By Keith McQueen – Team NuCanoe
Today I will show you how I built my battery box for my Fish Finder for my NuCanoe Frontier. I can’t take full credit for this build as I found the idea and instructions somewhere on a website in my many searches. I wish I remembered where I found it so I could give credit. Anyway, I took their design and added a power outlet (cigarette lighter plug) so I could charge my cell phone and also us it to plug in a solar panel to charge the battery.
So let’s get started.
Items needed:
1. Waterproof box from Walmart
2. 2 pole plug (used to connect fish finder to battery)
3. Water proof power outlet (Walmart)
4. 12V deer feeder battery
5. Wire nuts
6. In-line fuse holder
7. 3-4” of black 16 ga wire
8. 3-4” of white 16 ga wire
9. 2 flat female spade connects
10. Foam
11. Marine Goop
12. Electrical tape
Tools:
1. Drill and drill bit
2. Wire cutters
3. Wire Strippers
4. Wire crimpers
Below is a picture of the waterproof box I purchased from Walmart for $10.00. You can also see the waterproof power outlet I also purchased from Walmart for $9.00 and 2 pole plug.
The first step is to drill a hole for the wires to pass from the outside of the box to the inside to connect to the battery.
Choose a bit that will be big enough for the plug and outlet wires to pass through. Locate a spot on the side of the box to drill the hole that will allow you to mount your outlet plug and have room for the wires to bend and go into the hole. With the drill in reverse, drill a hole at the designated spot. Drilling in reverse will melt a hole through the plastic avoiding the drill bit grabbing the box and cracking it. This was a great tip by the original poster of this project. Pass the plug wires and the outlet wires through the hole and into the inside of the box.
Using a pair of wire strippers, strip back approximately ½” from the end of each of the plug wires and the power outlet wires. Do the same for each end of the 3” wire pieces. On one end of each of the 3” wire piece place a flat female spade, the size that will fit the battery spade, with wire crimpers. Take the ground from the power outlet, plug and ground battery wire and twist together. Install wire nut to secure the connection. Do the same for the positive wires. Using electrical tape, wrap the tape starting about 1” above the connection and wrap to about 1” below the connect. Do the same for the other connection.
Pull the plug end of the wire out through the hole in the box to leave enough wire outside of the box to be able to comfortably plug into the other end of the fish finder unit head. Pull out enough wire for the outlet so that it can be mounted to the side of the box. Using Marine Goop, glue the power outlet to the side of the box as shown in pictures. With the appropriate wire amounts pulled outside the box, fill hole that the wire feeds through the box with Marine Goop to seal the box.
Place the 12v battery on its side in the center of the waterproof box. Plug the ground wire with the spade to the negative side of the battery. Do the same for the positive wire. Neatly arrange the wires that are inside of the box. Using the foam, cut a place around the battery to keep it secure and from moving around inside the box.
On the power lead from the fish finder head, place the inline fuse holder and 2 pole plug onto the appropriate wires. Plug fish finder into battery box plug and test. Plug a phone charger and phone into the power outlet and test for power.
To charge the battery, us a deer feeder charger with alligator clips on the end of the wires. The clips will clip onto the ground pole of the plug and inside the positive side of the battery box plug.
I also built a solar panel charger to charge the battery while on the water. I used a 12v deer feeder solar panel and placed a power outlet plug onto the positive and ground wires. It can be pluged into the power outlet and charge the battery while using the fish finder. Now you will never have a dead battery on those long days on the water. You also have a way to charge your cell phone, VHF, lights or mp3 player!
I hope you enjoyed the project and it will make your experience with the NuCanoe Frontier 12 even more enjoyable.
Check for additional DIY projects on my Team Nucanoe page.
You may also find me on:
NuCanoe forum (bearkat)
Texaskayakfisherman.com (bearkat9293)
Texasfishingforum.com (bearkat9293)
Texasbowhunter.com (bearkat)
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