12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

[mistertwister87]

While I was researching this topic, I read it is taboo to "hijack" an older thread, so I decided to create my own.

The previous owner of my boat decided he did not want to have 2 batteries for a trolling motor (too much weight, he said) and converted this one into a 12 volt only. :facepalm:

Here's what I know, I hope you can help me.

The trolling motor is a Motorguide F56 Power Plus 12/24 volt. It has a 12/24 volt switch on the foot pedal. The plug has 3 holes, and the receptacle in the bow has 3 prongs. The previous owner capped the orange wire leading from the back of the receptacle, leaving the black and Red intact. These lead directly to a battery and hook up as red/pos and black/neg.

The panel up front has a voltage meter and a Run/Charge switch, of which neither work, I don't think they are hooked up. The trolling motor will work on 12 volt as it is set up now, but I would like to re-connect it as 24 volt using the run/charge switch and voltage meter. I have two batteries to make this work, I just need to know how to do it. I am attaching some pictures, and can take more if need be. By the way the boat is a 1988 Alumacraft Phantom V170





Thanks!

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

Since you have a 12/24 switch on the motor, you don't need the switch on the panel. The diagram below does not show the switch wiring. Judging by the amount of electrical tape and wire nuts, this wiring has been mucked with to the point where I will not make an attempt to straighten it out. There are simply too many configurations -- any of which will make sparks if done incorrectly. I don't understand why people feel they have to screw with a 12/24 system just because they want to run on 12 volts. Run it on 12 volts! It is already set up that way.

 

[mistertwister87]

Re: 12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

Thank you Silver Tip. Any advice on how to incorporate the voltage gauge? The gauge reads up to 18 Volt. Is this completely useless for this set up, since I will be using 24 volt?


Also will 50 amp fuses be sufficient. The motor is a 56 lb thrust.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

If the gauge reads 18 volts and you are trying to measure 24 volts guess what happens. It will read 18 volts --- ONCE. It must be used in conjunction with the 12/24 aswitch, and active only in the 12v charge position (which is when the batteries are parallel and so the gauge would read 12.6 volts rather than 24.) As I said, there are several of these systems and most have been mucked with so I no longer try to figure them out. Perhaps someone will come along with a wiring diagram for your specific boat.

 

[mistertwister87]

Re: 12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

Can I swap out the gauge that only reads up to 18 volt with on that reads 24 volt? How would I go about hooking that up? Thank you again.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: 12/24 Volt Trolling motor with Run/Charge switch wiring question

I hate to keep harping about this setup but a voltmeter has only two termiinals (plus and minius). There is a third but that's for the light. You have three terminals in the receptacle (12v, 24v, and ground). You therefore need to switch between 12 and 24 to make this do what you want to do. That gets you back to the 12/24 switch. Again, there are too many configurations and I no longer have any documentation on those. Why not go to an Alumacraft dealer or the Alumacraft web site and ask for a wiring diagram. Then and only then can you straighten this out. You might also post your question on the ALUMACRAFT forum. Someone there might have a diagram.

http://forums.iboats.com/forumdisplay.php?f=68