[LMITOUT]

The battery should last all day and then some. When I had a Vex with no battery status monitor and just the standard charger, I would put it on the charger in the evening and take it off in the morning and I was good to go again.

[skinman]

i used to use the zero degree ice tackle charger. i know when my vex battery was dead i would use this as i drive to the lake in my truck it takes only 75 minutes for 7 hours of use

[mixxedbagg]

Quote:

I would put it on the charger in the evening and take it off in the morning and I was good to go again.

Thanks. That's what I do now...but I'm wondering more for if I fish in the morning, charge it for an hour or two, then go back out for the afternoon bite kind of a thing.

[Norm1980]

is it best to run your battery down as far as possible before putting on the charger??

[mixxedbagg]

Quote:

is it best to run your battery down as far as possible before putting on the charger??

I sure hope not! What a pain that would be.

[LMITOUT]

No. The worse thing that you can do, however, is to run it all the way down and then not charge it.

For your scenario, mixxed, you should be just fine. I've run a flasher all day and have had plenty to spare. Taking a break in the middle of the day shouldn't be a problem, but topping it off to make sure it lasts through the evening bite won't hurt a thing either.

These batteries will take a fairly good beating and keep ticking. Just don't leave them dead for a long period of time (as in weeks or months). That'll ruin them almost certainly.

[john.wells]

I have found that when using the 500 milliamp charger they come with is that you need to feel the actual charger that is plugged into the wall. If it is quite warm, it is putting out a good amount of juice. When it cools down, usually 12-24 hours, the battery is no longer taking any charge and should be removed from the charger, as they will continue to output power and that will ruin the battery. You don't want to run a charger on these little batteries that puts out more than 1.2 amps or it will smoke them as well. The LED meter is a good indicator, but the best way to tell if a battery is charged up enough is with a voltmeter. A healthy and fully charged battery should read somewhere between 12.5 to 13 volts, and shouldn't show a significant drop in voltage when a load (flasher, camera, light, etc...) is applied.

[shorefisher]

I charge mine after every time I use it overnight. 3 years so far no issues. I have a meter on my FL-18 but it is not correct as it is never at 100% even right out of the box. I did let one go dead over the summer and it was junk so I now charge it once a month in the off season.

[Surface Tension]

Most flashers now have some sort of smart charger, if you don't have that then you can go by the following.

Look at the what the flasher draws, it'll be around 300-400 milliamps. If a charger puts out 500 milliamps, then say if you used the flasher for 6 hours it'll need around 5 hours of charge time.

6 x 400 = 2400 that is what has been drawn from the battery.

2400 div by 500 = 5 hr of charge time.

You can go over that some and not damage the battery but leaving it on for a day isn't the best thing to do.

The sealed acid and gel batteries don't have memory and should be charged after each use.

When your done fishing for the day bring the flasher in the house, let it warm back up and put the charger on it.

[harvey lee]

I do the same thing with my gell cell boat batteries. I charge then after every time out as soon as I get back home.

My batteries seem to last forever.

[cold one sd]

Rule of thumb for 500 milliamp chargers is charge two hours for every hour that flasher was used.

[blackdog1101]

is it best to run your battery down as far as possible before putting on the charger??

Yes, this is true. In my previous job I learned far more about batteries than I ever really wanted to know.

However, even by using it all day and then charging it overnight, the battery will still last several seasons. I figure if I have to buy a new battery every two or three years it's not really a big deal.

[slipperybob]

is it best to run your battery down as far as possible before putting on the charger??

That is one of the worst thing to do. You wouldn't run your car or boat battery down before charging it back up before you first use it.

[ND4LIFE]

I've had my Aqua-Vu for about 8 years with the same battery. At one time I went almost 2 years without using it. I put it on the charger overnight then turned it on and let it run for awhile till it was dying again. I then repeated this a couple of times. It now seems to last 4-5 hours until it starts to loose power. The battery is a 7Ah and I use a 500mAh charger so I believe it would take 14 hours to charge a completely discharged battery. I leave it on about 12 hours after use and this seems to charge it up just fine. I think I might buy a new battery and then use this one as a backup for longer fishing days.

[Leon S.]

can you use a car charger & put it on 12v 2amps for 1 hr?

[Wimbie]

I've been using my Vex for about a week without charging it yet. I would say your good for at least a good full day or two.

[slipperybob]

can you use a car charger & put it on 12v 2amps for 1 hr?

Yes you can, but make sure you moniter it closely. Not all chargers are efficient and if it's giving off lots of heat, then it will likely fry the battery.