Powering an underwater fishing light

[Baylor805]

Hello everyone,

This is my first post and I am new to the off grid/solar/battery world so take it easy on me. I am considering buying an underwater fishing light for the family ranch to use off the dock at night and do not have a power source close enough to plug the light in so that leaves me to my idea of running off of a 12v battery. The light that I am looking at is rated on the website to draw 12.5amps/hour. I would assume that I would need a 12v 100ah car or deep cycle marine battery to power the light for 8 hours. Ideally I would only use the light for 1-4 hours when I am out there about twice a month.

Here is what I was thinking as far as the set up:
-12v 100ah battery (suggestions?)
-Fishing light
- solar charge controller (suggestions?)
- Solar panel (Suggestions on size/brand?)
- on/off switch to light
- inline fuse to light from battery (incase the light leaked/got wet)



Underwater light:

Green Underwater LED Fishing Lights | 20000 Lumens | 5 Yr Warranty

LED fishing lights that actually have you catch more fish! The only underwater fishing light that has adjustable brightness, a depth rating of 150 feet, creates 20,000+ lumens, and includes our industry leading 5-year warranty! Power with 12v, 24v, or 110v-250v. Proven worldwide results in fresh...

www.illumisea.com

Keep in mind I am trying to keep the cost down as much as possible, yet have enough power to keep the light running as bright as possible. Understand there will be some trade off on different options.

Thanks in advance! Any help/feedback is welcomed.

 

[snoobler]

I would get 2X cheap 6V golf cart batteries from Sams/Costco. They're pretty much the best value for capacity.

That will get you 200ah of capacity with half of it usable - a true 8 hours without damaging batteries.

Assuming a 4hr use, that's 4h * 12.5A * 12V = 600Wh. A single 100W panel and cheap PWM controller can probably get you by if you don't use it 3 days in a row. 200W would knock it out, so:

$180 in batteries
$142 in panels
$16 for a charge controller

You could get away with less battery and 1 panel if you really have to go on the cheap.

 

[Baylor805]

Thanks @snoobler , I was able to find a heck of a deal on 50watt solar panels so I can wire them in parallel, if needed. What do you mean 200w would knock it out?

 

[snoobler]

200W would likely permit you to use it 4 hours daily provided you get decent sun.

 

[Baylor805]

Ok, so I want to make sure I am not making a mistake here.. I bought a Duralast 27DP-DL Group 27 Marine and RV flooded lead acid battery. There are so many different batteries to choose from. Will this work for my application or should I return it and get a different battery that would better suit my needs? @snoobler

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[snoobler]

The only specification i can find is a 180 minute reserve capacity. That means the battery can provide 25A for 3 hours above 10.5V.

Based on comparisons with other batteries, I would estimate the C20 capacity at 100Ah - about 1/2 of what I recommended. if you get a second one and put it in parallel with the first, you should be good.

 

[Baylor805]

@snoobler Thanks again for all the help. Thought I would post a pic of the final product. Ended up using four 50w panels in parallel, two 12v 105ah batteries in parallel, 12v digital timer switch to have the light come on at night, used a plano storage tote to store all the electronics/batteries to protect from the weather, vents on the sides of the tote, and a weatherproof volt meter to be able to check the batteries anytime. So far two weeks in and so far so good!

 

[snoobler]

Thanks for the follow-up.

 

[Baylor805]

@snoobler Follow up...

Had to change up the light I was using because it leaked in water. Luckily, It was still under warranty. Now I have replaced it with a 175W light that runs off of AC 110 power.

Link to the new light:

https://underwatergreenfishinglight...ovides-an-8-to-12-foot-circle-of-light-349-95


I switched up my configuration and have a 400w inverter hooked to the battery bank, connected to an intermatic manual timer switch that controls when the light comes on/off.. The timer switch draws power 24/7 to power the internal clock. (not sure what power consumption is)

The problem I am running in to is I cannot turn off the power draw from my battery bank during the day because the timer switch has to run 24/7 for the internal clock to keep time.

My current set up: 2 12v deep cycle batteries 105ah ea in parellel, 200watts of solar ( 4, 50watt panels in parellel), 30a pwm charge controller, 400watt inverter, intermatic manual timer switch.

Ideally, I would like to have the light come on for 2-4 hrs every night and have enough capacity to recharge during the day and not have to worry about my battery bank going dead. In order to do that, do I need to up my solar to 400 watts total? Also, will I need to upgrade my battery to say a 200ah LifePo4 battery?

TIA!