Lithium-ion batteries are the absolute industry favorite for almost every customer. Whether you’re searching for extra power, longer charges, or longer battery life, switching your battery from lead-acid to lithium will improve everything. Nothing’s worse than your battery failing in the middle of a fishing trip.
The best 24-volt lithium-ion trolling motor battery is the Ampere Time 24V Lithium Battery. It boasts up to 10 years of service through 8,000 cycles and a lightweight, compact design. Your 24V deep cycle battery should have sufficient ampere-hours, a multi-year warranty, and over 2,000 cycles.
In this article, you’ll also learn about 24-volt lithium-ion batteries, four top 24V lithium-ion trolling motor batteries, a must-have charger, and more!
Note: most links in this article are Amazon.com Affiliate links, see Affiliate Disclosure, thank you.
Overview of 24-Volt Lithium Deep Cycle Batteries
Are you thinking about getting a 24-volt DC battery for your boat’s trolling motor? They’re not as common as 12V batteries, but the variety can still make it challenging to know which is best for your boat. Fortunately, we’re going to cover everything you need to know about these batteries, including what you should look for and how long they last.
If you are looking for 12-volt lithium battery information read our article.
How Should You Choose a 24V Battery for Your Trolling Motor?
Choosing a new battery can be frustrating or confusing since there are so many options. With countless brands, ampere-hours, and other features, how should you know where to start? The good news is we have you covered.
Use this checklist when picking a new 24V battery:
- Ensure the battery offers over 2,000 cycles.
- Check the ampere-hours to make sure they suit your motor’s needs.
- Inspect the weight and dimensions compared to your boat’s requirements (these batteries are larger than two regular batteries).
- Find out if it comes with a charger or if you’ll need to buy one (we reviewed a top-notch charger you can find at the bottom of the page).
- Make sure it’s lithium-ion since it’s the best type of battery for trolling motors.
If you don’t want to go through the process of finding out all of the specs and other details, our list will meet the requirements for the most common 24V trolling motors. Check your motor’s ampere-hours and compare it to the battery’s listing. The battery should always have a higher AH than your trolling motor’s requirement to prevent overloading or lack of power.
If your battery strains too hard to meet your motor’s requirements, it’ll lose its charge. To find out how you can prevent this problem from happening, read on.
What is a 24-volt lithium-ion battery BMS?
Lithium-ion battery BMS is an acronym for the battery management system. A tiny electronic brain controls the battery primarily for safety features and optimal performance. The higher quality of the BMS, the better your lithium-ion battery will perform.
A BMS must have a minimum power supply to work, which is why you never want to allow your battery cells to run out of charge.
Tips To Prevent a Deep Cycle Battery From Discharging
Self-discharging is a big problem when it comes to deep-cycle batteries. Many batteries slowly lose their charge if they’re not used, which can damage their long-term effectiveness. You’ve probably read every battery has a specific amount of cycles it goes through before needing to be replaced.
Here’s a quick list of tips to prevent your battery from discharging too often:
- Use a battery charger with a maintainer mode, ALWAYS. You should keep your battery full all the time to get maximum life from your battery. If you connect your battery to a maintainer/charger when not in use can avoid almost all of our other common problems that lead to premature battery failure.
- Use a battery monitor to keep track of its charge percentage. Your battery shouldn’t go below 50%, according to MK Battery. Anything lower than that can damage your battery’s ability to recharge, and it’ll also shorten its overall capacity. Discharging is a leading cause of shortened battery life expectancy.
- Move your batteries when they’re not being used for a long time. If you’re not using it for a trolling motor for more than a few months, it’s crucial to test, rotate, and inspect your 24-volt batteries regularly. It’ll make a big difference by ensuring nothing is leaking or discharging.
- Get a lithium-ion battery with a temperature regulator and a low self-discharging rate. All of the batteries on our list below have excellent self-discharging rates that prevent them from entering the danger zone within five to six months. You’ll save tons of money and preserve the battery for many years to come.
How Long Do 24-Volt Lithium-Ion Batteries Last?
There are two things to consider when it comes to the expectancy of a 24V lithium-ion battery: The overall lifespan in years and the charge cycles or times charged. Getting the most out of your trolling motor requires a heavy-duty 24V battery that can keep it going for many hours before it needs to be recharged. Dakota Lithium has a great explanation to calculate your battery’s run time.
Consider the breakdown below.
- Most 100 ah 24V lithium-ion batteries last up to 3 to 4 hours when powering a trolling motor at medium speed. Keep an eye on the motor’s ampere-hour requirements and the battery’s AH listing. This indicator will show how long you can expect to use the battery and motor at its full speed before having to go back to the shore.
