Hi Everyone,
Just purchased a Humminbird Helix 5, and I bought two 12v / 8ah batteries for it. Does anyone know of a good solar charger for this type of battery? Just want to make sure I'm getting the right type of charger.

The exact battery is a UB 1280 12v 8Ah.

Thank you!
Nick

The question is does a FishingShaman really need a sophisticated fish locator? Call the battery manufacturer, they should be able to help.

I'm looking at the Helix 5 my self. Why did you choose this one. I choose this one because lowrance will not let anything over 5 years old into their shop to be repaired.

Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight.

I have no idea about solar chargers but would like to comment. I’m looking forward to learning about chargers for my batteries. I have the same problem with my Lowrance fish finder for my upcoming Ontario trip. I don’t want to run low on power. Your Hummingbird and my Lowrance units need a lot of power.

How many hours are you going to be fishing? I ask this because you said you have 2-8Ah batteries. Your Helix 5 uses 615 ma for power consumption. With your two batteries and your Helix 5 you can use it for 26 hours long before your power is gone. That translates to running it for 5 hours a day for 5 days of fishing.

lundojam: "Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight."

Probably not a good idea to run a power hog 5 I mean Helix 5 on AA batteries. A set of 10 good quality AA batteries will last about 2 hours. The HB web site lists the current draw at 615mA.

Bullwinkle: "The question is does a FishingShaman really need a sophisticated fish locator? Call the battery manufacturer, they should be able to help."

Sadly YouTube is the place for learning most things now a days

Yes ,This is a great choice for a finder for everything but canoe trips. Just because what is mentioned. So much work to keep batteries going. Using a solar charger for me was a PIA

MagicPaddler: "

lundojam: "Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight."

Probably not a good idea to run a power hog 5 I mean Helix 5 on AA batteries. A set of 10 good quality AA batteries will last about 2 hours. The HB web site lists the current draw at 615mA."

That really depended on the quality of the battery. Cheap 400 ma sure. But some of the rechargeable and higher grade batteries are upwards of 2000 ma.

I ran a my depth finder for long time using just 8 rechargeables. Worked fine especially if you dim the screen. Got well over 4 hours of use each trip.

GearJunkie: "

MagicPaddler: "

lundojam: "Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight."

Probably not a good idea to run a power hog 5 I mean Helix 5 on AA batteries. A set of 10 good quality AA batteries will last about 2 hours. The HB web site lists the current draw at 615mA."

That really depended on the quality of the battery. Cheap 400 ma sure. But some of the rechargeable and higher grade batteries are upwards of 2000 ma.


I ran a my depth finder for long time using just 8 rechargeables. Worked fine especially if you dim the screen. Got well over 4 hours of use each trip."

GearJunkie
What kind/model of depth finder were you using?

MagicPaddler: "

GearJunkie: "

MagicPaddler: "

lundojam: "Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight."

Probably not a good idea to run a power hog 5 I mean Helix 5 on AA batteries. A set of 10 good quality AA batteries will last about 2 hours. The HB web site lists the current draw at 615mA."

That really depended on the quality of the battery. Cheap 400 ma sure. But some of the rechargeable and higher grade batteries are upwards of 2000 ma.



I ran a my depth finder for long time using just 8 rechargeables. Worked fine especially if you dim the screen. Got well over 4 hours of use each trip."

GearJunkie
What kind/model of depth finder were you using?
"

The dinosaur below. Sold it with the kayak when I left Denver a few years ago.

GearJunkie: "

MagicPaddler: "

GearJunkie: "

MagicPaddler: "

lundojam: "Nope. If you are talking about battery charging in the bwca, though, consider converting your finder to AA batteries. Easy to carry in an extra set. Works perfect at a fraction of the weight."

Probably not a good idea to run a power hog 5 I mean Helix 5 on AA batteries. A set of 10 good quality AA batteries will last about 2 hours. The HB web site lists the current draw at 615mA."

That really depended on the quality of the battery. Cheap 400 ma sure. But some of the rechargeable and higher grade batteries are upwards of 2000 ma.



I ran a my depth finder for long time using just 8 rechargeables. Worked fine especially if you dim the screen. Got well over 4 hours of use each trip."

GearJunkie
What kind/model of depth finder were you using?
"

The dinosaur below. Sold it with the kayak when I left Denver a few years ago.


"

The one in the picture you are talking about and the one that the original poster are talking about are totally different. It’s not like comparing apples to apples, it’s like comparing apples to Kiwi fruit. Yours is a 4 gray scale that tells the depth and a fish symbol that may or may not be a fish. The original posters fish finder has GPS, navigation chips that let you see lakes in one foot measurements, big color screen, down scan and side scan imaging, sonar, temperature and a lot more goodies. The original posters unit needs and uses a lot of power, and I’m not taking about AAs batteries. I’m talking about 12 volt 8 AH batteries.

Savage Voyageur: "I have no idea about solar chargers but would like to comment. I’m looking forward to learning about chargers for my batteries. I have the same problem with my Lowrance fish finder for my upcoming Ontario trip. I don’t want to run low on power. Your Hummingbird and my Lowrance units need a lot of power.


How many hours are you going to be fishing? I ask this because you said you have 2-8Ah batteries. Your Helix 5 uses 615 ma for power consumption. With your two batteries and your Helix 5 you can use it for 26 hours long before your power is gone. That translates to running it for 5 hours a day for 5 days of fishing. "

Thanks, this was helpful.. I'm going to be fishing mornings and evenings for 6-7 days, so if I got 26 hours out of the 12v batteries and maybe an extra 10-15 hours from recharging I'd be golden. I know these require more power but I don't care, I wanted a good one.