I usually just buy the 100$ ish ever start batteries for my sun dolphin pro 120.  I get about 6-10 months use out of it.  I know this question has been asked before, but im looking to get a better battery,  what are some of yalls suggestion's.  Also i usually just charge my battery the day before i go out to fish. Then it goes uncharged until the next trip.  Would i get more life out of a battery if i kept it charged in between trips?

Thanks guys.

Danny

I charge my batteries after each trip and keep them charged at least every 2 weeks. I have two batteries (one stern with rudder) and bow that are over 2.5 years old. You could also use a trickle charger to keep them charged. I have one that is a sealed Duracell 18 month AGM that is very impressive . I think it was over $200 though.  I use the stern motor to leave and return to shore while the bow motor is up. Avoides vegetation.

The rudder is a bullnose rudder that attached to the motor shaft.

It is recommended that the battery is immediately charged after use. 
Bill

Project Farm on Youtube has a great battery comparison video. I'd stick with the Walmart $100 batteries. I recharge immediately after using(or the next day at least). I've had two in service for two years now, rotating and haven't noticed a decrease in either. I may not use them as much as you though. Getting a better weedless prop mentioned in another thread on here helps a bunch too. Like Steve, I am a fan of the bullnose rudder.

Thanks for the advice guy's appreciate it.

Hi Dave, i understand your frustration all to well. I myself have had to learn the hard way both on my 20ft bass boat and my pond fishing setup. You should not have to buy a new battery every six months so i am just wondering a couple of things.

First make sure you keep the battery full of water, i have been guilty of not keeping the water level full in these so called "maintenance free" batteries. That will kill a battery quicker than anything plus it can be dangerous. I was standing on the deck on the back of a friends boat, actually standing on the lid to his battery compartment. My friend was on the front of the boat running the trolling motor when all of a sudden we heard very loud explosion and i felt a hard thump under my feet. Turns out his battery got so hot from being dry of water and the trolling motor drawing power it blew the filler caps off the battery. Would have been very dangerous if it weren't for the battery compartment lid.

Second, make sure you are buying the deep cycle batteries designed specifically for taking the draining and charging of the battery.

I finally got tired of the battery issue and bought three Exide 31 series AGM for my bassboat trolling motor and one for my pond fishing set up. Best investment i have ever made in batteries. Downside is, it is about the heaviest 75 lbs i have ever lifted.

My 2 cents anyway. i hope it helps and you find a good solution for your setup. nothing worse than having battery trouble on the water.

I buy Walmart deep cycle batteries.  I put them on charger as soon as I get home.  I also check fluid level especially in summer months.  Right now I have one battery that is 2013 and just replaced a 2010 this past year.  My friend Jason and I have found that a weedless prop helps a lot on battery life plus less time pulling weeds and more time pulling bass.  Oh, distilled water in those batteries. The worst part of a battery is the weight in my opinion.  Good luck.

Recharge immediately when you get home with trickle charger.

Check the water level on "maintenance free" batteries once in a while.

Don't run the battery to absolutely 100% drained if you can help it.

When you put the battery back on the charger after fishing.  Do you leave it on the charger until you go fishing again? 

I only put it on the charger until fully charged.  Unless you have a super duper charger that regulates it for you.  It doesn't take long to bring it back up after a fishing trip.  Maybe the next charger I get will have more functions than just amps. Someone told me years ago to never over charge my batteries.

We get 3 to 4 years from our deep cycle Everstart batteries. We have some approaching 5 years. We keep them indoors and put them on trickle charger every couple of weeks. If you are reasonably diligent about charging them you should get at least 30 months out of a battery.