The advantages of a lithium battery
The main advantages of using a lithium battery are the space saving and the weight saving, indeed, with equal capacity, a lithium battery is 2 to 3 times lighter than a lead battery. The practical side is also interesting since these batteries are mounted in waterproof cases. This is particularly convenient to transport them to the house to charge them and then to the boat during the fishing session.
Fishing on a plastic aquapêche boat of 3m20, equipped with a solix 10 and a rear motor minkotta endura C2 in 40lbs, I needed three lead batteries per session for the motor + one for the sounder, with 3 fishermen plus the material, displacement and fishing only with the electric.
This year, I decided to test the lithium battery, so my choice was the BSR 12V 100ah, with motor output and sounder.
The BSR battery has a Gen2 digital display that shows the percentage of battery remaining, the remaining capacity in Ah, the live time remaining, the voltage and the instantaneous consumption in amperes.
Installation of the battery
The BSR battery is delivered with its charger, its instructions and with 2 waterproof plugs: one for the sounder and one for the motor. The installation of these 2 plugs is very well explained in 2 videos that you just have to follow after having flashed the QR code located on the notice.
To install the motor socket, you need to cut and strip the motor cables, then solder them directly into the two poles of the socket, before closing the entire socket to ensure a watertight seal. This operation is very simple and takes only a few minutes.
To install the sonar plug, the principle is the same except that the cables are screwed directly into the plug, and the nut that closes the plug traps the cable, making the plug waterproof. Here again, less than five minutes are required.
All that remains is to connect the battery to its charger, which will automatically shut down once it has reached 100% charge.
The fishing session
The first positive point is the time of installation of the material in the boat, indeed the suitcase is easily transported, one puts it in the bottom of the boat, one comes to connect the 2 catches there, and it is left for the day!
First quick observation, the speed of the engine which reaches almost 6km/h while this same engine, with so many people and fishing equipment on board, struggled to reach 4km/h with lead batteries.
Then, the hours of fishing and the casts follow one another, the fish a little less, obliging us to move a lot, including with the wind in front. The light of the Solix 10 is on full blast to avoid bad reflections because of the sun, and all our movements are done in speed 4 or 5 on the engine. After more than 8 hours of fishing and navigation, the rain starts to appear, which is not a problem for the equipment, but we fishermen start to be not too waterproof... Once at the edge, the report is without appeal: it remains 50 % of load, the battery could thus have ensured a second day of fishing of the same intensity!
In conclusion
This battery, with its LifePo4 technology is simply amazing on its autonomy, it is compact, easy to use, resistant and guaranteed 4 years. The LifePo4 technology is a durable technology since the BSR battery accepts up to 2000 charge/discharge cycles at 100%. Its design is very secure, with a 60a BMS, a 60a fuse and stainless steel screws.
All these advantages quickly make us forget the price of the beast, proposed at 1650 euros, but which remains a durable investment.
