Night fishing (Lights off a boat)

[slyell]

Just curious how you guys do it for night fishing. I remeber driving over the SLP bridge and i always saw lights around and under the bridge. Do you guys place yalls generators on the boat and run them with the lights? Is it dangerous to run them that way?

I'm thinking about doing it but wanted to get some input before i try something that could quite possibly go very WRONG!!!

Planning on running a 2,500W gas power generator (those big rectangle ones) with 2 1,000W lights studio lights.

[Moonpie]

I have a 1000w light that is powered by a small Honda generator thru an outdoor grade extension cord.
I secure the generator on a simple rubber door mat.
The light is mounted on a PVC pipe frame that is non-conductive.
The generator has a GFI on it. The breaker is supposed to pop if anything goes to ground.
Electrically I think it is sufficient.
Take care to keep salt water off the generator. Wash the unit off after the trip.

Another risk is if you have to re-fuel the generator.
Always kill the unit before you attempt to add fuel.
Its a whole different game trying to dump gasoline in one on a rocking boat than it is while sitting in the driveway.

Keep a fire extinguisher out while doing so.

[WestEndAngler]

Yeah there was one guy on 2 COOL who started a fire on his boat!

GFCI Plug is a must!! proper ventilation for the unit too you don't want to be inhaling toxic and deadly fumes so position accordingly.

[Race1Mopar]

Geeesh... you guys are serious!
i have a 1400watt inverter that I connect to the trolling motor battery. Works great and is quiet!

Joe

[slyell]

Hmm.. boat + fire sounds like something that would happen to me. I may just try that another time then when the waves are much calmer! thanks for the advice!!

[fishcatchr]

hey race how long does that inverter last befor the battery runs out?

[Race1Mopar]

Depends... Take a look at this. I've only tun for a couple of hours with an underwater mercury vapor.

http://www.majorpower.com/inverters/battery_sizing_faq.pdf

Formulas and Estimation Rules
1. Watts = Volts x Amps
2. Battery capacity is expressed by how many Amps for how many hours a battery will last - Amp-Hour (A.H.) capacity
3. For a 12-Volt inverter system, each 100 Watts of the inverter load requires approximately 10 DC Amps from the battery
4. For a 24-Volt inverter system, each 200 Watts of the inverter load requires approximately 10 DC Amps from the battery

A full-sized refrigerator draws about 2 Amps at 120 Volts AC. By multiplying 2 Amps x 120 Volts, you find out the
refrigerator uses 240 Watts. The batteries will need to deliver 20 Amps to run the refrigerator (240 Watts/12 Volts = 20
Amps). Typically, refrigerators operate about 1/3 of the time (1/3 "duty cycle"), or 8 hours a day. Therefore, the A.H.
drain will be 160 A.H.
(8 hours x 20 Amps = 160 A.H.).
After the load and running time is established, the battery bank size can be calculated. The first calculation is to divide the
load (in Watts) by 10 for a 12-Volt system or by 20 for a 24-Volt system resulting in the number of Amps required from
the battery bank.

Example of Input Calculations
1. Total Watts = 1000 W
2. Amps from 12-Volt battery = 1000 ÷ 10 = 100 Amps DC
3. Amps from 24-Volt battery = 1000 ÷ 20 = 50 Amps DC
Next, the number of DC Amps must be multiplied by the time in hours that the load is to operate

[tholmes3]

Also depends on the condition of the battery. A trolling or deep cycle batter is designed to take low, constant, drain over a period of time. From there, keeping the battery acid level at full (top off with with distilled water if low, and check every 3-6 months) and using an automatic battery maintainer that supplies a charge at 1-2 amps, with a "float mode" (that cuts charging once the battery is full), helps preserve and extend the life of marine and all non-frequently used batteries.

I check fluid level every 3 months and use on-boat chargers, as mentioned above, on both my starting and trolling batteries, and also on my UTV for hunting. I get more than the typical 3 years on most of my machinery, unless I repeatedly drain the batteries in back to back uses.