Trolling Motor Storage

[loadmaster]

Getting ready to put the boat away. Bought a new Minn Kota Terrova with I-Link this year. The motor comes off boat for storage. What does everybody do with theirs? In unheated garage or in house. Worried about the electronics getting messed up during the winter. Left my Power Drive in rafters of garage with no problems Batteries in the basement. Also what about remote do you keep up the charge in the house?

[ClownColor]

in the garage. electronics can handle it. TV, computer compainies like you to wait 24 hours after being in cold temps but that has more to do with the type of screen.

I know of a lot of cars that sit outside in the winter with much more electronics in them...you'll be fine.

[delcecchi]

My terrova has sat in the boat in unheated storage up north since I bought it. No problem. I added an ipilot this year so we'll see in the spring....

There was in issue in the past with Lowrance transducers that was attributed to freezing by some but in general and from my electronics experience shouldn't be a problem.

[MuskieJunkie]

----MINN KOTA TROLLING MOTORS WITH AUTO PILOT HAVE TO BE KEPT ABOVE FREEZING----

The auto pilot is a liquid filled compass and it will freeze and crack in extreme cold.

Also take this time to check for fishing line wrapped around your trolling motor drive shaft, it can cause the motor to overwork and will fry it.

[delcecchi]

----MINN KOTA TROLLING MOTORS WITH AUTO PILOT HAVE TO BE KEPT ABOVE FREEZING----

The auto pilot is a liquid filled compass and it will freeze and crack in extreme cold.

Also take this time to check for fishing line wrapped around your trolling motor drive shaft, it can cause the motor to overwork and will fry it.

Sorry Charlie, I call Bovine Excrement. My Terrova has been stored at temps well below zero for years and works perfectly. The liquid is not water.

[Esox_Magnum]

My Terrova has always been stored outside with the I Pilot no issues after 5 years...Only thing I remove is the HDS units. One of those get set up for ice...

[Schubie]

Muskie junkie

Where did you get the info? If a possibility I won't take a chance as easy as it is to take off.

Thanks

Schubie

[aanderud]

----MINN KOTA TROLLING MOTORS WITH AUTO PILOT HAVE TO BE KEPT ABOVE FREEZING----

The auto pilot is a liquid filled compass and it will freeze and crack in extreme cold.

Also take this time to check for fishing line wrapped around your trolling motor drive shaft, it can cause the motor to overwork and will fry it.

[h8go4s]

The transparent object at the bottom left in the photo is the actual compass. All you have to do is take the cover off the TM head and you can see it. It may not have a needle as you would envision it but it is liquid-filled like any other compass. And it is NOT water-filled. It is probably filled with whatever fluid standard compasses use, glycerin or a light oil. Do you really think that MinnKota, a company headquartered in Mankato, Minnesota, would make a compass that would freeze in the winter? They would have gone out of business long ago doing something that stupid. There are thousands of these stored outdoors over winter every year with no damage.

[Kyhl]

Muskie junkie

Where did you get the info? If a possibility I won't take a chance as easy as it is to take off.

Thanks

Schubie

It is not a possibility. I have also stored both autopilots and Ipilots in the cold, inside a garage and outside, for years with no problems.

[aanderud]

The transparent object at the bottom left in the photo is the actual compass. All you have to do is take the cover off the TM head and you can see it. It may not have a needle as you would envision it but it is liquid-filled like any other compass. And it is NOT water-filled.

I stand corrected that the minnkota compass assembly has liquid in it (as you said, non-water liquid). I'm guessing this is for a tilt sensor. But I will tell you that your assertion that "any other compass" also has water is way off base. Plenty of electronics these days have a compass built in very cheaply via magnetometers set up on 2 or 3 axes and just assume you're holding it level.

If you want the compass to work when not level, then you need to know the pitch and roll that have been applied, so a 2-axis tilt sensor is needed. Adding an electrolytic tilt sensor is sometimes done to improve accuracy, like on the following package:

I'm not sure why the compass module on the MinnKota uses a tilt sensor (that's what I'm assuming it is) with such a large liquid reservoir, but maybe it's because they're reusing an older design.

In any case, I think it's still an accurate statement that the thing will not be damaged by storing it in cold temps. On the other hand if a guy wants to take it out of the boat and put it in your house, and he has space for it indoors, then I guess no harm no foul.

[MuskieJunkie]

Geez tough crowd....

This is the advice that I have gotten from two different minn kota repair technicians on separate occasions, I also have had a motor that the autopilot did not work right and when I brought it in for repair the technician told me this was the issue, replaced it and then it worked. He could have been lying to me but I doubt it.

To anyone reading this it is your motor and you can do with it as you wish, I am just trying to give helpful advice.

To the questions/comments that came up:

A) I said motors with autopilot, not all motors

I said autopilot, not I pilot - they are two different things

C) I did not say the liquid is water

D) A few people said they've done it with no problem/no damage - If the freeze happens the motor will still work, the AP will still work, it just won't work correctly.

[harvey lee]

I have always stored my AP tm outside in the element's and never once an issue. Mine went into cold storage again yesterday. I have no fear that it will be fine in the spring, always has been and no reason it wont be again. No ideas what the manual states but with not having any issues in the past years, I see no reason why I will next spring.

I guess if you would worry all winter about it, take it off to ease your mind.

[delcecchi]

Geez tough crowd....

This is the advice that I have gotten from two different minn kota repair technicians on separate occasions, I also have had a motor that the autopilot did not work right and when I brought it in for repair the technician told me this was the issue, replaced it and then it worked. He could have been lying to me but I doubt it.

To anyone reading this it is your motor and you can do with it as you wish, I am just trying to give helpful advice.

