The Minn Kota Battery Power Center is a very unique product that makes your small boat or canoe a joy to operate with your trolling motor.
What is a Minn Kota Battery Power Center?
The Minn Kota Battery Power Center is a battery storage box that is specifically designed to fit a battery for a trolling motor in a small craft. It’s not really meant for a boat that is big enough to have its own built-in battery compartments and charger.
It’s meant to be a portable battery protector and storage that is usually used with a small fishing boat or paddle craft. Because we’re all about fishing from our canoes, we bought one for our 15-foot kevlar prospector. We’re powering a Minn Kota trolling motor with 30 pounds of thrust.
Is the Minn Kota Battery Power Center Worth the Price?
The Power Center costs around $60 – $75 in the USA, and close to $100 Canadian. It’s expensive but is absolutely worth the price if you’d like to maximize your enjoyment while fishing. It makes operating your trolling motor a joy and it offers several features you won’t get from a battery alone.
What Are the Features of the Minn Kota Battery Box?
Features of the Battery Center include:
- Connection Terminals on exterior with wing-nut style connectors
- Push button battery status meter with LEDs
- Carrying Handles
- Two 12-volt accessory connectors (for a USB adapter to accommodate cell phones, etc.)
- One 10A resettable circuit breaker connected to the two accessory ports
- One 60A resettable circuit breaker for the trolling motor itself
- Ring terminals on the inside of the box to connect included wires to the battery (battery not included)
- Compatibility with Group 24 and Group 27 sized batteries
- (dimensions are 7″ deep, 13.5″ wide and 12″ tall).
Our Hands-On Review
When we opened the shipping box and pulled out the battery center, I was immediately impressed with the looks of the box. It had the appearance of something a little higher in quality than a regular plastic battery box.
On the inside of the box the connection wires were very heavy and had a ring that slipped over the battery’s terminal and then screws hold it in place permanently.
The simple closure system included one heavy-duty nylon strap with tough plastic snap buckle.
The connection terminals were large and easy to turn. The battery status button and indicators were clear and easy to operate and understand.
The first thing most people would notice on the battery center is the battery status indictor. It’s a colorful display (even without the LEDs lit up) and includes a bright yellow TEST button. The indicator has 3 written status point: RECHARGE, 1/2 and FULL. For those 3 status points, there are actually 4 LEDs to indicate the battery’s journey from a full charge to the point of needing a recharge.
The absolute best part of the unit (in our opinion) was the 2 accessory ports. I’m really not sure I would ever need more than 1, but overkill is better as long as it doesn’t cause another function to be compromised. Many an angler has reported catching a once-in-a-lifetime record catch only to have his cell phone (camera) battery die so no photo was able to be taken. In my opinion, the USB accessory ports (USB adapter not included) alone would be nearly worth the whole price.
The circuit breakers were an addition that I initially thought was unnecessary. I’ve never had any electrical problems with a portable battery that needed circuit breakers. However, in researching the issue further, I found out that trolling motors have a tendency to short circuit and break down if the prop experiences resistance which will necessitate a higher current draw from the battery to try to overcome the resistance.
Additionally, here’s what Trollingmotors.net has to say about the necessity of having a circuit breaker:
Circuit breakers are not only great insurance for protecting your new motor, but they are also required by the Coast Guard for ungrounded current-carrying conductors
Finally, I found that the box itself was a virtual necessity if only to protect the relatively fragile ultra-lite kevlar canoe bottom from the very hard, unforgiving and sharp edges of the battery itself. The plastic box with rounded edges offers a much more gentile surface of contact to the canoe floor.
Overall, we like the Minn Kota Battery Power Center, but it’s not 100% necessary in order to get out on the water with your trolling motor. It’s just one more accessory that makes life on the water a little more enjoyable by offering peace of mind knowing the status of your battery and offering the ability to charge your phone and other needed accessories.
See the latest prices for Minn Kota Battery Power Centers
