Help in select the correct lithium battery for your trolling motor or electric outboard engine

Fluistermotor RebelcellWe get these type questions a lot: which battery do I need for my trolling motor, front troller or electric outboard engine? To answer this question you need to consider the following things. On which Voltage is the engine running? How many Amps does the engine need in use? What is de desired runtime? On this page we will help you find the right battery. It may seem difficult at the beginning, but it is actually quite simple. At the end of this page you can find the table with all different motors in combination with different Rebelcell batteries. You can always just take a quick look there to find get an idea of which battery matches your needs. On this page you can find:

If you are looking for a suitable battery for your 12V trolling motor, we recommend using our Trolling motor tool. On tab 4 you can easily select your trolling motor to see the runtime for with every Rebelcell battery.

If you are still not sure which battery you need for your electric outboard engine, as always feel free to contact us!

Selecting the right battery

1. On which voltage does the engine run and what is the power of the engine?

Rebelcell 24V100 Lithium accuThe voltage of the engine is nearly always clearly printed on the outside of the engine or it can be found in the user manual. If you cannot find the voltage please contact the supplier of the engine. A bit more difficult to find is the power of the engine. Most of the times you can find this in the user manual. The power of the engine is measured in Watts. At the end of this page you can find a table with some populair outboard engines and trolling motors with their voltage and their power. This can also be used as a reference if your model is not listed.

> For all 12V trolling motors you need a battery from the AV-line (the blue batteries) or the PRO-line (the red batteries) between 35Ah and 190Ah.

> For all 24V motors you require a 24V battery (the white batteries): the 24V50, 24V70 BT or the 24V100 BT.

> For all 36V tmotors you need a 36V battery (the yellow battery): the 36V70

> For starting your outboard engine you need a Start batterie or a PRO-line batterie (The red batteries)

The AV-line batteries can be used with every 12V electric outboard or trolling motor. This is due to the fact that the voltage matches the working voltage of outboard engines. At the bottom of this page we explain this in detail. When we talk about a trolling motor we mean a 12V engine. When we talk about an electric outboard engine we mean a engine that runs on 24V, 36V or 48V.

2. How much Amps does my engine draw?

This question is a bit harder to answer. Sometimes the power consumption in Amps is specified per speed / gear in the user manual. The power draw in Amps can be calculated once you know the power in Watts. This can be done by dividing the power (W) by the Voltage (V). Please note, sometimes you will know the power draw in Amps at full throttle, but not at your average  speed. Usually this is much lower.

Example: You have a 12 Volts Talamex 48LBS. Usually you run it in speed / gear 3. In the user manual you find that the power of the trolling motor in third gear is 300 Watts. At full speed (gear 5) the power is 480 Watts. The power draw in third gear is 300 / 12=25 Amps. At full throttle this is 480 / 12=40 Amps.

With Torqeedo outboard engines you can always see the power at the display. For some populair brands and models you can find the power at the bottom of this page.

3. What is the desired sailing time?

Torqeedo cruise 4.0 elektrische buitenboordThis is something you need to decide for yourself. For how many hours do you want to sail or run your engine and at what pace. Once you have figured this out you know the power draws in Amps and you can calculate which battery you need using the battery formula.

4. The battery formula

De battery formula is meant to calculate the required Amp-hours (Ah) of the battery. With a Rebelcell battery the Amp-hours are indicated in the name/type. The 12V70 AV is a 12 Volt Battery with 70Ah and the 24V100 BT has a capacity of 100 Amps-hours at 24 Volts. The definition of Amp-hours is quite simple: it indicated for how many hours a certain amount of Amps can be drawn. For example, a 100Ah Battery can give 1 Amp for 100 hours or 2 Amps for 50 hours or 25 Amps for 4 hours etc. The Battery formula is as follows:

Needed battery (in Ah)=Ampere (A) × desired sailing time (in hours)

Caution! The battery formula only works for lithium batteries and does not work when you use with lead batteries. With lead batteries the effective capacity is always much lower than the indicated capacity.  A 100Ah semi-traction Marine lead-acid battery offers similar runtime to a 50Ah lithium-ion battery. This has to do with the effective battery capacity.

