Are starting batteries and trolling motor batteries the same thing, or should I be looking for specific use batteries? I need 2 for the trolling motor and 1 for everything else.
You wand Deep Cycle Batteries for the trolling motor and a strong marine battery for cranking.
I use 2 Deka DC31DT series Deep Cycle for my 24volt trolling motor and a Deka DC27 for my engine, electronics and live wells. Great product made in America.
I get mine from Discount Battery. There are a couple locations around. Also Battery Source in Fenton carries them.
Deka is a great battery... NAPA house batteries are DEKA. You might looks for these as there are NAPA's all over.
I did some checking and this may worth reading for you>>> http://www.bbcboards.net/showthread.php?t=715607&highlight=battery
After I had my batteries replaced last year, they put in these: http://www.vita-plate.com/vita-plate-marine-batteries
Love them so far. No maintenance is a plus.
Deka does make a dual purpose deep cycle cranking battery if you need more power for outboard starting plus electronics and other things like livewells, bilge, etc. There is a difference for sure between a cranking battery and a deep cycle only battery.
A deep cycle will crank, But a cranking batt will not deep cycle... What matters is that you buy more than the bare min specs that your motor calls for... The new motors of today require a lot and most batts wont meet the specs... Look into the link I provided above.
I use a Group 31 Battery made by East Penn Manufacturing Company out of Berk County Pennsylvania. East Penn also makes the Deka Battery that these guys are talking about. They also have another facility that opened in Iowa. You can find their Group 31 Deep Cycle battery at O'Reilly Auto Parts. They were reasonable priced. The Deka Batteries are their high end application. Top notch.
I highly recommend their automotive application for your truck, SUV or car. Made in the USA. Very durable. Reasonably priced.
BD ;D
I ended up with 3 Deca batteries from Discount Battery in Waterford. I got the size 29 because I was fighting space and this was as big as I dared go. I feel I got a great price for great batteries. Thanks for all the advice.
I bought similar batteries from them this year and was really happy with them.
One thing I would also do if you haven't already is to coat the terminals after you connect everything with liquid tape. It seals any exposed metal preventing any corrosion from happening down the road.
Clean, tight contacts make a big difference.