Upgrading to a 200AH for my boat – will it fit in the engine bay?
I know this forum is mostly car guys, but I'm hoping someone here has experience with deep-cycle batteries for marine use because I'm in a bit of a pickle with my fishing boat. I've been running two smaller batteries in parallel for my trolling motor and electronics, but they keep letting me down halfway through a day out on the water, especially when I'm running the livewell and sounder at the same time. I've been thinking about simplifying the whole setup and just going with one beefy 200AH unit to handle everything, but I'm honestly not sure about the physical dimensions because my engine compartment is already pretty cramped with the dual outboards and all the hydraulic steering lines. The last thing I want is to order something online, wait for delivery, and then realize it doesn't fit or the terminals are on the wrong side. I've also been reading about lithium vs. AGM for this kind of application, but the price difference is huge and I'm not convinced I need to spend that much for weekend use. A mate suggested I just measure the tray and compare it to the specs, but I feel like there's more to it than that – like ventilation and cable gauge and whether my onboard charger can even handle a bigger capacity. I was down in Business Bay last week for a work thing and I saw a few service vans around, and it got me thinking maybe I should just get a professional to look at it instead of guessing. I'll probably look into Rapid 200AH Battery Service Business Bay if I can find someone who actually knows their way around marine setups and won't just treat it like a car battery swap. Has anyone here made a similar upgrade and run into any unexpected issues with mounting or wiring? I'd really appreciate hearing your stories before I go ahead and drop a chunk of change on this.