Example 1: You have a 12Volt Minn Kota Endura Max 55LBS. On average you run your engine at 60% and you want to have a run-time of at least 4 hours. At 60% the motor draws 17 Amps. The battery formula is now: Needed battery (in Ah) = 17 (Amps drawn by the trolling motor) x 4 (the desired run time) In this case you require a battery with at least 17×4=68Ah, so the Rebelcell 12V70 AV will be the right battery for you.

Example 2: You have a Minn Kota Endura C2 30LBS and usually you run it in third gear (14A). You want to use your engine for at least 2,5 hours. In this case you will need a 12 Volt battery with 14 x 2,5=35Ah, so the 12V35 AV battery is the perfect one for you.

The battery formula can also be used if we use Watt and Watthour instead of Amps and Amp-hours The answer remains the same. On the product pages of the different Rebelcell batteries the Watthours (Wh) are specified. The battery formula in Watthours is as follows:

Needed battery (in Wh)=Watt (W) × desired sailing time (in hours)

Example 3: You have a Minn Kota Endura Max 55LBS and on average you run it at 60% of max speed and you want to have a runtime of at least 4 hours. At 60% capacity the motor has 240W power. The battery formula now is: Needed battery (in Wh) = 204 (Watts drawn by the motor) x 4 (desired runtime)

In this case you’ will need a 12 Volt battery with at least 204 x 4=816W, so the Rebelcell 12V70 AV with a capacity of 836Wh is the perfect battery for you.

More information about Voltage, Amps and Power.

Some examples

At the end of this page you can find a table with different kind of motors and the sailing time using different batteries.

Sailing time with a Minn Kota Endura Max 55 LBS with a 340cm polyester boat with 2 people:

% on the throttleVolt (V)Ampere (A)Power (W)Sailing time 12V35 AVSailing time 12V50 AVSailing time 12V70 AVSailing time 12V140 AV
20%12 V2 A23 W18.82 h.26.14 h.36.59 h.73.18 h.
40%12 V7 A80 W5.38 h.7.47 h.10.45 h.20.91 h.
60%12 V16 A195 W2.21 h.3.07 h.4.30 h.8.61 h.
80%12 V32 A379 W1.14 h.1.58 h.2.22 h.4.44 h.
100%12 V44 A528 W0.82 h.1.14 h.1.59 h.3.18 h.

Sailing time with a minn kota endura c2 30 lbs with a 230cm inflatable boat with 1 person:

GearVolt (V)Ampère (A)Power (W)Sailing time 12V35 AVSailing time 12V50 AVSailing time 12V70 AVSailing time 12V140 AV
112 V8 A96 W4.50 h.6.25 h.8.75 h.17.50 h.
212 V10 A120 W3.60 h.5.00 h.7.00 h.14.00 h.
312 V14 A168 W2.57 h.3.57 h.5.00 h.10.00 h.
412 V17 A204 W2.12 h.2.94 h.4.12 h.8.24 h.
512 V31 A372 W1.16 h.1.61 h.2.26 h.4.52 h.

Sailing time with a Torqeedo Cruise 2.0 at a 480cm Polyester boat with 4 people

% of the powerVolt (V)Ampère (A)Energy (W)Sailing time 24V50Sailing time 24V70 BTSailing time 24V100 BTSailing time 2 x 24V100 BT
20%24 V17 A4002.94 h.4.25 h.5.88 h.11.76 h.
40%24 V33 A8001.52 h.2.13 h.3.03 h.6.06 h.
60%24 V50 A12001.00 h.1.42 h.2.00 h.4.00 h.
80%24 V67 A16000.75 h.1.06 h.1.49 h.2.99 h.
100%24 V83 A20000.60 h.0.80 h.1.20 h.2.41 h.

A battery or Outdoorbox?