To the questions/comments that came up:

A) I said motors with autopilot, not all motors

I said autopilot, not I pilot - they are two different things

C) I did not say the liquid is water

D) A few people said they've done it with no problem/no damage - If the freeze happens the motor will still work, the AP will still work, it just won't work correctly.

To answer you answers,

1) I have stored autopilot motors at outside temps for many years with no problems.

2) yeah, I can read. Autopilot has no problem. I'll let you know in may about ipilot, but how dumb do you thing Minnkota engineers are?

3) if the liquid is something that doesn't freeze, like mineral oil etc, then cold temps won't cause problems. Water expands when it freezes causing problems.

4.) So you think all those of us who said their autopilots work don't know when they work "correctly"?

Technician was blowing smoke up your orifice. What makes you believe that he knows what the cause was?

[loadmaster]

Ok back to my question. I know auto pilot will not be effected, I am worried about my I-Link system Two different options. Think I will just keep it in the basement. Nobody gave me a clue about the remote trickle charge or what. One other thing, humminbird suggests you remove the GPS Antenna if temps get below -20 for a extended period of time

[MattL]

If its not a big deal to remove and you have a place for it inside its probably best. That being said, my I pilot stays on the boat year round. Heck, I think it was like 9 degress in the morning, warming up to around 20 when I took it out the first time this spring.

[hugonian1]

I am no expert here for sure but will share my experience.

I had an autopilot that would start going back & forth searching for a signal while trolling.

Took it into Motor Guide in Bloomington/ the factory service center.

Told them the problem.

They asked if I took it in during the winter.

I told them I kept it in an unheated barn.

He informed me that is a big mistake many make. The compasses can/ do go bad in the cold. $158.00 later it was fixed.

My Terrova now gets stored differently.

Maybe I was one of the unlucky ones but coming from the factory service center I could not discount it.

[harvey lee]

Many times these tech guys will tell you about anything so you do not blame the quality of their product.

[delcecchi]

Compass went bad, he didn't want to give you the "stuff happens" or "we see a lot of these" or "they had a bad run" so he blamed the customer.

Given that this is Minnesota, don't you think that either it would be in big letters in the Fine Manual that we all read or that complaints would be thicker than flies on whatever?

[CaptainMusky]

I am no expert here for sure but will share my experience.

I had an autopilot that would start going back & forth searching for a signal while trolling.

This was a known issue with the older autopilot units and had nothing to do with where you stored it. He made $158 off you and got a warranty check from Minnkota for the work most likely.

I had the same thing happen to mine, well after warranty, but the guy replaced it free because MinnKota knew of all the issues.

[SkunkedAgain]

All of my stuff including batteries stays in the boat in an unheated garage. As usual I'll state the obvious that goes against man-code....read the owner's manual. If you bought some kind of a temperature-sensitive trolling motor they will tell you right in the front with the long list of "DO NOT" statements if you should not store the trolling motor below freezing.

Seriously, do manufacturers expect us not to fish the rivers when it's below freezing because our trolling motors will freeze? I thought that only tauntauns froze before you reached the first marker.

[MuskieJunkie]

To answer you answers,

1) I have stored autopilot motors at outside temps for many years with no problems.

2) yeah, I can read. Autopilot has no problem. I'll let you know in may about ipilot, but how dumb do you thing Minnkota engineers are?

3) if the liquid is something that doesn't freeze, like mineral oil etc, then cold temps won't cause problems. Water expands when it freezes causing problems.

4.) So you think all those of us who said their autopilots work don't know when they work "correctly"?

Technician was blowing smoke up your orifice. What makes you believe that he knows what the cause was?

I see that you are very passionate about the storage of trolling motors. I am not trying to get into a big back and forth here. By your reaction you would think I said "you better do this or you're a complete moron!" Again you can do as you wish, I am just trying to pass on helpful advice I received from professionals.

1) I am glad your motor has not had any issues. Maybe it only happens with a certain batch of compasses, maybe it only happens at -20 and your's never went below -19..... I do not know.

2) I'm sure the engineers are very smart but that doesn't mean they don't make mistakes. Design flaws happen all the time in all aspects of engineering.

3) yes that is 100% correct, not sure how it proves your point or helps guys that are reading this store their boats.

4) No I do not, One of two things has happened: they have not had an issue with freezing (see answer #1); or they have had the issue and have not noticed the problem

To your last question, why do I believe the technicians - because they are professionals that work in the industry and I am just a computer nerd that works on databases.

[Down Deep]

This is my experience. I have owned three bow mounts with Autopilot since MinnKota began manufacturing them. It has to be about 20 years by now. I live in northern MN and have always stored my motor outside or in an unheated garage. I have never had a compass problem. My first two units failed when one flew off the boat and smashed into the road because of a brain fart. The other had a bad board so I decided to upgrade and bought a new motor.

Storing these motors outside is not uncommon as I know several of my fishing friends who do it. I'm confident that developing a compass problem is not a hazard of cold storage. But, inside storage is easy, so why not do it if a person is worried about freezing and damage.

[Hookmaster]

I had an autopilot that I purchased about 1995 that would sit in an unheated garage. Never had an issue. I bought a newer autopilot in ~2002 and stored it the same way. After the second winter, the autopilot didn't work. Took it into Motor Guide in Bloomington. Told them the problem.

They asked if I took it in during the winter. I said no as I never had a problem before. They said the newer models had thinner oil and could freeze. It was covered under warranty. I'm not taking any chances and store it in the basement now.

[Kyhl]

Maybe they had a bad year?

Three winters storing my (2010?) ipilot in an unheated garage with no issues TM issues. It was the first year of ipilot and the original remote was junk but they redesigned it for the following year thru current and that one works great.

Prior to that I had about a 2000(?) Autopilot stored the same way, unheated garage, for 10 years. No issues.