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I've got a minn kota classic 28 electric trolling motor on my pontoon. This will be it's third season of use. This spring my battery was shot and had it warrenteed, so I've got it hooked up to a brand new battery and I still seem to be getting less battery life out of it than I've had in the past. My fish finder has a voltmeter on it and it drops to 12.2 to 12.4 volts within the first 10 minutes of operation and quickly draws down from there. In the past it took six or seven hours of constant use to draw it below 12 volts, the other day it only took 2 1/2 and I had the motor off with the anchor down for a good portion of that time. My prop does have a few nicks and dings on it, other than that is there anything else any of you have experienced that increases the amp draw. I've already pulled the prop and made sure that nothing had gotten rapped around the motor shaft. Any hints and ideas would be greatly appreciated.
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You may have a "load" drawing excess current from your source. A load can be anything that is electrically attached to your source (the battery). You don't mention whether the source is providing power to other accessories. Is it just the trolling motor and fish finder? Nicks in the prop would not have a significant impact on the electrical draw you are having. You may have already performed some type of troubleshooting when you powered down your troller and continued to see decreased performance in your new battery. The best way to troubleshoot this problem is by isolating the devices drawing from your source, once you determine what device is drawing down your source, you have two options: first, use a warranty if applicable, and secondly, repair the device yourself or if you are uncomfortable with that scenario have it repaired by a repair facility. I hope I have helped you and good luck.
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It is not unusual to buy a new battery this time of year, and have a problem with it. Unfortunately, most retailers, ( including the one I managed a tire and lube center for, ) will have an excess of batteries in the fall, and those batteries will sit until they are purchased. I have found that it is not unusual to buy a battery that has been sitting on the shelf for 6 months or better. There is a date code on the battery which will say something like D-05. D, the 4th letter in the alphabet correlates to the month. 05 would correlate to the year. You might want to check the date code to find out when the battery was manufactured. Also, I have taken a small light bulb, test light, ect. and used it to drain the battery completely. Then trickle charge the battery ( Less than 2 amps .) that will sometimes help the battery retain, and release the charge in the future. Good Luck!
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