Once you have figured out the voltage and the requipred capacity, you will need to choose between a Battery or the Outdoorbox. In every Outdoorbox there is a battery pack with the same capacity as the corresponding battery. This means that the Outdoorbox 12.70 AV has an integrated 12V70Ah AV battery pack the Outdoorbox 12.50 AV has a 12V50Ah AV battery pack and the Outdoorbox 12.35 AV has a 12V35 AV battery pack. The choice between a battery or Outdoorbox has nothing to do with your sailing time, but with comfort, safety and ease of use.

The advantages of a Battery:

  • Cheaper to buy
  • Smaller (it takes up less space on board)

The advantages of an Outdoorbox:

  • Waterproof (IP 65)
  • Shock resistant
  • Built-in fuse
  • Easy (ANEN) connect plug for electric motor
  • 12V “cigarette plug” output with supplied USB charger
  • Hard case with handle

Choosing the right charger

Finally, you will need to choose a suitable charger for your Battery or Outdoorbox. The options vary per battery, but there are two questions you should answer for yourself:

  • Is it important that the battery charger is waterproof?
  • How fast do you want to charge your battery?

The first question is clear. If you always charge your battery indoors and keep the battery charger indoors? In that case you can opt for a “normal” battery charger. However, if you also want to be able to charge the battery on board and install the charger permanently in your boat, we recommend a waterproof charger. In addition, you often have the option between a normal charger and a fast charger. If you always drive your boat for a few hours and have the option to charge overnight for your next (fishing) trip, then a normal charger will suffice. However, if you want to drive the boat for a full day and recharge during a (lunch), a fast charger can be the solution. You can find information on the charge speed on the product pages of our chargers. Or take a look at the table below.

12.6V4A XT60A Lithium charger12.6V6A Lithium charger12.6V10A Lithium charger12.6V20A Lithium charger
(normal or waterproof)
12.6V35A Lithium charger
(normal or waterproof)
29.4V12A Lithium charger29.4V20A Lithium charger (IP65) waterproof42V20A Lithium charger (IP65) waterproof14.6V3A LiFePO4 Charger 14.6V20A LiFePO4 Charger
(normal or waterproof)
14.6V35A LiFePO4 Charger (IP65)
waterproof
12.6V10A Lithium charger for Outdoorbox12.6V20A Lithium charger for Outdoorbox (normal or Waterproof)21V10A Lithium charger for Outdoorbox
ThrustMe
12V07 AV Lithium battery2-3 h.xxxxxxxxxxxxx
12V18 AV Lithium battery5-6 h.3,5-4,5 h.xxxxxxxxxxxx
12V30 AV Lithium battery8-9 h.5-6 h.xxxxxxxxxxxx
12V35 AV Lithium batteryxx4,5-5,5 h.xxxxxxxxxxx
12V50 AV Lithium batteryxx6-7 h.3-4 h.xxxxxxxxxx
12V70 AV Lithium batteryxx9-10 h.4-5 h.xxxxxxxxxx
12V100 AV Lithium batteryxxx6-7 h.3-4 h.xxxxxxxxx
12V140 AV Lithium batteryxxx9-10 h.5-6 h.xxxxxxxxx
12V190 AV Lithium batteryxxxx7-8 h.xxxxxxxxx
24V50 Lithium batteryxxxxx5-6 h.3-4 h.xxxxxxx
24V70 BT Lithium batteryxxxxx7-8 h.4-5 h.xxxxxxx
24V100 BT Lithium batteryxxxxx10-11 h.6-7 h.xxxxxxx
36V70 Lithium batteryxxxxxxx5-6 h.xxxxxx
Rebelcell Startxxxxxxxx4-5 h.xxxxx
12V80 PRO LiFePO4 batteryxxxxxxxxx4-5 h.3-4 h.xxx
12V120 PRO LiFePO4 batteryxxxxxxxxx6-7 h.4-5 h.xxx
Outdoorbox 12.35 AVxxxxxxxxxxx4,5 - 5,5 h.xx
Outdoorbox 12.50 AVxxxxxxxxxxx6-7 h.3-4 h.x
Outdoorbox 12.70 AVxxxxxxxxxxx9-10 h.4-5 h.x
Outdoorbox ThrustMexxxxxxxxxxxxx4-5 h.
Tip! Put together a package of battery and charger (and possibly accessories) and benefit from a discount.