- All 24V batteries have a different life expectancy, but lithium-ion is the best choice that lasts up to 10 years or more. Some companies list their Li-ion batteries for around three to five years, so it depends on the manufacturer. All of the batteries on our list push up to a decade, providing the best experience.
There’s a lot you can do to preserve your 24V lithium-ion battery, including preventing self-discharging, handling it with care, and don’t over-discharge. Clean the terminals often to prevent corrosion and buildup, too. In the next section, we’ll discuss what you should do if your lithium-ion battery dies.
Can You Charge a Dead Li-Ion Battery?
Unfortunately, if your li-ion battery is indeed dead, there is little you can do to charge it. However, more often than not, your battery is in sleep mode. A lithium-ion battery can be “woke up” by applying a small number of amps to the battery at its fully charged voltage. An example of this would be 1 amp at 26.8 volts.
Many lithium-ion batteries have a ‘sleep mode’ triggered when the battery has less than 10% power remaining (check with the manufacturer to determine if this applies to your battery). The BMS disconnects the load (your trolling motor) from the battery to protect the cells from over-discharge. In most cases, you will be able to charge your battery back up as usual if you do so promptly.
The best way to awaken your battery is with a lithium battery charger with a built-in wake or boost mode, like the expert power charger. Built-in charger algorithms determine the state of charge and the best course of action to recharge your lithium battery safely.
Another option for more advanced users is a variable power supply. Connect the battery to the power supply, set your voltage to the usually charged voltage, adjust amps up to 1 and charge for 30 minutes. At this point, you should be able to transfer the battery to your regular lithium charger to complete the charging cycle.
If you have no other option, you can bridge or jump your lithium battery, but this is not a recommended method and should be the method of last resort by wiring experts. Use a jumper cable to connect the battery in parallel with another standard battery of the same voltage. Jump the battery for two minutes maximum, as the battery will draw the maximum amps, and the connections could heat up.
Avoiding sleep mode will make your life easier and also improve the overall performance of your battery. If your battery doesn’t have a Bluetooth BMS monitoring app built-in, you can do a few things.
- Never run your battery below 20% charge, but 50% is a better target and will leave you a little room for a few extra minutes of fishing.
- Get a low voltage disconnect; these devices disconnect your battery before your BMS goes into sleep mode, making it easy to recharge your battery, and some have Bluetooth. (See the Victron battery protect on Amazon)
- Always charge your battery before storing it. Lithium batteries have low self-discharge and can sit months without a noticeable drop in the state of charge.
- Add a battery monitor. They’re relatively inexpensive and offer priceless peace of mind.
Lithium-ion batteries are quite expensive, often reaching over $900 to $1,500. If you don’t want to buy another one any time soon, extra care like monitoring and charging your battery is more than worth it.
How Many Cycles Do 24V lithium-ion Batteries Have?
Most top-of-the-line lithium-ion batteries have 3,000 to 8,000 cycles. With normal use, you should have 100% of available amp-hours for 3000 cycles. The percentage of available amp-hours will slowly diminish as you use more cycles.
Every deep cycle battery has a specific number of cycles it can go through before permanently dying. The number of cycles can vary depending on cell chemistry, manufacture, depth of discharge, temperature, and other less significant factors.
You can prevent extra lost charging cycles by charging your lithium-ion battery before it dips below 20%. Depth of discharge is the percentage of battery amp-hours used, and for maximum performance, your target should be around 50%. However, lithium-ion batteries have the largest useable amp-hours of any type of battery without significant battery damage, unlike lead-acid, which are limited to 50%.
Avoid overheating your battery during use or charging. Most batteries have safety systems built into the BMS to prevent this. Never charge your lithium-ion battery when the temperature is below freezing. Some lithium-ion battery BMS’s have freezing protection built-in, but it is best practice not to chance it.
So, how long is a cycle?
One 24-volt lithium-ion battery cycle is equivalent to use and charge to 100%. Think of your 24-volt lithium-ion battery as a timer that shows how many times you can use it. For example, a battery with 8,000 cycles that lasts up to five hours offers 8,000 x 5 hours of service. That equation comes out to 40,000 hours of boating!
Are 24V lithium-ion batteries Made In The USA
The final topic is one I struggle with, but I must address, MADE IN THE USA. Lithium batteries are much like lightbulbs in the fact that most are not made in the US. 99% of all battery cells are made in China.
A few great companies are assembling batteries in the US, but the lithium cells and other components come from Chinese factories. If you want to search out, these companies start with Battle Born Batteries, Big Battery, and Dakota, but there are more.
