3x12v 100ah vs. 1x 36v 100 ah LiFePO4 battery

[podo98]

I have a 36V 112 lb. thrust trolling motor. I’m upgrading to lithium. Is there any reason to get three 12 V batteries versus one 36 V battery? It seems to me that unless you intend to you use one 36v charger for all three, by the time you figure in buying a quality three bank 12V 10a charger vs. one 36v charger the $ seems negligible.

 

[BentleyJ]

The more import factor with Li chemistry is that a 36V battery has only one Battery Management System with connections to all 12 cells so it can maintain cell balance. Individual 12V batteries wired in series will eventually become unbalanced unless, as you mentioned, they are charged with separate 12V chargers.