A Rebelcell Battery for every electric outboard

The table below shows different engines and the sailing time per battery. In practice, the sailing time may differ a bit, depending on the circumstances.

MotorGear / %Volt (V)Ampere (A)Power (W)Runtime 12V35 AVRuntime 12V50 AVRuntime 12V70 AVRuntime 12V100 AVRuntime 12V140 AVRuntime 12V190 AV
432 Wh634 Wh836 Wh1290 Wh1679 Wh2300 Wh
Minn Kota endura c2 30Gear 112 V8 A96 W4.50 h6.60 h8.71 h13.44 h17.49 h23.96 h
Minn Kota endura c2 30Gear 212 V10 A120 W3.60 h5.28 h6.97 h10.75 h13.99 h19.17 h
Minn Kota endura c2 30Gear 312 V14 A168 W2.57 h3.77 h4.98 h7.68 h9.99 h13.69 h
Minn Kota endura c2 30Gear 412 V17 A204 W2.12 h3.11 h4.10 h6.32 h8.23 h11.27 h
Minn Kota endura c2 30Gear 512 V31 A372 W1.16 h1.70 h2.25 h3.47 h4.51 h6.18 h
Minn Kota endura c2 34Gear 112 V9 A105 W4.10 h6.02 h7.94 h12.25 h15.95 h21.84 h
Minn Kota endura c2 34Gear 212 V11 A132 W3.28 h4.82 h6.35 h9.80 h12.76 h17.48 h
Minn Kota endura c2 34Gear 312 V15 A184 W2.34 h3.44 h4.54 h7.00 h9.11 h12.48 h
Minn Kota endura c2 34Gear 412 V19 A224 W1.93 h2.83 h3.74 h5.77 h7.50 h10.28 h
Minn Kota endura c2 34Gear 512 V34 A408 W1.06 h1.55 h2.05 h3.16 h4.12 h5.64 h
Minn Kota endura c2 40Gear 112 V10 A118 W3.67 h5.39 h7.10 h10.96 h14.27 h19.54 h
Minn Kota endura c2 40Gear 212 V12 A147 W2.94 h4.31 h5.68 h8.77 h11.41 h15.64 h
Minn Kota endura c2 40Gear 312 V17 A206 W2.10 h3.08 h4.06 h6.26 h8.15 h11.17 h
Minn Kota endura c2 40Gear 412 V21 A250 W1.73 h2.54 h3.34 h5.16 h6.71 h9.20 h
Minn Kota endura c2 40Gear 512 V38 A456 W0.95 h1.39 h1.83 h2.83 h3.68 h5.04 h
Minn Kota endura c2 45Gear 112 V11 A130 W3.32 h4.87 h6.43 h9.92 h12.91 h17.68 h
Minn Kota endura c2 45Gear 212 V14 A163 W2.66 h3.90 h5.14 h7.93 h10.33 h14.15 h
Minn Kota endura c2 45Gear 312 V19 A228 W1.90 h2.79 h3.67 h5.67 h7.38 h10.10 h
Minn Kota endura c2 45Gear 412 V23 A276 W1.56 h2.29 h3.02 h4.67 h6.07 h8.32 h
Minn Kota endura c2 45Gear 512 V42 A504 W0.86 h1.26 h1.66 h2.56 h3.33 h4.56 h
Minn Kota endura c2 50Gear 112 V12 A142 W3.03 h4.45 h5.87 h9.06 h11.79 h16.15 h
Minn Kota endura c2 50Gear 212 V15 A178 W2.43 h3.56 h4.69 h7.24 h9.43 h12.92 h
Minn Kota endura c2 50Gear 312 V21 A249 W1.73 h2.54 h3.35 h5.17 h6.74 h9.23 h
Minn Kota endura c2 50Gear 412 V25 A303 W1.43 h2.09 h2.76 h4.26 h5.55 h7.60 h
Minn Kota endura c2 50Gear 512 V46 A552 W0.78 h1.15 h1.51 h2.34 h3.04 h4.17 h
Minn Kota endura c2 55Gear 112 V13 A155 W2.79 h4.09 h5.40 h8.33 h10.84 h14.85 h
Minn Kota endura c2 55Gear 212 V16 A194 W2.23 h3.28 h4.32 h6.67 h8.67 h11.88 h
Minn Kota endura c2 55Gear 312 V23 A271 W1.59 h2.34 h3.09 h4.76 h6.20 h8.49 h