Product Overview
When looking for your 24V trolling motor battery, look out for these three traits:
- Check the AH (ampere-hours) to ensure it’s suitable for your motor.
- Find out how many cycles it can go through (don’t get a battery below 1,000 cycles).
- Look for a warranty (many of them come with a three-year warranty).
Without further ado, here are the best 24-volt lithium-ion trolling motor batteries on the market:
- Best Overall: Ampere Time 24V Lithium Battery (also best budget option)
- Best Value Heavy-Duty Trolling Motor Battery: CHINS 24V 200Ah LiFePO4 Battery
- Best Battery With a Charger: Flypower 24V 100AH Battery
Best Overall: Ampere Time 24V Lithium Battery (also best budget)
Ampere Time focuses on improving the user experience by providing longevity, durability, and reliable customer service. Their 24V Lithium Battery is an excellent example of the company’s dedication to top-of-the-line results and consistency. The safety standards include UL Testing certifications, tip-over protection, and more.
Pros
- Works for 4,000 to 8,000 cycles.
- Ultra-lightweight design to weigh less than ⅓ of most competitors.
- Estimated 10-year operating lifespan.
- Water-resistant case to protect your investment.
- It holds up to 95% of its battery charge throughout its lifespan.
Cons
- No low-temperature charging disconnect.
This impressive 24V battery tops our list due to its long-lasting performance, lightweight, compact design, and water resistance. It’s easy to understand why hundreds of customers rank it among the best on the internet.
If you’re operating more than 100AH of equipment, Ampere Time has just released a higher amp-hour model, click here to see the 200AH on Amazon.com. Those searching for a reliable solution would be more than happy with the Ampere Time 24V Lithium Battery, though!
Check out the price on Amazon.com
I am currently using this battery as a primary power source for my 24-volt Terrova trolling motor. This season I made twenty-seven trips and the battery never failed me. Let me be clear, I installed all new power system components to eliminate any chance of failure, and together, including the new battery, the system worked flawlessly. Check out my installation video below or head to my youtube channel to see the complete list of videos.
Kepworth 24-Volt Lithium Battery
Kepworth might not be as well-known as Ampere Time, but there’s no denying their low price and high performance. They offer dozens of combinations, including three 24-volt batteries with different ampere-hours and charger sizes. You can find the perfect combination for your trolling motor without spending too much of your hard-earned money.
Pros
- Cheapest high-end 24V models around.
- Choose between 80, 100, and 120-ampere hours.
- Each battery comes with a charger.
- The company tests each battery multiple times for reliability.
- The lightweight design makes it easy to install or remove.
- It’s made to last up to a decade.
Cons
- The brand isn’t as established, so there might be a bit of risk involved.
If you’re willing to get past the lesser-known brand’s short-term history, you’ll likely find this battery to be an exceptional addition to your setup. You can choose from three sizes and charge the battery wherever you can find a wall outlet.
Customers explain the newer models are significantly better than the previous generation, showing the company’s willingness to improve every step of the way.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
CHINS 24V 200Ah LiFePO4 Battery
If you’re looking for a motor battery that can handle a heavy load, you’re in the right place. The CHINS 24V Battery provides 200-ampere hours of power, letting you use quite a bit of equipment each hour without overloading the battery. CHINS has plenty of batteries, but this model is one of their best available.
Pros
- 200 AH at 24 volts
- 40 more AH than oversize 24V battery.
- The self-discharge rate lets you store the battery for a long time.
- Internal temperature regulation prevents it from overheating.
- It includes a 5-year limited manufacturer’s warranty.
Cons
- This battery weighs more than the others on the list, at 96 pounds.
- It is only rated for 2,000 to 5,000 cycles (still more than lead-acid by far).
Many customers claim this to be the most reliable, heavy-duty 24V battery they can get their hands on. The reduced self-discharge to the temperature regulator makes it hard to find anything close to it in terms of construction and long-lasting cycles.
Speaking of which, you’ll have to be willing to put up with the added weight and fewer deep cycles than other batteries, but this is expected with higher ampere-hours.
Finally, at the time of publishing this battery was the best value for a 24 volt 200AH battery. That being said the battery wars are raging on and the prices may flip around, again.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
Flypower 24V 100AH Battery
Flypower has an extensive list of high-quality batteries you can use for camping, trolling, and everything in between. One of their best features is most batteries include a charger suitable for their lineup. You can charge the batteries with the charger, car outlets, and many other ports. Regardless of which method you choose, there’s always a warranty.
Pros
- Every battery includes a charger.
