Are Dakota Lithium Batteries worth it?

[Netbender]

Good Day, I am liking everything about the Dakota 24v 110ah lithium  battery for my Minn Kota 80 but the price. Is $1500 with an additional $150 for the 20a charger worth it? 
 

I know, you get what you pay for. Thought I would ask for feedback before pulling the trigger. I see the 11 year warranty, that’s nice. And the BMS looks like it would cover everything I do with it. Just almost 2x some of the others. Anyone running Dakota Lithium? 
 

Thanks for your time, 

Dave

[Gator]

Is weight an issue in your boat? I love lithium for select applications...ice fishing electronics, cellular trail cameras, cars lol...but for my Terrova 80 I've used lead acid for years with zero downside. Lithium's power profile is better in cold weather and it provides 100% output until it doesn't, but at least for me, there's not much advantage to switching, regardless of cost. Maybe it's different for you, in which case, like my wife, you can just ignore me.

[Netbender]

Gator, thanks for the response. Weight is what started me thinking about this. Thanks for your reply. 
 

Dave

[FISHIN' ADDICTION]

dakota has had reports of problems and not standing behind their warranty from members on iceshanty.  Amped seems to be a better company form what ive heard reading posts.  But with that said I just went with 2 deep cycle from walmart on my 17ft boat for my terrova.  The weight to me wasnt a big deal and some people say those trolling motors dont like lithiums (burns them up) but I dont know if thats true.

[Jm1984]

I would think your best bet to get real feedback would be to talk to some of the bass boat guys as a lot of them have made the switch to lithium’s.  I know there are some that are much better than others and some that have had serious issues including fires.

 

I personally wouldn’t make the switch as I don’t see the value being there but some people love them.

[Netbender]

All good thoughts. Still undecided. I am looking for at least 120ah a on a 24v.  The lead acids get heavy. But, is it worth the change, still debating. 

[13owhunter]

I'm running 2 Weize LiFePO4 100ah batteries from amazon for my terrova and couldnt be happier.  They are down to $239 each and have great reviews.  Charging with a 10x2 noco.  Trolling slowly for 6 hours straight for BT in the spring they came home with about 20% juice left.  No problem trolling all day using for auto pilot in conjunction with my kicker.

 

They allegedly have a 10 year warranty which Im not sure I would trust long term.  I do, however, trust Amazon to make it right should I receive a dud.

 

A good 100ah AGM battery is $200 so it was a no brainer to me (and i paid $300 each)    My boat is a bit imbalanced and I move them around often so weight savings was also important to me.

 

IMO lead acid batteries will be obsolete sooner rather than later.  They are better in almost all circumstances especially when the price keeps coming down.

[Netbender]

Thanks 13owhunter, that is interesting. I would be using them for steering mostly with my kicker. But also slow trolling on occasion. 

 

 

[Cody191]

I’m on year 4 with amper time from Amazon. They’ve been great and at 1/3 the cost of name brand. The only thing is they don’t have low temp charge cutoff. But my charger actually does so it’s fine. I can’t imagine those other brands being 300% better.

[Netbender]

I would be pulling the battery before freezing temps. Too many choices. Thanks guys, this is helpful. Maybe a few more comments to help hear all sides. Thanks!

[Netbender]

Dakota is not coming up well with much positive feedback with my additional research. 

[codybuehler]

Hi. I have a few of these Dakota batteries. Here’s some insight I can share.

 

I have 2 12v 100ah in series for my trolling motor, 2 of their starting batteries on a switch for starting and house loads and I also have a 100ah for an isolated circuit for my fishfinder (I was getting alternator noise from the house battery). 
 

First off, the price. The things aren’t cheap. There are a few other companies on the market now that perform the same at less

than half the cost. AmpereTime and Powerqueen are two that I’ve spoken with people who have them and no issues. I can’t speak longevity with them because they both only have 1 season with them. They pick on me that they could buy 2 sets for the price I paid for one. 
 

The good: they way outperform lead acids I used to use. With my trolling motor, I set it on 4-4.5 speed setting and use the Ipilot to steer with my kicker pushing. The leads I could get 12-15 hours MAX and would have to keep upping the speed setting as the day went as the voltage lowered. With the lithiums, it’s constant voltage so I never have to up the speed to account for the voltage drop. 
Also the good, if it’s an issue is weight. With my whole bunch of these things I save around 75 lbs compared to lead. 
 

The not so good: 

 

Charging. When you buy these they come with a small 10a charger. There’s a reason. They charge at 14.4volts. Most other companies lithium chargers (NOCO!) charge at 14.2v. The not their brand chargers will never charge them to full, so you have to use their chargers. they come free like I said, or they have a 4x10a on board one that’s ~$300. 
 

First season I used these I had one of the trolling batteries shut off. They all have a safety circuit and it decided something was up and that was that. I was pretty novice with how these worked and attempted to call customer support. No answer. I finally internet searched it and to reset these you “flash” the terminals with another 12v source. It worked! I had emailed Dakota before I googled it and it was a day or 2 before they responded via email to tell me the same thing. I haven’t had an issue with THOSE batteries since. 

now for the cranking batteries. They are tiny and light, but have 1000CCA’s and 65aH reserve. When they work, they work. But! First one I ever bought right out of the box wouldn’t go above 12.6volts. Tried multiple chargers and no change. Mailed it back (which is a nightmare because it have to be FedEx hazardous ground to Seattle and costs around $60, on you) and it had a bad cell or an issues with the battery monitor system (BMS). They never really said which is was, but did mail a new one no problem, if you can wait for the essentially 2 week turnaround. 
 

As I’m sitting here typing this, I have a second cranking battery in a box waiting to be shipped back. This one just randomly shut off and shows 4volts at the terminals. Can’t reset it or charge it at all. I tried to ship it through my local FedEx hazardous goods place and they wouldn’t ship it out (even though they sent the last one?) I’ll have to figure it out. I did call the companies help line on this one and someone did answer the phone and chat for a while. No questions they wanted it back to fix my issue. It would be nice if I could wander into the local marine shop and just trade it in for another, but here I am. 
 

finally to end my novel here, is the safety aspect of it. I have never heard of a Dakota battery ever going inferno on anyone. But they are lithium and a quick search online shows you what’s possible. They have the BMS to shut them off but there’s still a real possibility they could ignite that’s far for exciting than if a lead acid shorts out. My plan is to jump in and pull the drain plug. Haha

If there’s anything else you’d like to know from what I’ve experienced, feel free to reach out. I have no affiliation with Dakota beyond a customer who (probably) was dumb enough to spend the money. 
 

cheers.

 

 

 

[Netbender]

Cody, great write up and thanks for spending your Sunday morning responding. Trolling motor for me is the only system now that I am upgrading. The two cranking batteries are one season old. I believe a single 24v will be perfect as far as size goes. So, that limits some of the options. I like the time you are getting on the trolling motor with the 100ah. I appreciate the proper charger requirements. I also would like the charger to have on board mounting capabilities. Thanks again for your response!

Dave