Minn Kota endura c2 55Gear 412 V27 A329 W1.31 h1.93 h2.54 h3.92 h5.10 h6.99 h
Minn Kota endura c2 55Gear 512 V50 A600 W0.72 h1.06 h1.39 h2.15 h2.80 h3.83 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4020%12 V2 A20 W21.79 h31.98 h42.17 h65.07 h84.69 h116.01 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4040%12 V6 A69 W6.23 h9.14 h12.05 h18.59 h24.20 h33.15 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4060%12 V14 A169 W2.56 h3.76 h4.96 h7.65 h9.96 h13.65 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4080%12 V27 A327 W1.32 h1.94 h2.56 h3.94 h5.13 h7.03 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 40100%12 V38 A456 W0.95 h1.39 h1.83 h2.83 h3.68 h5.04 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4520%12 V2 A21 W20.70 h30.38 h40.06 h61.81 h80.45 h110.21 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4540%12 V6 A73 W5.91 h8.68 h11.45 h17.66 h22.99 h31.49 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4560%12 V15 A177 W2.44 h3.57 h4.71 h7.27 h9.46 h12.97 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 4580%12 V29 A344 W1.25 h1.84 h2.43 h3.75 h4.88 h6.68 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 45100%12 V40 A480 W0.90 h1.32 h1.74 h2.69 h3.50 h4.79 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5020%12 V2 A23 W18.82 h27.62 h36.42 h56.19 h73.14 h100.19 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5040%12 V7 A80 W5.38 h7.89 h10.40 h16.06 h20.90 h28.63 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5060%12 V16 A195 W2.21 h3.25 h4.28 h6.61 h8.60 h11.79 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5080%12 V32 A379 W1.14 h1.67 h2.21 h3.41 h4.43 h6.07 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 50100%12 V44 A528 W0.82 h1.20 h1.58 h2.44 h3.18 h4.36 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5520%12 V2 A24 W18.00 h26.42 h34.83 h53.75 h69.96 h95.83 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5540%12 V7 A84 W5.14 h7.55 h9.95 h15.36 h19.99 h27.38 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5560%12 V17 A204 W2.12 h3.11 h4.10 h6.32 h8.23 h11.27 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 5580%12 V33 A396 W1.09 h1.60 h2.11 h3.26 h4.24 h5.81 h
Minn Kota endura MAX 55100%12 V46 A552 W0.78 h1.15 h1.51 h2.34 h3.04 h4.17 h
Haswing Osapian 55Gear 112 V11 A132 W3.27 h4.80 h6.33 h9.77 h12.72 h17.42 h
Haswing Osapian 55Gear 212 V13 A156 W2.77 h4.06 h5.36 h8.27 h10.76 h14.74 h
Haswing Osapian 55Gear 312 V21 A252 W1.71 h2.52 h3.32 h5.12 h6.66 h9.13 h
Haswing Osapian 55Gear 412 V24 A288 W1.50 h2.20 h2.90 h4.48 h5.83 h7.99 h