- Choose from 40, 60, 80, 100, 120, and 160 AH batteries.
- You’ll receive a five-year manufacturer’s warranty.
- Each battery has between 3,000 to 7,000 cycles.
- Temperature regulation prevents overheating.
- This battery creates zero pollution.
Cons
- It’s 57 pounds (25.85 kg), which is slightly heavier than average.
If you’re looking for a plug-n-play battery for your 24-volt trolling motor, this one might be your best bet. Flypower created several sizes to find the perfect fit for your trolling motor, which is why reviewers claim it’s their favorite of all the batteries they’ve come across.
The added weight might be a letdown, but it’s a small sacrifice for a decent warranty, long battery life, and functionality.
Finally, this manufacture has the widest selection we could find. We can’t test every battery but it stands to reason that if this battery performs well we expect the other batteries to perform similarly.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
Honorable mention: Battle Born Batteries
We have to mention Battle Born Batteries because it is a great product and a great company out of Reno, Nevada. I have emailed them many times and have gotten timely replies with great information to help solve any issue I have encountered.
Battle Born has a small inline of products, but they are all top performers and pass every test. Most of their batteries are standard size and make for great drop-in solutions. The BMSs work in series or parallel, so you can get to the volts or amp hours you require.
The biggest downside is the price; however, for the top quality is hard to beat their battery.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
Battery Chargers for 24-Volt Lithium Batteries
Some lithium batteries include chargers, but they’re not as quick or long-lasting as they could be. There are plenty of lithium battery chargers to choose from, so it might seem a bit overwhelming. We prefer the Victron Energy Blue Charger, so let’s dive into the details and explain why it’s our favorite below.
Victron Energy Smart 24-Volt 12 Amp Battery Charger
Victron Energy offers incredible battery chargers for 24V and 12V batteries. If you want to keep your deep cycle battery afloat, there’s nothing better than these water-resistant chargers. They’re small enough to fit in a glove compartment but pack quite an efficient charging rate. Plug it in and watch as the current rises steadily.
Pros
- Has an IP67 waterproof rating.
- There are several sizes to fit almost any deep cycle battery.
- Uses a low current to revive dead batteries, then continues with a high current.
- Includes Bluetooth connectivity features.
- It is easy to connect, charge, and disconnect.
- Use an app to check the current, time recommendations, and more.
Cons
- It’s slightly pricier than most batteries, which is expected since it has an app, Bluetooth, and more.
Whether you’re out on the water, camping, or at home, you can charge your 24V or 12V lithium deep cycle battery with this charger. It’s as easy as it gets, thanks to the provided seven-step process and Bluetooth mobile app. Many customers show there are several charging modes to get the most out of your new charging device.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
I am currently using this model in my boat and have been extremely happy with the overall performance. I like the Bluetooth connectivity more than I thought I would and the charging has been flawless. You can see this charger next to my other components in my youtube videos.
Low Voltage Battery Disconnects
Protecting your investment in batteries is a top priority for your pocketbook and your overall enjoyment of your fishing trip. A battery disconnect can be one of the best tools to save your battery, whether lithium or lead-acid technology. I hate to repeat it, but Victron has the best product for the job, so let us look at it.
Victron Energy Battery Protect 12/24-Volt 100 amp
Victron Energy has top-quality items that always perform as advertised. The Battery Protect is another product that we can highly recommend and trust to perform. Before we break it down, one piece of advice, always buy electronics with 20% headroom. For example: if your trolling motor draws 60 amps, you need electronics that are rated 12 amps higher, so don’t buy the 65 amp unit. (60 x 1.20 = 72)
Pros
- It comes with an IP67 waterproof rating.
- 100 amp, but other sizes are available.
- It is easy to connect.
- Can be networked with Victron product or other manufactures.
Cons
- This model doesn’t include bluetooth, but it is available.
Connecting this battery disconnect could not be easier with the included instruction. All you need to do is connect the positive fused lead from your battery to the Victron, connect the Victron to your trolling motor, add a few ground wires, simple programming, and you are ready to go fishing. We know you are here for lithium battery information, but this device is excellent for AGM batteries.
If you want the Bluetooth option, it is not a significant difference in cost; see on Amazon.com.
Check out the price on Amazon.com
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a 24-volt lithium-ion trolling motor battery, we have given you four great choices. Top them off with the previously mentioned charger, and you’ll be good to go. Regardless of which battery you choose, you can rely on up to ten years of high-quality service, thousands of cycles, and more.
If you are new to a 24V trolling motor or have had one for a few years, enjoy twice the power with efficient, lightweight batteries!