Haswing Osapian 55Gear 512 V43 A516 W0.84 h1.23 h1.62 h2.50 h3.25 h4.46 h
Talamex tm 30Gear 112 V4 A40 W10,80 h15,85 h20,90 h32,25 h41,98 h57,50 h
Talamex tm 30Gear 212 V9 A80 W5,40 h7,93 h10,45 h16,13 h20,99 h28,75 h
Talamex tm 30Gear 312 V14 A150 W2,88 h4,23 h5,57 h8,60 h11,19 h15,33 h
Talamex tm 30Gear 412 V19 A220 W1,96 h2,88 h3,80 h5,86 h7,63 h10,45 h
Talamex tm 30Gear 512 V24 A280 W1,54 h2,26 h2,99 h4,61 h6,00 h8,21 h
Talamex tm 40Gear 112 V6 A70 W6,17 h9,06 h11,94 h18,43 h23,99 h32,86 h
Talamex tm 40Gear 212 V13 A130 W3,32 h4,88 h6,43 h9,92 h12,92 h17,69 h
Talamex tm 40Gear 312 V20 A230 W1,88 h2,76 h3,63 h5,61 h7,30 h10,00 h
Talamex tm 40Gear 412 V26 A310 W1,39 h2,05 h2,70 h4,16 h5,42 h7,42 h
Talamex tm 40Gear 512 V34 A400 W1,08 h1,59 h2,09 h3,23 h4,20 h5,75 h
Talamex tm 48Gear 112 V8 A90 W4,80 h7,04 h9,29 h14,33 h18,66 h25,56 h
Talamex tm 48Gear 212 V16 A190 W2,27 h3,34 h4,40 h6,79 h8,84 h12,11 h
Talamex tm 48Gear 312 V25 A300 W1,44 h2,11 h2,79 h4,30 h5,60 h7,67 h
Talamex tm 48Gear 412 V32 A380 W1,14 h1,67 h2,20 h3,39 h4,42 h6,05 h
Talamex tm 48Gear 512 V40 A480 W0,90 h1,32 h1,74 h2,69 h3,50 h4,79 h
Talamex tm 58Gear 112 V10 A110 W3,93 h5,76 h7,60 h11,73 h15,26 h20,91 h
Talamex tm 58Gear 212 V19 A230 W1,88 h2,76 h3,63 h5,61 h7,30 h10,00 h
Talamex tm 58Gear 312 V30 A350 W1,23 h1,81 h2,39 h3,69 h4,80 h6,57 h
Talamex tm 58Gear 412 V41 A480 W0,90 h1,32 h1,74 h2,69 h3,50 h4,79 h
Talamex tm 58Gear 512 V51 A610 W0,71 h1,04 h1,37 h2,11 h2,75 h3,77 h
Talamex tm 66Gear 112 V12 A140 W3,09 h4,53 h5,97 h9,21 h11,99 h16,43 h
Talamex tm 66Gear 212 V16 A190 W2,27 h3,34 h4,40 h6,79 h8,84 h12,11 h
Talamex tm 66Gear 312 V20 A240 W1,80 h2,64 h3,48 h5,38 h7,00 h9,58 h
Talamex tm 66Gear 412 V32 A380 W1,14 h1,67 h2,20 h3,39 h4,42 h6,05 h
Talamex tm 66Gear 512 V55 A660 W0,65 h0,96 h1,27 h1,95 h2,54 h3,48 h

Can I use a Lithium battery without any problems with my trolling motor or electric outboard?

Yes, Rebelcell batteries are safe to use. The user manual of your outboard engine may state that the motor is not suitable for use of lithium batteries. This is because certain lithium batteries have a higher voltage than lead batteries. Rebelcell has developed AV batteries for this reason. AV stands for adjusted voltage. Instead of a peak voltage of 16.8V (peak voltage is the voltage of the battery when it is fully charged), these batteries have a peak voltage of 12.6V so nearly identical to that of a lead battery. So you can safely use a Rebelcell AV battery with any brand of electric motor. More information about the voltage of batteries is given here.